Haas takes down Federer to capture Halle title

German Tommy Haas captured his first title in three years by taking down Roger Federer in Sunday's final at the Gerry Weber Open.

Haas defeated Federer, the No. 2 seed, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 in 95 minutes to capture his second title in Halle.

The 34-year-old Haas was playing in his first final since knocking off Novak Djokovic for the Halle crown in 2009. He improved to 13-9 all-time in title matches.

"I don't have many words to say really, except that it is an amazing feeling to win another title in Germany," Haas said. "[Winning] my thirteenth title was a goal of mine to maybe achieve in the coming months, years or however long I am going to play. To have somebody across the net like Roger is a real honor for me. To have that picture with the winning trophy and Roger next to me is something really special, something I'll obviously never forget. I'm just really happy and proud."

Meanwhile, Federer was trying to win this Wimbledon tune-up for a sixth time, taking the title in four straight years from 2003-06 and again in 2008.

The 30-year-old Federer, coming off a semifinal result at the French Open, fell to 4-1 in finals this year after winning in Rotterdam, Dubai, Indian Wells and Madrid. The 16-time Grand Slam champ fell to 74-31 in career title matches.

"I should never have lost the first set. So, obviously that hurt," Federer said. "He got momentum after that. He started to serve a bit better. I missed a few more forehands and missed a few chances earlier on in the second. So, it was a tough match for me to lose really... He was aggressive, he was maybe the more inspired player out there today. And that's why he deserved to win."

Haas beat Federer for the first time since the round of 16 at the 2002 Australian Open, snapping a nine-match losing streak against his good friend. Federer still owns a 10-3 lead in the all-time series.

Haas earned $150,000 for the victory.