Evening star., 1939-08-27

breath, looked up at us in the stands,
grinned and swung his racket in
vicious arc that said quite clearly,
''It amt over yet, fellas. I'm just
starting" He won the next five points
in furious succession to win that game,
and then went on to take the next two
games to run out the set. The third
set was easy for him, and once again
he had snatched a match out Of the
fire at the eleventh hour.
Toying with defeat in this fashion
used to be Riggs's favorite sport. But
no longer after what happened last
summer. In his usual manner he
hadn't been playing his hardest
through various tournaments, bearing
down only when it was absolutely
imperative. He had been cautioned
against this practice but, since hes
continued to win with final flourishes,
he ignored all warnings. One day,
however, he ran up against Gilbert
Hunt when the capable young col
legian was ablaze with ability. When
the time came for Riggs to snatch the
match from the fire in his customary
grandiose finish, Hunt was too hot
and Bobby got his fingers burned.
On the way to the dressing room
Bobby passed Fred Perry, one of those
who had warned him about his in
difference on the court. -
well, Fred" Bobby said without
any bitterness, 1--WE learned my
lesson. | was too cute for my own
good. Playing around doesn't help
your playing. From now on things
will be different"
And, indeed, they have been diff
ferent. The realization that he is
Americas No. l hope for the defense
of the Davis Cup has wrought a con-
siderable change in his outlook got
proof of this transformation last
winter on one of my trips to Chicago.
Bobby called me on the phone and
said he wanted to see me.
"Sure thing. Bobby said. I'VE
can have lunch together
Lunch, heck" he said. II want
to play with you
Later, after our match, in which he
showed amazing improvement in just
the few short months that we had
separated as Cup teammates, he told
me, Don. I've got to help keep the
Cup in this country. | don't want
them to say | fell down on the job
And then he told me how Walter
l.. Pate, the nonplaying captain OF
Americas Cup team, had taken him
aside just before we disbanded last
fall and cautioned him against his
wild desire to play in any and every
tournament in the South and on the
Pacific Coast during the winter. You
see, too much tennis is bad for
player, and in the past Riggs had
come up to the major tournaments
overtennised. Once upon time, and
not so long ago, Riggs would have
laughed right in the face of any
official who tried to tell him what to
do. But not the new Riggs. He said.
"Okay. Cap, anything you say is all
right with me- | want to keep that
Cup over here.
And so. while Bobby bowed his
head and listened intently, Pate out
lined a wise training routine for him
and. as a result, Bobby spent most OF
last winter in gymnasium instead OF
in the lounges of swank tennis clubs.
In addition he did roadwork almost
daily to strengthen his legs.
These legs, developed by consider
able high-school basketball and track
activities, get Bobby around the court
with such speed and agility that his
small stature is not too much OF a
handicap in a game where lanklness
is almost necessity Standing only
five feet eight. Bobby is lowered over
by Tilden, Vines, Perry and myself.
But Bobby doesn't lose any OF his lao
pounds worrying over the long and