Thoughts about Tennis Tradition...

[don_budge]

Won't Get Fooled Again…The Who

Indulge me…the last time. I promise. There is a reason for everything…method in my madness. Trust me…you had to have seen this live.

Won't Get Fooled Again…The Who (1971)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rp6-wG5LLqE

We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgement of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again

The change, it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the fold, that's all
And the world looks just the same
And history ain't changed
'Cause the banners, they are flown in the next war

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
No, no!

I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
Though I know that the hypnotized never lie
Do ya?

There's nothing in the streets
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Are now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss

[don_budge]

Happy Jack…The Who

More of "The Who"…a great rock and roll band from the beginning of time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52cQeFBU2Kw

"Happy Jack"…The Who 1966

Happy Jack wasn't old, but he was a man
He lived in the sand at the Isle of Man
The kids would all sing, he would take the wrong key
So they rode on his head on their furry donkey

The kids couldn't hurt Jack
They tried and tried and tried
They dropped things on his back
And lied and lied and lied and lied and lied

But they couldn't stop Jack, or the waters lapping
And they couldn't prevent Jack from feeling happy

But they couldn't stop Jack, or the waters lapping
And they couldn't prevent Jack from feeling happy

The kids couldn't hurt Jack
They tried and tried and tried
They dropped things on his back
And lied and lied and lied and lied and lied

But they couldn't stop don_budge, or the waters lapping
And they couldn't prevent don_budge from feeling happy

(I saw ya!)

[bottle]

How cool that this decision came the same day as the other one.

[don_budge]

GOLF...sporting world's oldest traditional sport

Another tradition bites the dust. Don't worry sheeple...it's all good.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/18/sport/golf/golf-ra-female-members/index.html?hpt=hp_bn2

GOLF...Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden

[don_budge]

Rock and Roll is dead...Gene Simmons

He's probably just a nut case...don't listen to him. Obviously he doesn't know what he is talking about...although I have been saying the same thing for years. The most obvious of truths.

There are some obvious parallels to be drawn...but some people don't want to see it. Some are afraid to admit it. Most are certainly petrified to voice their opinions because if they fall outside of the parameters of being politically correct they will undoubtably be vilified or even worse...be made fun of by some small minded people.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/08/showbiz/music/rock-is-dead-gene-simmons-esquire/index.html?hpt=hp_c5

"Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rapidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a piece of shit by the clean end."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmyGa29zIqk

[don_budge]

Political Correctness...

"Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rapidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a piece of shit by the clean end."

Thought for the day posted at a news website that I read on a semi-regular basis.

[lobndropshot]

I thought you would appreciate this line from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools."

[don_budge]

Tradition...Paradise Lost

"Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find that money cannot be eaten." -- Cree Indian Prophecy

[don_budge]

Tennis Etiquette...Lost in the Flood

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/25/sp...owel.html?_r=0

Another symptom of the demise of tennis into modern tennis...the towel.

The problem with the demise of tradition is that the demise of the entire structure is soon to follow.

As tennis so appropriately serves as a metaphor for life you can see how "classic tennis" has morphed into "modern tennis". Appreciation for the past is scoffed at and even ridiculed. Leaving the present so open and vulnerable for what? The biggest and the loudest? Shock and awe? Belligerence?

Tennis etiquette used to be the rule of thumb but it was summarily dismissed when the ITF allowed for a new standard in equipment. What was left is what you see today...and even witness on this forum. A lack of decorum...or even good taste. But just look around you...it is the same symptoms all over. What is the solution? Where are the answers?

[don_budge]

My 2,002nd post...(1.18 per day)

Dear tennisplayer.net...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXcz4MKygAQ

Thank you for indulging me as I indulge myself...as I have indulged myself in my 2,000 and counting posts. As of now I have posted 2,002 times...in my official approximately 1,700 days of membership here at tennisplayer.net. I never posted the first 445 days of my membership as I was not even aware that there was a forum on the website...such is my ignorance. Such was my ignorance. I'm learning...evolving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmyGa29zIqk

Paris was a place you could hide away
if you felt you didn't fit in
French police wouldn't give me no peace
They claimed I was a nasty person
Down along the Left Bank minding my own
Was knocked down by a human stampede
Got arrested for inciting a peacful riot...

When I first started posting I was inspired by bottle's "New Year's Serve" thread and I wrote to him...as an English professor. I wrote to him of my desire to write...to learn to be a writer. His advise to me..."know your audience. Good luck." Thanks Professor John Escher...sound words of wisdom.

To all of you tennis players and coaches...best of luck to each and everyone of you. It simply doesn't matter if we agree or disagree...or even if we like each other.

When I was growing up...it was tennis that helped to inspire me to be the man that I grew up to be. After I had grown up...it was tennis and golf that gave me the therapy that I needed to cope. As I get older it is tennis that gives me something that I can hand down...to the next generations. I always try to tell the truth...even when I lie.

The question is only one of respect...for the game! The question is one of love...for life!

Sincerely yours

don_budge

[don_budge]

Lies...the usual suspects

"A lie told often enough becomes the truth." -- Vladimir Lenin

“If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.” -- Adolf Hitler

"It doesn't change a thing...but if it does change things it will be for the better. Honest." --ITF (on large racquets)

[stotty]

The draw for the 1980 French Open men's singles...

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Share/Event-Draws.aspx?Year=1980&EventId=520&Draw=ms

You're right, the draw sheets say a lot. I totted up the number of games Borg lost on his march to victory...just 38. I thought that might be a record. I was shocked to find it wasn't. Borg bettered that record two years earlier, winning the French Open for the loss of just 32 games.

We all know Borg was on a different level back then on clay so we shouldn't be surprised, but just imagine the level on concentration it must have taken to do that. Players couldn't hit opponents off with wood as players can these days with modern rackets. He must have broken opponents down with sheer attrition.

Erik van Dillen...what happened to him?...and Kim Warwick?

[don_budge]

Every Draw Sheet Tells a Story...Rod Stewart

Those draw sheets are interesting, aren't they? You get to see how players at times squeezed through the draw. Old forgotten names get brought back to life.

I firmly believe that I didn't need anyone but me
I sincerely thought I was so complete
Look how wrong you can be

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmyGa29zIqk

"Every Picture Tells A Story"...Rod Stewart (1971)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSAGmcxPSRs

Spent some time feelin' inferior
standing in front of my mirror
Combed my hair in a thousand ways
but I came out looking just the same

Daddy said, "Son, you better see the world
I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave
But remember one thing don't lose your head
to a woman that'll spend your bread"
So I got out

Paris was a place you could hide away
if you felt you didn't fit in
French police wouldn't give me no peace
They claimed I was a nasty person
Down along the Left Bank minding my own
Was knocked down by a human stampede
Got arrested for inciting a peacful riot
when all I wanted was a cup of tea
I was accused
I moved on

Down in Rome I wasn't getting enough
of the things that keeps a young man alive
My body stunk but I kept my funk
at a time when I was right out of luck
Getting desperate indeed I was
Looking like a tourist attraction
Oh my dear I better get out of here
'for the Vatican don't give no sanction
I wasn't ready for that, no no

I moved right out east yeah!
On the Peking ferry I was feeling merry
sailing on my way back here
I fell in love with a slit eyed lady
by the light of an eastern moon
Shangai Lil never used the pill
She claimed that it just ain't natural
She took me up on deck and bit my neck
Oh people I was glad I found her
Oh yeah I was glad I found her

I firmly believe that I didn't need anyone but me
I sincerely thought I was so complete
Look how wrong you can be

The women I've known I wouldn't let tie my shoe
They wouldn't give you the time of day
But the slit eyed lady knocked me off my feet
God I was glad I found her
And if they had the words I could tell to you
to help you on the way down the road
I couldn't quote you no Dickens, Shelley or Keats
'cause it's all been said before
Make the best out of the bad just laugh it off
You didn't have to come here anyway
So remember, every picture tells a story don't it

So remember...every draw sheet tells a story.

Go ahead...listen to the video and read the lyrics at the same time...I dare you!

[stotty]

The draw for the 1980 French Open men's singles...

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Share/Event-Draws.aspx?Year=1980&EventId=520&Draw=ms

I just love these video clips of these great finals of Grand Slams...but the real story is often in the draw sheets. It is how the contestants got to the finals that often precludes the results of the actual championship match.

I love the old clips too. I share your passion. It's interesting looking at these old matches again how I notice things I never noticed back then. I think Tennisplayer has taught me a lot in this respect. It's made me look at strokes differently and identify key points.

I saw Vitas play at Queens Club one year. He was incredibly quick around the net and had terrific reflexes. He was nice to watch.

Those draw sheets are interesting, aren't they? You get to see how players at times squeezed through the draw. Old forgotten names get brought back to life.

[don_budge]

1980 French Open Championships...Bjorn Borg vs. Vitas Gerulaitis l

Borg v Gerulaitis in the 1980 French Open final.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGvgXpuSKaE

Vitas is no match for Borg on clay but some of the rallies are good. Vitas's forehand is interesting as the backswing varies in size depending on the shot he is playing. His backswing goes beyond the plane of the body whenever he tries to get increased topspin. But no matter how well Vitas plays there is no way through. Borg can rally forever and Vitas's game cannot stand up to it. Nevertheless this short clip is attractive to watch.

Borg was the forerunner to the modern game in so many ways. He had the forehand grip that produced topspin by default while few other players of that era had...the rest is history.

I just love the way Borg blankets the court. Correct me if I am wrong but has any player ever moved better?

The draw for the 1980 French Open men's singles...

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Share/Event-Draws.aspx?Year=1980&EventId=520&Draw=ms

I don't know...I don't think that Borg was the forerunner of the modern game which I associate with bigger equipment. But I certainly understand what you mean about the grips and the two handed style of play. The thing is...Borg was a great all court player as well. His game certainly "evolved" to encompass all of the various styles of play back then. His game certainly stood the test of different surfaces.

But this is an incredible clip. Vitas Gerulaitis was just a notch below the Big Three of yesteryear...Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. Vitas had a lifetime record of 515-223...not to shabby. Boy if you put the four of them together they just about cover the spectrum of play back then. Four very diverse interpretations of the game...something that seems to be sorely lacking in "modern tennis". Correct me if I am wrong.

But Vitas was an incredible performer day in day out in spite of his reputation of a balls out partier. Take this run to the French Open finals against Borg. He won against Peter Elter in the first round in five sets, second round dispatched Fritz Buehning who was also a Hopman protege in straight sets, then he defeated a Czech that I have never heard of in four sets and then he beat Ferdi Taygan in straight sets. He was just getting warmed up though as he defeated the great Polish player Wojtek Fibak in five sets and then he had a monumental tussle with Jimmy Connors whom he beat in five in the semis. I think it would be safe to say the Vitas had also done his fair share of partying in the Paris atmosphere of the "Parisian Hour" not to mention partnering with the great Australian Fred Stolle in the doubles. They eventually lost to the winners of the doubles Victor Amaya and Henry Pfister. Victor being a 1972 graduate of high school in Michigan, same as me...he was really a sight to behold. About 6'7", a mountain of big left handed power...coached by the great Welby Van Horn according to legend.

Bjorn Borg on the other hand cut down on his activities and had a ferocious run to the finals. He never lost a set the entire tournament. He went through the draw like a hot knife through melting butter. Take a look at his semifinal result against one Harold Solomon...6-2, 6-2, 6-0. He just pounded the American clay court specialist into the red clay of Roland Garros. Most impressive stuff...he was blanketing the court the whole tournament that's for certain. Suffocating the opposition in the process.

I just love these video clips of these great finals of Grand Slams...but the real story is often in the draw sheets. It is how the contestants got to the finals that often precludes the results of the actual championship match.