Look out Bob and Mike Bryan. Minneapolis/St. Paul has its own set of doubles-playing twins who have been making an impact on the local scene longer than they have been alive. Although the world’s number-one ranked doubles team might not be shaking in their adidas shoes, women in the Twin Cities have long been looking for a way to beat this dynamic duo, all the while trying to figure out which one is which.

Identical twins Judy Freeman and Jill Greer are fixtures in USTA League Tennis presented by Chrysler in the Twin Cities. They have participated in the program since its inception in 1980 and after 23 years of “collecting silver balls,” the sisters finally qualified for the 4.0 Senior National Championships in 2005.

“It took us only until we were 50 years old to qualify for the national tournament,” the twins joked. “It was a really great experience to get there and see how everything is run.”

The life-long doubles partners have also developed their own “language” on the court. Like the Bryan Brothers, one is left handed (Greer) and the other right handed (Freeman), although Greer can play with both her left and right hand. They often dress alike confusing their opponents which Freeman says “normally gives us three games a match.” When playing, they know they are about as unconventional as they come, developing a number of unique formations they named themselves including the “Y” and the “Pitcher-Catcher.”

“We always joke that we have four legs and one brain,” Freeman, who is one minute older than Greer, said. “We know we don’t play conventionally. We either have one person out there or three. We have to play as a team because we know we have the same pluses and minuses so we are really good or really bad.”

Good or bad, tennis has given so much to both Freeman and Greer over the years.

“No one ever made us play tennis,” Greer said. “We just played because we wanted to play. Besides it is really in to be a twin in tennis right now.”