Tennis / Lisa Dillman : Southern California Typifies American Decline

In a few weeks or so, tennis officials in the United States might be able to breathe a sigh of relief, albeit a short one.

By then, perhaps, the wave of post-Masters articles chronicling the decline of American tennis might subside.

Well, at least until the next major tournament.

Considering the absence of an American player in the year-ending Masters, for the first time in the tournament’s history, Sports Illustrated recently addressed the issue in depth.

It might sound harsh, but Southern California was used as an illustration of the decline:

” . . . Suddenly, after (Billie Jean) King and Stan Smith, the line of California champions stopped as if a spigot had been turned off. Except for the momentary (Tracy) Austin interlude, California has ceased to matter in U.S. tennis . . .”

But it’s true. At one time, players who didn’t come from Southern California were the ones who didn’t matter.

So, the best professional players in this country don’t come from Southern California anymore. To a lesser extent, the same holds true with the best juniors.

Behind the scenes, though, there are plenty of national-caliber players living in Southern California. Why, some even manage to come away with No. 1 U.S. rankings.

It’s just that the best players in this division are much closer to collecting Social Security than they are to collecting endorsements.

The spigot has not been turned off--when it comes to the seniors.

Case in point: All four semifinalists in the women’s 40-and-over USTA National Hardcourts last weekend at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club are California residents. Three of the four are from Southern California.

“We really do have good depth here,” said Judy Louie of Newport Beach, who beat Marlene Johnston of Modesto in the final. “There’s the weather, but senior tennis is really encouraged here.”

Louie, 41, a longtime resident of Northern California, recently moved to Newport Beach from Sunnyvale. She isn’t related to the well-known tennis pro Mareen (Peanut) Louie of San Francisco.

“A lot of people ask me that,” Louie said. “Just as long as they don’t ask if I’m Peanut’s mother.”

Louie lost one set during the tournament. That was in the final against Johnston, her longtime rival. They have been playing one another for at least 15 years, and Louie believes she has lost just once to Johnston.

In the final, Louie lost the first set in a tiebreaker. From that point, it turned into a very tense match. Not only was she fighting for a national title, Louie had another goal.

“I’ve been fighting all year for a chance to play in the Young Cup,” Louie said of the yearly international team competition in Europe for women over 40. “Kind of sounds funny for the old ladies, doesn’t it?”

Tennis Notes

John McEnroe is scheduled to meet Sweden’s Stefan Edberg in the next round of the Challenge Series at the Forum on Jan. 26. The Challenge is a year-long, round-robin series between Ivan Lendl, Miloslav Mecir, Edberg and McEnroe. The winner of the series will get $100,000. In the first round, Lendl beat Mecir in straight sets. . . . Noelle Porter of San Clemente placed fourth in the recent USTA National Indoor meet for girls 18 and under at Overland Park, Kan. Porter, seeded fifth in the event, lost in the semifinals to Amy Frazier of Rochester, Mich., 6-2, 6-1. In the same event, Debbie Graham of Fountain Valley lost in the quarterfinals. . . . In the boys’ 18-and-under event in Dallas, Michael Chang of La Costa lost to Malivai Washington of Swartz Creek, Mich., in the quarterfinals, 1-6, 7-6, 6-1. . . . Nicole London and Lindsay Davenport, both of Palos Verdes, lost in the semifinals of the girls’ 12-and-under event. London beat Davenport for third place, 6-3, 6-1.