OPRC Member Spotlight: Keith Richardson

By Mike Holder:

Keith Richardson was born, raised, and still resides in Rock Hill, S.C. He played number one at Appalachian State University (1971-1975) and won the Southern Conference Tournament 3 times (‘73, ‘74, ‘75) at that position. He met his wife, Marilyn, at ASU and the couple recently celebrated their 46th anniversary. They have two children and two grandchildren.
After college, Keith played four years on the ATP and USTA Pro Tour (1976-1979). He would become Head Pro at Benvenue Country Club in Rocky Mount and in 1983  joined Wilkinson Bulluck & Co. in the same city. In 1993, he became part of BB&T Insurance Services, retiring in 2009 before returning to Rock Hill where he joined Peoples First Insurance, specializing in Commercial Insurance and Risk Management. After 32 years in the insurance industry, he retired for good.
As a retirement gift to himself, Richardson joined Olde Providence so he could play every day against the best players in the country and became a member of the “Fight Club” stating, “It’s the best thing I ever did.” He commutes daily to the club and started playing National Senior Tournaments in the 65-and-over age group. He is an avid fly fisherman and loves trout fishing in the North Carolina mountains, and trips out west to Montana, Colorado, and Wyoming.
Keith is a member of the North Carolina and South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame, and Appalachian State University Athletic Hall of Fame.

What would you say is your biggest tennis accomplishment or most memorable moment? 

Beating Eddie Dibbs (# 6 at the time) first round in the 1977 Stockholm Open; Serving 5-2 with set point against Guillermo Vilas ( #1) Columbus, Ohio, 1977, losing 7-6, 7-5; playing my first US Open in 1977 the last year it was held at Forest Hills, losing to Phil Dent; reaching the 3rd round of the US Open in 1979, losing to Dick Stockton; 1977 year-end ATP ranking of #74.  You pick!

What is the biggest lesson you have learned in tennis? 

Anything is possible if you have a solid work ethic and believe.

How has tennis helped you in life? 

It has taught me to have patience, perseverance, and confidence in whatever I pursue. 

What is one piece of advice you could give about the sport? 

Never stop playing! 

In your opinion, what is the best quality to have in tennis? 

Sportsmanship 

What is the biggest difference you see in the sport from the time you began playing?

Power! Radical equipment enhancements (racquets, strings, tensions) for more power; off-court training to include weight training, meditation, full-time coach and physio experts, and diet.

How do you see the sport evolving in the future? 

Even more racquet, string, and equipment enhancements for even more power, possibly a heavier or low compression ball to offset the power/speed of the points, and more emphasis on pre-match, on-court, and post-match fueling. 

If you were to change one thing about the sport, what would it be? 

In College tennis, I would like to see the matches return to a more civilized duel, rather than the screaming and yelling after each point.



Comments

  1. Maude and Tom RootJuly 14, 2021 at 4:23 PM

    Keith, we're delighted you became a member of OPRC. Now, who would you rather play for fun and dough, and WHY, Fred or Pender?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Simple Gadgets and Electronics Photo Employee Newsletter (7)

Image
Food For Thought We, as players, decide to assign importance to certain points more than others and by doing so we also decide when to get frustrated and upset with ourselves on the court. In reality, the match is a compilation of points and just because you missed an easy ball in a tiebreaker at 6-6 does not mean you should give into emotions, because the match is not over yet.
Read more

OPRC Member Spotlight: Tim Wilkison

Image
By Mike Holder: Tim Wilkison had a long and successful career on the tour which included 6 career singles titles and 10 doubles. He had wins against all-time greats such as Arthur Ashe, Boris Becker, Jim Courier, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, and Pete Sampras to name a few.   The Shelby, NC native competed in tournaments around the world including all four grand slams. He was once the number one ranked junior in the United States and would reach a career-high singles ranking of 23 in 1986 as a pro. Wilkison earned the nickname “Dr. Dirt” due to his aggressive, never give up on a point mentality. He is often remembered for his diving volleys on the iconic grass courts of Wimbledon. Since retiring from the tour, Wilkison has coached players of all skill levels for more than 25 years. What was the most memorable match or event of your playing career?    I would say that the matches held at Grand Slam events are the most memorable.  Regular tour events are fairly generic, but you get a real
Read more

OPRC Member Spotlight: Pender Murphy

Image
By Mike Holder: Pender Murphy is a native of Charlotte, attended Charlotte Latin, and would go on to work in commercial real estate for 25 years. He played tennis at Latin, Clemson University, and professionally for three years. Now, he provides tennis instruction to various schools and organizations in Charlotte through TLA Tennis, named in honor of Andy Avram’s late son, Tucker Leighton Avram. Pender has fond memories of playing matches as a kid at Olde Providence on Tuesday nights against players such as Bane Shaw (Ashley’s father), and William Poore.  Murphy was a ball boy at Olde Providence in 1970 when a 15-year-old Chris Evert beat Margaret Court, just two weeks after Court achieved the Grand Slam. Later, he would serve as a ball boy at the Davis Cup final at OP in 1971 when the Stan Smith-led USA team defeated Ilie Nastase, Ion Tiriac, and the Romanian team.  He recalls, “Back then, the ball boys at the baseline would throw the ball to the opposite baseline versus rolling it ha
Read more