The Open Era
United States · born Long Beach, California, 1943 · 20 Wimbledon titles · six times Wimbledon singles champion
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20
Wimbledon titles, 1961 to 1979
6
Wimbledon singles titles, 1966 to 1975
96-15
Wimbledon singles match record
65-0
Wimbledon singles record against unseeded players
11
Major singles titles won on grass, of 12
Born Billie Jean Moffitt in Long Beach, California, in 1943, the daughter of a firefighter, King switched from softball to tennis at 11 and played her first major at the 1959 US Championships, aged 15. She won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles and 11 in mixed. She was ranked world No. 1 in 1966, 1967, 1968, 1971, 1972 and 1974, and in 1971 became the first woman to earn $100,000 in prize money in a year. In 1970 she was one of nine players who signed $1 contracts to start the Virginia Slims circuit; in 1973 she became the first president of the Women's Tennis Association and beat Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes. She won seven Federation Cups as a player and her last singles title at Birmingham in 1983, aged 39.
| Major singles titles | 11: Wimbledon (1966, 1967, 1968, 1972, 1973, 1975); Australian (1968); US (1967, 1971, 1972, 1974) |
|---|---|
| Major singles finals lost | 6: Wimbledon 1963, Wimbledon 1969, Wimbledon 1970, Australian 1969, US 1965, US 1968 |
| Other grass singles titles | 18: Eastern Grass Court Championships 3 (1964, 1965, 1967); Birmingham 2 (1982, 1983); Irish Championships 2 (1963, 1969); Nottingham 2 (1972, 1973); Pennsylvania Championships 2 (1961, 1965); Bristol (1972); Kent (1983); Northern Championships (1966); Sydney (1970); Tasmanian Championships (1968); Victorian Championships (1967); WA Championships (1968) |
| Major doubles titles | 13 doubles (Wimbledon 10, US 3), 8 mixed (Wimbledon 4, Australian 1, US 3) |
| Other grass doubles titles | 5: Queen's 3 (1971, 1972, 1973); Birmingham (1983); Nottingham (1973) |
| Wimbledon doubles | 1961, 1962 with Karen Hantze Susman; 1965 with Maria Bueno; 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1973 with Rosemary Casals; 1972 with Betty Stöve; 1979 with Martina Navratilova |
| Wimbledon mixed | 1967, 1971, 1973, 1974, all with Owen Davidson |
| Wimbledon triple crown | 1967 and 1973: singles, doubles and mixed in the same year. 1973 is the only Open Era triple crown at Wimbledon |
| Wimbledon singles record | 96 wins, 15 losses; never beaten by an unseeded player (65-0) |
| Finals to remember | 1966: beat Maria Bueno 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 for her first major singles title. 1970: lost to Margaret Court 12-14, 9-11; Court needed seven match points. 1975: beat Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6-0, 6-1 |
| Wimbledon | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Women's doubles | with Karen Hantze Susman |
| 1962 | Women's doubles | with Karen Hantze Susman |
| 1965 | Women's doubles | with Maria Bueno |
| 1966 | Women's singles | |
| 1967 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1967 | Mixed doubles | with Owen Davidson |
| 1967 | Women's singles | |
| 1968 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1968 | Women's singles | |
| 1970 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1971 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1971 | Mixed doubles | with Owen Davidson |
| 1972 | Women's doubles | with Betty Stöve |
| 1972 | Women's singles | |
| 1973 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1973 | Mixed doubles | with Owen Davidson |
| 1973 | Women's singles | |
| 1974 | Mixed doubles | with Owen Davidson |
| 1975 | Women's singles | |
| 1979 | Women's doubles | with Martina Navratilova |
| US Championships | ||
| 1964 | Women's doubles | with Karen Hantze Susman |
| 1967 | Women's doubles | with Rosie Casals |
| 1967 | Mixed doubles | with Owen Davidson |
| 1967 | Women's singles | |
| 1971 | Mixed doubles US Open | with Owen Davidson |
| 1971 | Women's singles US Open | |
| 1972 | Women's singles US Open | |
| 1973 | Mixed doubles US Open | with Owen Davidson |
| 1974 | Women's doubles US Open | with Rosie Casals |
| 1974 | Women's singles US Open | |
| Queen's Club | ||
| 1971 | Women's doubles†| with Rosie Casals |
| 1972 | Women's doubles†| with Rosie Casals |
| 1973 | Women's doubles†| with Rosie Casals |
| Nottingham | ||
| 1972 | Women's singles†| |
| 1973 | Women's doubles†| with Rosie Casals |
| 1973 | Women's singles†| |
| Birmingham | ||
| 1982 | Women's singles | |
| 1983 | Women's doubles | with Sharon Walsh |
| 1983 | Women's singles | |
| Pennsylvania Grass Court Championships (Merion) | ||
| 1961 | Women's singles†| |
| 1965 | Women's singles†| |
| Eastern Grass Court Championships (South Orange) | ||
| 1964 | Women's singles†| |
| 1965 | Women's singles†| |
| Australian Championships | ||
| 1968 | Mixed doubles | with Dick Crealy |
| 1968 | Women's singles | |
| Northern Championships | ||
| 1966 | Women's singles†| |
| Victorian Championships | ||
| 1967 | Women's singles†| |
| Irish Championships | ||
| 1969 | Women's singles†Irish Open | |
| New South Wales Championships | ||
| 1970 | Women's singles†New South Wales Open | |
| Christchurch | ||
| 1971 | Women's doubles†| with Rosie Casals |
| Bristol (West of England) | ||
| 1972 | Women's singles†Bristol Open | |
| NSW Building Society Women's Classic | ||
| 1979 | Women's doubles†| with Wendy Turnbull |
| Toyota Classic (Melbourne) | ||
| 1979 | Women's doubles†| with Wendy Turnbull |
| National Panasonic Open | ||
| 1982 | Women's doubles | with Anne Smith |
Leading grass titles only: the grass majors, tour-level grass events since 1968 and the leading grass championships before 1968. †single source; ‡ sources disagree. Roll of champions
"She has prominently affected the way 50 percent of society thinks and feels about itself in the vast area of physical exercise."
The person behind the player.
Long Beach, 1950s
The minister at her family's church in Long Beach was Bob Richards, twice Olympic pole vault champion. When she was 13 or 14 he asked her what she was going to do with her life. "Reverend, I'm going to be the best tennis player in the world," she told him.
Source: WikipediaWimbledon 1961
The Long Beach Tennis Patrons, the Century Club and Harold Guiver raised $2,000 to send the 17-year-old to Wimbledon. With Karen Hantze, aged 18, she won the ladies' doubles at the first attempt, beating Jan Lehane and Margaret Court 6-3, 6-4, the youngest pair to take the title.
Source: WikipediaWimbledon 1962
In the second round she attacked Margaret Court's forehand and beat the world No. 1. It was the first time in Wimbledon history that the top seed in the ladies' singles had lost her opening match. Court beat her in the final the following year.
Source: WikipediaLondon 1973
On 21 June 1973 more than 50 women met at the Gloucester Hotel near Queen's Club. King had Betty Stöve guard the door to keep players in and reporters out until they agreed a plan. "In my mind, it was now or never," King said. The meeting founded the WTA and elected her president.
Source: WTAHouston 1973
Bobby Riggs, the 1939 Wimbledon champion, arrived at the Astrodome in a rickshaw. King came in on a gold litter carried by members of the Rice University men's track team, wearing a Ted Tinling dress, her second choice. Before 30,492 spectators she won 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. The two later became friends.
Source: International Tennis Hall of FameWimbledon 1979
Her 20th Wimbledon title, the doubles with Martina Navratilova, broke the record of 19 held by Elizabeth Ryan. They beat Betty Stöve and Wendy Turnbull 5-7, 6-3, 6-2 in the final, one day after Ryan collapsed at the All England Club and died.
Source: WikipediaFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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