Best tennis player among celebrities?
- Thread starter tandayu
- Start date
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
Not sure why any of this is even being debated. The answer is Vince Van Patten and no one else even rates a mention. He was ranked in the 20's at one point, won a 500 event and beat Mac several times. Matthew Perry (or anyone else) isn't even in the same hemisphere as Vince.
cluckcluck
Hall of Fame
Timothy Olyphant is a pretty good player. I've seen him hit a few times and I thought he played rather well. He was also a top swimmer at UCLA.
GabeT
G.O.A.T.
GabeT
G.O.A.T.
Stilljonesing
Rookie
I believe John Lucas the NBA player and coach was state champ in North Carolina. That's the rumor I always heard at least.
Stilljonesing
Rookie
Yes, it's on his Wiki page
Damn he played Tennis too at Maryland and was an All American tennis player. Reached the SF of a challenger event in 1979. #579 in the world was his highest ranking and he wasn't even playing then, he was an NBA player it was just the summer when 28. How about that, first time I ever actually looked it up. I had forgotten it as this was only 1990's urban legend at the time before the internet was capable.
Says he coached Stephy Graf in world team tennis.
John Lucas was the #1 draft pick in the NBA BTW had a long solid career. Wonder what he could have done in tennis had he went that way.
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D
Deleted member 716271
Guest
His wife is the real prize, still looks great at almost 60!
Stilljonesing
Rookie
Tennis channel feature on John Lucas
Shaolin
G.O.A.T.
Gus Hansen also a famous poker pro is said to be an excellent player and was a really good junior in Denmark or wherever.
Actress Elizabeth Shue is really good...actually true to play futures I think in her 30s or 40s.
BounceHitBounceHit
Legend
Kenny was a 4.5’ish player. A close friend of mine (a former WTA top 50) was his private coach for a time.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
mikespinstowin
Rookie
George Bush Sr. was quite good.
AllPlayersAreGood
Rookie
His mother was even ranked as a tennis player.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Dino (Dean Paul) Martin Jr, son of Dean Martin, would have kicked Cosby's tush from the late 1960s thru the early/mid '80s. Dino was a pop/rock singer (late 60s) and actor during the 70s thru much of the 80s. He played at a very high junior level (junior Wimbledon) and at a semi-pro level afterward. Could have conceivably turned pro. Check out his level of play in the 1979 film, Players. Also check out Dino's athletic dives, at the net, for the ball in the Wimbledon sequences in Players. This was quite a few years before we saw Boris Becker doing the same thing.
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SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
@BeatlesFan @GabeT
Not a great film but Players did feature some outstanding tennis sequences.
Note: Vince van Patten lost out to Dino Martin for the starring role in Players.
https://www.sfgate.com/entertainmen...Van-Patten-was-child-actor-tennis-6187808.php
Not a great film but Players did feature some outstanding tennis sequences.
Note: Vince van Patten lost out to Dino Martin for the starring role in Players.
https://www.sfgate.com/entertainmen...Van-Patten-was-child-actor-tennis-6187808.php
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SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
@StringGuruMRT
How long can you hold your breath? Might be a brief wait for an answer from that poster (hasn't logged in since 2006). Kaley C was regionally ranked as a junior in So Cal. She might still do some playing for a Southern California Tennis Association team. In 1998, Kaley was ranked #54 in Girl's 14 Singles for the Southern California Tennis Association.
http://www.californiatennis.com/usta/SCTARanks/SCTA1998junior.htm
I noticed that Alexa Glatch was ranked #10 for Girl's 10 Singles in the SCTA list above. I recall watching her play at the USTA Girls' 18 Championships around 2004 or 2005. I believe that she won in doubles (with Vania King) and might have lost in the singles final. I think that she might have been approached by both Stanford and UCLA to play. She accepted at UCLA but then decided to turn pro instead. Highest rank of 102 for singles and 98 for doubles about 9 years ago.
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How long can you hold your breath? Might be a brief wait for an answer from that poster (hasn't logged in since 2006). Kaley C was regionally ranked as a junior in So Cal. She might still do some playing for a Southern California Tennis Association team. In 1998, Kaley was ranked #54 in Girl's 14 Singles for the Southern California Tennis Association.
http://www.californiatennis.com/usta/SCTARanks/SCTA1998junior.htm
I noticed that Alexa Glatch was ranked #10 for Girl's 10 Singles in the SCTA list above. I recall watching her play at the USTA Girls' 18 Championships around 2004 or 2005. I believe that she won in doubles (with Vania King) and might have lost in the singles final. I think that she might have been approached by both Stanford and UCLA to play. She accepted at UCLA but then decided to turn pro instead. Highest rank of 102 for singles and 98 for doubles about 9 years ago.
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SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Farrah Fawcett was an avid player. First saw her with a racket in I Dream of Jeannie (late 1960s). In the scene below from Charlie's Angels (late 1970s), she plays better than the guy cast as the club pro. Looks to be playing at a high intermediate level here. Classic 70s forehand finish.
Farrah with the van Pattens. Vince van Patten, her coach, is hiding behind Farrah. (@BeatlesFan)
Farrah with the van Pattens. Vince van Patten, her coach, is hiding behind Farrah. (@BeatlesFan)
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True Fanerer
G.O.A.T.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Now he may be a great tennis player but is he a real celebrity?
I remember him in the 1970s as an actor/celeb before he he turned pro in the late 70s. Numerous commercials & several dozen acting credits (Bonanza, Adam 12, Wonder Woman, etc) before he turned 20. Retired from tennis in the late 80s. Reinvented himself as a poker player and then a commentator for the World Poker Tour. Also a celeb by association -- Most famous relatives are Dick van Patten (dad), Joyce van Patten (aunt), Talia Balsam (cousin).
Red Rick
Bionic Poster
No idea who he was, but I might have heard him cause I used to be a huge poker fan.
One of the high stakes pro's Patrik Antonius was on his way to becoming a tennis pro before injury made him even more Finnish than he already was.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
I hear Donald Trump is a decent player ...
So he tells us. Not fake news. Proof positive that he's one 'bad hombre' on the court:
heninfan99
Talk Tennis Guru
Does Dean Martin's son, Dean Paul Martin, count as famous? According the Connors book he was quite good.
Tshooter
G.O.A.T.
Remember the TV show “The White Shadow” ? His (half) Uncle Timothy Van Patten acted in it. After acting the Uncle went into screenwriting and directing and directed a lot of HBO shows including more episodes of The Sopranos than anyone else.
Did he prepare his opponents water bottles?
Tshooter
G.O.A.T.
Now he may be a great tennis player but is he a real celebrity?
Every bit or more than this guy:
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jackdaw
Rookie
So he tells us. Not fake news. Proof positive that he's one 'bad hombre' on the court:
Ah jaysus!!!!!
I can't unsee that fat arse now!!!!
Notirouswithag
Professional
He's good from what I've seen on his IG, he used to post alot of tennis videos from his club in california before he broke his leg last year
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
He was well-known back in the day. Perhaps you are not old enough to remember Dino, Desi & Billy from the mid/late 1960s. They had a few hits back then and were featured on a number of TV shows and at least 1 movie (Murder's Row). One of their hits was even covered by The Chipmunks.
Dino had a couple of high-profile marriages. Olivia Hussey (well-known for Romeo & Juliet) in the 70s. Dorothy Hamill (Olympic ice skater) in the 80s. Dino also has more than 2 dozen IMDb credits to his name even tho he tragically died at 35.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
I'd even go so far to say that Dean Paul Martin was more well-known in the 60s thru the 80s than Redfoo & Gavin Rossdale are known today.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Suresh
TennisLBC
Professional
John Lucas was an all-American in both basketball and tennis. Played in some professional matches in the NBA's off-season.
FD3S
Hall of Fame
Ah, Matthew Perry and tennis. He's probably still a solid-ish rec player for his age now, but it sounds like he got hit by 'big fish, small pond' syndrome hard when he was a junior. The story of how highly ranked he was as a kid always varies, but what stays consistent is the ranked juniors in California kicking his teeth in (as they would with most players, to be fair). To quote a Men's Health interview:
"... Then I moved to Los Angeles when I was 15, and everyone in L.A. just killed me. I was pretty great in Canada. Not so much in Los Angeles. It was insane. I realized I wouldn’t be playing tennis for a living, so I went for acting. Are tennis and acting alike? I don’t know..."
"... Then I moved to Los Angeles when I was 15, and everyone in L.A. just killed me. I was pretty great in Canada. Not so much in Los Angeles. It was insane. I realized I wouldn’t be playing tennis for a living, so I went for acting. Are tennis and acting alike? I don’t know..."
anfield
Semi-Pro
He must be using his inhaler a lot recently.
anfield
Semi-Pro
Redfoo grew up with some good access to coaching I would imagine, is the youngest son of Motown Record Corporation founder Berry Gordy, Jr.
TheGhostOfAgassi
Talk Tennis Guru
Paolo Cecare Maldini (can you get a cooler name?)- Former AC Milan player, one of the biggest legends in football. Il Grande Capitano.....
Playing tennis. And he is pretty good at it too.
Bartelby
Bionic Poster
It looks like he has plenty of feel for the right ball.
UOTE]
TnsGuru
Professional
He probably won matches by putting the pills in their drinking water
D
Deleted member 716271
Guest
Paolo Cecare Maldini (can you get a cooler name?)- Former AC Milan player, one of the biggest legends in football. Il Grande Capitano.....
Playing tennis. And he is pretty good at it too.
He looks like someone else you are a fan of...remember
Geoff
Hall of Fame
I was a ball boy for a WTT playoff match held in Birmingham, AL that John Lucas was part of. He partnered with Renee Richards against Roy Emerson and Martina Navratilova. He rather enjoyed bouncing over heads into the upper deck!
TnsGuru
Professional
Wow that FH is HUUUGE just like his (_i_).So he tells us. Not fake news. Proof positive that he's one 'bad hombre' on the court:
vive le beau jeu !
Talk Tennis Guru
mikespinstowin
Rookie
King Henry VIII played tennis while his wife was getting her head chopped off.(Pre Gillette Toxic male guilt days).
MatsPhilander
Legend
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