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WINSTON-SALEM — It was a perfect week for John Isner in just about every way he could have imagined.

Isner, playing in the innaugural Winston-Salem Open, beat qualifier Julien Benneteau 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the ATP event Saturday. But more importantly, he got to do it near his hometown of Greensboro, which allowed him to relax and finish the week with confidence heading into the U.S. Open in New York.

“It means a lot for sure. Anytime you can win a tournament at this level it’s a huge accomplishment,” Isner said. “And for me personally this is great because I did it here, in virtually in my hometown. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. This is perfect preparation for me heading up north.”

Isner said he didn’t always play his best tennis during the week, but he found a way to win crucial points. He had to overcome a slow start in the final to win his second title on the tour this year.

“It was very different in the fact that I’ve gone home instead of going to a hotel,” the Page alumnus said of his week. “I get to relax on my parents’ patio and watch TV and throw the ball to my dog. It was perfect. It was everything I needed.

“Sometimes when you don’t play perfect and win, those are the ones that give you confidence. Mentally, it’s a bit relaxing because I know that if I’m in a hole in my first round match (at the U.S. Open) I can just kind of calm down and know that I won my last tournament. It’s just all about confidence and for me that is what I feel like I have right now.”

Isner will fly to New York on Monday in tournament sponsor Don Flow’s private plane, along with Andy Roddick. His first-round match at the U.S. Open is Wednesday.

When thinking back to his North Carolina roots, Isner still has fond memories of winning his first tournament at age 7 on a private court in the backyard of a residence in Mount Airy.

“I remember going to Mount Airy and all these little towns ... Reidsville, Kernersville. I was just playing local tournaments and it was fun,” Isner said.

He looked tentative at times in the first set Saturday and it cost him against a very deliberate effort from Benneteau. Benneteau stayed with Isner before breaking his serve in the ninth game to take a 5-4 lead, then serving out the set.

Isner said the wind was swirling on the court and his opponent did a better job of adjusting in the early stages of the match.

“Obviously it’s (the wind) the same for both, but he was handling better than I was. A lot of times when playing in the wind you have to play to a big margin of the court and try not go for lines,” Isner said. “I felt like I was going for lines too much and the balls just weren’t finding the court. You have to be on top of your footwork in the wind and that’s what he was doing a lot better than me.”

Isner didn’t break Benneteau until the eighth game of the second set . He hit three aces in his next service game to force a third set.

“I was just lackluster out there for a good part of that match, especially in the first set, and I just told myself to try and get my intensity up, try to move ahead a little bit in my return game,” Isner said. “My goal was try to get ahead early in his service game and I did at 4-3 and broke him, and I felt confident for the rest of the match.”

In the third set, Isner got an early break when Benneteau hit a couple of unforced errors, giving Isner a 3-2 lead. Isner wouldn’t lose his serve again and hit the hardest ace of the match at 139 mph in his final serve to claim the third set, and the match, 6-4.