And this special season also usually starts with a title in the Northern California tournament that's becoming her home away from Belgium.

Clijsters won her fourth Bank of the West Classic title in six years Sunday, effortlessly beating Patty Schnyder 6-4, 6-2 to stay unbeaten in this event since 2002.

The hardcourt specialist got off to another sterling start in the five events leading up to the U.S. Open, where she won her first Grand Slam title last fall. The well-heeled crowd at the tournament on Stanford's campus cheered loudly for its local favourite during a 52-minute match -- her shorTest of the week.

Clijsters won the tournament in 2001 and 2003, missed the event with an injury one year later, and then repeated her title last year, beating Venus Williams.

"It feels so familiar every time I come back here," said Clijsters, who never faced a break point against Schnyder. "It feels so comfortable. I stay in the same hotel. ... I like the intimate stadium, and from the first time I played here, I had that good feeling. It's only become better over the years."

Yes, Stanford loves Clijsters, and she loves it right back. She has won this tournament more times than anyone except Martina Navratilova, who has six titles in the San Francisco Bay Area's long-running WTA event.

In the final, Clijsters overwhelmed her Swiss opponent with sharp serves, and then ran her ragged with back-and-forth groundstrokes to win her 32nd career title and her second this season, following a victory in Warsaw in May.

If Clijsters makes good on her vow to retire after next season, she'll be sorely missed at the Taube Family Tennis Center. In addition to appearing in promotional events, she also was spotted tooling around Palo Alto on a Vespa scooter with Sebastien Bourdais, the French Champ Car driver who won his second straight San Jose Grand Prix on Sunday.

"I'm playing so far from home, and still see and recognize a lot of people in the stands that support me," Clijsters said. "That hardly ever happens."

Clijsters, the world No. 2, advanced only to the semifinals in all three Grand Slam events this season, losing to fellow Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne at the French Open and Wimbledon.

She hopes to have a better shot in New York after excelling in the U.S. Open Series. Both Clijsters and Schnyder will play next week in San Diego -- and Clijsters already can feel her momentum building.

"My attitude is completely different when I start the clay-court season: Let's get it over with," said Clijsters, who took home the $95,500 winner's share of the $600,000 purse.

"I'm just so happy when I see the green grass at Wimbledon. That's the halfway line through to the hardcourt season. Movement-wise, I just feel a lot more comfortable out on these kinds of courts than any other surface."