Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation

Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation

Edgar A. “Ned” Neely JR, Georgia, 2003

Edgar A. “Ned” Neely JR, Georgia, inducted in 2003Edgar A Neely

  • Started playing tennis at age 8 and won local, state and section champion-ships in the early 1950’s, culminating with his first national singes and doubles titles at the 1955 National Boy’s 15U Singles Championship followed by a title at the National Junior Clay Court Championships
  • Finalist at the 1956 National Interscholastic Championships and ranked 8th in the nation in the Boy’s 18U in 1958
  • 2-time All-American at Georgia Tech leading the Yellow Jackets to the 1960 Southeastern Conference team title, winning SEC championships in singles and doubles and finishing with a doubles record of 55-13
  • After serving in the Marine Corps, joined the professional world tennis circuit making 3 appearances at Wimbledon, 5 at the U. S. Open and playing in every major tennis stadium in the United States, Europe and Australia and ranked number 11 in United States Men’s Singles in the mid-1960’s
  • Gave up the professional circuit to become a lawyer and primarily competed in local and state tournaments since the late 1960’s
  • President of the Georgia Tennis Foundation, board member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame and established the Tennis Academic Program to provide academic and tennis instruction for disadvantaged children ages 8 to 12 at community centers throughout Atlanta
  • Inducted into the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame in 1969 and the Georgia Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991

Leslie Clarke Longshore JR, Alabama, 2003

Leslie Clarke Longshore JR, Alabama, inducted in 2003Leslie Clarke Longshore Jr

  • Played for Tulane University where he won the 1946 Southeastern Conference singles championship
  • A North Carolina state singles champion for 3 years, an Alabama state singles champion once and was ranked in the top 10 in the south for 10 years, including one year as number 1
  • Competed in the United States National Championships (now known as the U. S. Open) between 1952 and 1959 and reached the round of 16 in 1958
  • Coached college tennis for 5 at years Clemson University and 13 years at Samford University
  • Worked as a teaching professional and founded the Southern Professional Tennis Association in 1962 and served as President for 7 years
  • President of the United States Professional Tennis Association in 1974 and 1975
  • President of the Alabama Tennis Association and helped found the Alabama Tennis Hall of Fame in 1986 and was inducted into his state’s hall of fame in 1991

Ann Etheredge, Alabama, 2003

Ann Etheredge, Alabama, inducted in 2003Ann Etheredge

  • One of the greatest women’s players to come out of Alabama and the south winning 22 USTA Gold Balls and 2 USTA Silver Balls
  • Member of numerous Alabama Senior Cup and Southern Intersectional championship teams
  • Played on the winning United States Young Cup and Margaret Court Cup teams
  • Held the number 1 national ranking in both singles and doubles in several age divisions
  • Instrumental in opening the Pelham Racquet Club, a public facility with 20 clay courts and 5 hard courts where she served as Director of Tennis
  • Considered to be one of the top instructors in the South
  • Became the youngest person ever inducted into the Alabama Tennis Hall of Fame in 1997

Carolyn Henry, Mississippi, 2002

Carolyn Henry, Mississippi, inducted in 2002Carolyn Henry

  • Devoted her life to playing and promoting the game in Mississippi and the Southern Section
  • Highly ranked as a junior player at the state, section and national levels, played high school tennis at Crystal Springs High School and went on to play #1 singles and doubles at Mississippi State College for Women where she graduated in 1945
  • Placed first or second in over 190 state, section and national USTA championships since 1972, ranked in the top 3 at the state and section levels every year between 1968 and 2002 and in the top 10 in the nation in singles and doubles between 1987 and 2002
  • Competed on numerous Mississippi Senior Cup and national intersectional teams, including the winning United States team at the Bundy-Cheney Cup in 2001
  • President of the Mississippi Tennis Association and served on many state and section committees
  • Teaching professional for 28 years and a high school tennis coach for 18 years
  • Received the 1988 USTA Southern Touchstone Award and was inducted into the Mississippi Tennis Hall of Fame in 2001

Sam English JR, Kentucky, 2002

Sam English JR, Kentucky, inducted in 2002Sam English

  • Had a long and distinguished list of participation and involvement in tennis for over 60 years
  • Captain of the his Louisville High School team and the Yale University team where he was honored with the tennis sportsmanship award
  • Won over 100 singles and doubles titles between 1945 and 1975 including 4 Kentucky Men’s Singles Championships, 4 Kentucky Doubles Championships and the Southern Parent/Child Doubles Championships
  • Outstanding promoter of the game who was responsible for bringing 70 tournaments to Kentucky, including the USTA Boy’s 18 National Clay Court Championships (where he served as Tournament Director for 35 years), the Louisville International Professional Tennis Classic and the Virginia Slims of Louisville
  • President of the Kentucky Tennis Association for 7 years and a board member for over 20 years
  • Served on the Board of the Kentucky Tennis Patrons Foundation for 45 years and as President in 2001 and 2002
  • Inducted into the Kentucky Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985