Julie Ganz - The Little Green Book of Tennis Wisdom

BenGoode, courtesy of iStockphoto Copyright 2016 by Julie Ganz All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018. Skyhorse Publishing books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or .

Skyhorse and Skyhorse Publishing are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Visit our website at www.skyhorsepublishing.com. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file. Photo on pages iv-vii JOFoster, courtesy of iStockphoto Cover design by Tom Lau Cover photo credit Shutterstock ISBN: 978-1-5107-0628-6 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-0629-3 Printed in China To my sister, who will always be my partner of choice on the tennis court. Acknowledgments To all of those tennis players, coaches, and gurus whose words inspired me, thank you. To my husband, who dealt with my quote-finding quest for months on end, thank you for your patience.

And to my parents, without whom I would never have developed a passion for this sport for life, an extra special thank you! Contents I NTRODUCTION I ve experienced every emotion when it comes to tennis, which is one of the reasons I love the game so much. No, its not always easy on the body, nor is it always fair on the mind. The quotes in this book from legendary tennis writers and players like Bud Collins, Steve Tignor, Jon Wertheim, John McEnroe, Arthur Ashe, Roger Federer, Monica Seles, Billie Jean King, and this years Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year, Serena Williams, prove just that. History has not always been easy on the tennis players (or the fans, for that matter), but in many other ways, it has been incredibly rewarding and magical, proving its reputation as a game for life. When I think back on my experience of playing tennis as a youth, mostly I feel happy, reflecting on a strong backhand down the line or a sharp volley at the net that sends my opponent flailing and my doubles partner over to clink her racket against mine. Or I recall my grandparents watching my sister and me battling it out under the Florida sun and making us feel like we were capable of a Williams sisters featthe ultimate compliment, of course.

But reflections of life on the tennis court bring up some intense feelings of frustration as well, over the forehand that doesnt have enough topspin or the serve that just cant seem to catch enough speed. Tennis is also one of those games that gets under your skin. Theres a reason that love is a big part of the sport. Regrettably, life in the big city does not offer as many opportunities to play tennis, but I feel fortunate to have developed a passion for the game at a young age, an adoration that will never cease, regardless of how often I make it out onto a court these days. A few months ago, my husband and I visited the museum at Wimbledon. It was a fairly long walk from the tube station to the tennis complex, and at certain points I wondered if wed made a wrong turn.

But then suddenly, I heard a familiar pop, and there in front of us was one of the side courts. It was almost odd, the sense of calm that immediately engulfed me upon our arrival there. The sense of excitement and feeling that I was somewhere special and historic was irreplaceable. I hope the quotes that follow take you through a wide range of emotions. I hope they make you laugh, cry, think, or learn something. I hope they make you feel like youre on Centre Court, even if youre miles away.

Julie Ganz Winter 2015 P ART ONE History and Evolution of the Game The name first applied to court tennis and later to lawn tennis is elusive and mysterious... The word that began as tenes and ended as tennis has passed through twenty-four transformations, four variations of five letters, twelve of six letters, seven of seven letters, and one of eight letters. MALCOLM D. WHITMAN , Tennis: Origins and Mysteries Unlike sports such as baseball and golf that revere their champions of the past, tennis increasingly tries to distance itself from them. RON COBB It is not only the sum of ball games. It is the absolute in games.

No one, it is probable, has yet sounded the depths of court tennis, and players of the greatest genius cannot master its fine potentialities. LONDON SPECTATOR (1912) [Major Walter Wingfield] popularized this game enormously. He was absolutely terrific at marketing and he sent his game all over the world. HONOR GODFREY By all accounts, even allowing for a degree of sycophantic flattery, [Henry VIII] was a world-class [tennis] player. ALISON WEIR , Henry VIII: The King and His Court Before the Open era, tennis was, as Bud Collins once called it, the secret sport, hidden away from Americas great unwashed behind ivy-covered walls. STEVE TIGNOR The arrival of Open tennis forty years ago indisputably helped turn tennis players into household names.

It brought the sports professionalsits biggest stars, its largest personalitiesinto the game. USTA , The Open Book In those heady days, so influenced by the egalitarian revolution of the 1960s, grass was not a substance on which you played tennis but an illicit weed that you smoked. PETER BODO , The Courts of Babylon Its an abnormal world I live in. Its like Im floating down the middle. Im never quite sure where I am. It does bother me that Im in this predicament, but I dont dwell on it, because I know it will resolve itself.

ARTHUR ASHE Bogaerts, Rob/Anefo, via Wikimedia Commons Anyone who wouldnt watch Arthur Ashe play tennis wouldnt watch Picasso paint, Hemingway write, a diamond cut, Astaire dance, or Gielgud act. Nobody calls him Art, but he is. JIM MURRAY As he turned back the field at the US Open past week, Arthur Ashe seemed a spectator to his own success. DAVID WOLF Like the Babe or [boxer Jack] Dempsey, [Ashe] found a sport chained in the dungeon and subsisting on bread and water. Everybody was playing tennis but no one was watching it. JIM MURRAY Id much rather people knew me as a good tennis player than as an aboriginal who happens to play good tennis.

Of course Im proud of my race, but I dont want to be thinking about it all the time. EVONNE GOOLAGONG Arthur [Ashe] and Billie Jean [King] tore down foundations. They did this to enable people to have a chance to survive in life. Without people like them, tennis wouldnt be where it is today. NICK BOLLETTIERI , Bollettieri: Changing the Game What the women got out of when I beat [Bobby] Riggs was self-confidence and higher self-esteem. For the first time they were asking for a raise, for instance.