Women’s Professional Tennis: the Original Nine Dollars Part II
Women’s professional tennis as we know it today, is a consequence of the stand taken by nine empowered women who were determined to have equality and fairness as the pillars of their professional lives. Part I of this series detailed the contributions and
efforts of three of the Original Nine Dollars: Billie Jean King, Rosemary “Rosie” Casals and Kristy Pigeon. The remaining six players are Jane “Peaches” Bartkowicz, Valerie Ziegenfuss, Kerry Melville, Julie Heldman, Nancy Richey and Judy Dalton.
The contribution of these women is a major achievement for the tennis world to be grateful for. Stacey Allaster, Chairman and CEO of the WTA said, “Billie Jean King and her team of pioneers – the Original Nine – will forever serve as inspiration for every
woman who has ever had a goal and a dream. Sports are a microcosm of society and Billie Jean and her fellow players were able to use tennis as a platform for social change, one that’s led to incredible opportunities for millions of women around the world.”
One of the Original Nine is Jane Bartkowicz, also known as “Peaches”. She was one of the top female tennis pros from the US in the 1960s. Bartkowicz, who is now 61 years old, was a protégé of tennis players and coaches Jerry and Jean Hoxie.
She amassed many career titles. Some of her greatest achievements are winning both singles and doubles titles for two straight years in 1966 and 1967 at Cincinnati. Peaches has a record of seven victories and no losses in Fed Cup play, and she was a member
of the 1969 Cup-winning US team. During her youth, she won 17 junior titles, one of which was the girls’ singles title at 1964 Wimbledon.
Bartkowicz retired from the sport in 1971, one year after the Virginia Slims Invitational. She has been inducted into the United States Tennis Association/Midwest Hall of Fame, as well as the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Another influential player in the Original Nine Dollars is the American former pro,
Valerie Ziegenfuss. She began playing professional tennis in the beginning of the 1970s, and is most popular for the stand she and eight other players took against the United States Tennis Association in 1970. Their collective actions were
the catalyst for a women’s tennis tour, called the Virginia Slims Circuit. It was the first building block for the WTA Tour, the current principal organizer for women’s tennis.
Ziegenfuss was always more successful as a doubles player, but she reached the fourth round of the French Open in 1972 and the US Open in 1969 and 1975. During the course of her career, she reached one singles final, the 1972 Virginia Slims of Oklahoma.
In doubles, she won a bronze medal with Jane Bartkowicz at the 1968 Olympics. She participated in twelve doubles finals and took away six tournament titles.
The sixth player of the Original Nine is Kerry Melville Reid, an Australian player. She was one of the most successful players from these nine players, and played tennis for around 17 years. Melville Reid amassed 27 singles titles, with
one Grand Slam victory. She was also a finalist in 40 more singles tournaments. In addition to this, she was one of the year-end World Top Ten for 12 straight years from 1968 to 1979. The Aussie pro won at least one tournament every year from 1966 to 1979,
except for the year 1975. From 1971 to 1974, she was World Number 5. Players above her during these years include Margaret Court, Billie Jean King, Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Chris Evert.
The next and final installment will span over the careers of the remaining three players from the Original Nine.
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