Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-07-06
SPORTS SPOTLIGHT
Bitsy Still Has
The Light Touch
By STEVE GUBAcK

WHEN BITSY GRANT played at Wimbledon, he did it
his own way-and shocked the Queen.
At ST. Grant may have lost step two but he still
retains that light touch with his racket when
to STORYTELLING Grant was summing himself the other day
beside the courts Edgemoor with his shirt off and an
iced tea in his hand He still looks bit like jockey
successful one, perhaps since there's touch OF dStn-
guished gray at the temples now.
Grant is playing in the National Senior Clay Courts
CHAMPIONSHIPS the tourney for As and older and had
Just romped through his fourth consecutive match without
the loss of set Feeling at the moment, Grant
could afford look back instead Of ahead, and that
brought him back to Wimbledon and the Queen
"They didn't allow spikes at Wimbledon" Grant said'
$50 decided to play barefooted They had never seen
that before and the word quickly got around This was In
the mid-SOs.
After the matches each day. different group of
players presented to the Queen When our turn came
she looked at me kind of funnyke Well aren't you the
little American who plays without his shoes| she asked
81 got so excited all I could say was 'Yes'm, in my
drawl
well she told me, she had anything quite
like it before"
BITsY LAUGHED TOOK sip Of tea and said that
the wackest player he encountered was Gilbert
Hunt, jr, the nationally ranked star OF the SOs from
Washington.
THE guy had a great game truly great" BitSy said
but you never could him. Like the time he beat
Bobby Riggs the Nationals in 1885, He told everybody
he going to win the first third and fifth sets ana
throw the SecOnQ ana w WV
IT remember playing him in the first grass tourna-
ment at Seabrght We split the first two sets and
out my feet. Well, along comes Hunt up to the
net I'm little tired he says, so I'm gonna give you
the first four games
"I had no more idea of winning that match than the
man on the moon I was just dead. but he let me out
of the trap He gave me the first four games. like ne
said. We split the next four and won' 81
THEY ALWAYS TAG Grants 1888 triumph at Forest
time
pon as his biggest one Grant shook his head NO
body beat Vines" he said wines only beat himself"
What Btsy likes to recall are those five victories
Bulge those days Bulge lost to only two amateurs
in four years. Grant did it five times and Fred Perry
twice.
There was only way to beat Bulge" BitSy said.
Give him nothing slow balls hit You had to pun
sh yourself there but that the way could be
done.
THE greatest ever saw, though" BitSy said was
Pancho Gonzales at his peak. He the big man who
could He had that tremendous serve and he was
doggone steady think he's through now. He's been
out of tough competition too long, and don't believe mes
willing to pay the price any more"
WHEN NOT ON THE tennis courts in Atlanta where
they even have BitSy Grant Tennis Center now, BSy
may be found behind a desk an insurance broker He
has daughter, 49, and son. is.
Nav" BitSy said my boy doesn't play tennis much
All he thinks about is football He plays on team down
there He's small like me. I tell him, dammit, you're
going to get killed but he won't listen Football is sucker
game for anybody that small.
Funny thing though" BitSy smiled. Il was ll8-
pound halfback myself Damnedest thing you ever saw