Kings of the Court: Bobby Riggs

A natural who won his first racket playing marbles. After Don Budge achieved the first Grand Slam in 1936, he turned pro to tour against Ellsworth Vines. Waiting his turn to take the crown of amateur tennis into his eager young hands was another boy who grew up on the cement courts of the Los Angeles Tennis Club. His name was Bobby Riggs. Most great tennis players have some shots they are blessed with and some they must manufacture. Such was not the case with Riggs. He was the total natural. The entire game came to him as a gift. According to Riggs he actually got started in tennis as the result of a childhood bet. "The first racquet I got, I beat a next door neighbor kid out of it in a marble game. It had adhesive tape all across the strings, and lasted about a week or so." "My second racquet I got from a Mr. Allen who played at the Sycamore Grove courts in LA, and had an Irish Setter. He used to throw his racquet to the dog and the dog would catch it in his teeth and walk off with it. So one day he...