Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation

Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation

Roy R. Barth, South Carolina, 1999

Roy R. Barth, South Carolina, inducted in 1999Roy R Barth

  • Began winning national championships at the age 13 in San Diego and consistently maintained top national rankings throughout his junior career
  • Played #1 singles and doubles at UCLA where he was a 2-time All-American and won the 1969 Pacific Eight singles and doubles titles and was a doubles finalist at the 1968 NCAA Championships
  • Spent 7 years on the professional tour playing in all 4 grand slam tournaments and reaching a top 8 United States men’s  singles rankings, top 2 United States men’s doubles rankings and a no. 45 world singles ranking before retiring and moving to Kiawah Island, South Carolina, as the Director of Tennis where he has won numerous USPTR senior doubles championships and over 15 Southern senior doubles championships
  • Coached the 1975 United States Wightman Cup team, 3 USTA Southern 18U Intersectional teams (winning 1 title) and the United States Italia Cup (Men’s 35-and over) to 2 titles in 5 years
  • President of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) for term of February 2015 – February 2018, founding member of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), founding member and past President of USPTR, President of the South Carolina Tennis Association and Chairman of the South Carolina Tennis Patrons Foundation
  • Co- Chaired the USTA Davis/Fed Cup/Olympic Committee as Chair of the USTA Davis Cup Committee for six years
  • Co-chaired the USTA Davis Cup Committee several terms
  • Received the USTA Southern Charles B. Morris Volunteer Service Award in 2010, the USTA Southern Jacobs Bowl Volunteer Service Award in 2016  and has been inducted into the Hoover High School Sports Hall of Fame, the San Diego Tennis Hall of Fame, the UCLA Sports Hall of Fame and the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame

Dennis van der Meer, South Carolina, 1998

Dennis van der Meer, South Carolina, inducted in 1998Dennis Van Der Meer

  • Teaching professional for over 50 years during which time he coached hundreds of players ranging from beginners to world-class players, including Billie Jean King and Margaret Court
  • Founder and President of the United State Professional Tennis Registry (USPTR), headquartered on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, in 1976
  • Authored numerous instruction books and videos and taught more people to teach and play tennis than anyone in the world
  • Popularized the Stand Method of teaching, a model of stroke demonstration and teacher certification and has developed and nourished the careers of thousands of tennis coaches, both in the United States and internationally
  • Named the 1969 USTA Outstanding Educator, the 1983 Southern Pro of the Year, the 1997 United States Olympic Committee Developmental Coach of the Year for the sport of tennis and is a PTR International Master Professional
  • Founded and hosted the South Carolina Junior All-star camp for the top ranked junior players in the state in 1985 and donated his facilities and staff to host the weekend event on Hilton Head Island for over 20 years
  • Inducted into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987, the PTR Hall of Fame in 2013 and the USPTA Hall of Fame in 2015

Wilton McKinney, South Carolina, 1997

Wilton McKinney, South Carolina, inducted in 1997Wilton McKinney

  • An active junior player and captain of both the Greenville High School and University of South Carolina tennis teams
  • Considered the patriarch of South Carolina tennis as the first volunteer to become involved in the sport at the local, state, sectional and national levels
  • Served as Director of Tennis at Greenville Country Club where the center court is named in his honor
  • Volunteer tennis coach at Greenville High School for 25 years, winning 16 state championships, 3 Southern championships and finishing third in the nation twice.
  • Served as President of the South Carolina Tennis Association, on the Southern Tennis Association Executive Committee, chaired the STA Umpire’s Committee, served on numerous other state, section and national committees, coached the Junior Davis Cup team and refereed the South Boys Open
  • Became the first person inducted into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1982 and in 1986 the state established the Wilton McKinney Award in his honor, the state’s highest junior award
  • Attended every Southern Tennis Association Annual Meeting for over 50 consecutive years, did extensive work to document the history of Southern tennis and was awarded the USTA Southern Jacobs Bowl

William Jacobs, South Carolina, 1988

William Jacobs, South Carolina, inducted in 1988William Jacobs

  • Responsible for bringing the South out of the “Tennis Dark Ages” during the late 1930’s
  • President of Presbyterian College where he became known as the “Founder of the Tennis Clinic” in 1936 when he hosted the first regional tennis clinic, a format adopted by the USLTA the following year as its model for the organization
  • Organized South Carolina’s first big time tennis exhibition in 1940 featuring Don Budge, Mary Hardwick, Bill Tilden and Alice Marble.
  • Appointed Bobby Riggs as a traveling public relations representative for Presbyterian College and hired Bill Lufler as clinic director and the school’s first full time tennis coach, and Presbyterian was ranked in the top 10 nationally during that era and gained the nickname of “Tennis Tech”
  • Served as President of the Southern Lawn Tennis Association and Vice President of the United States Lawn Tennis Association
  • Published the AMERICAN LAWN TENNIS MAGAZINE and authored several books on tennis, including “Tennis, Builder of Citizenship” in which he emphasized court demeanor and sportsmanship and proper stroke techniques
  • The Jacobs Bowl, the highest volunteer honor presented by USTA Southern, was established in his memory and he was inducted into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1986