Billie Jean King and eight other women risked their careers 50 years ago when they launched a new women's tennis tour. The bold move led to the millions of dollars in prize money women earn today. The 'Original 9' are being honored at the U.S. Open.
FILE - In this April 7, 2012, file photo, members of the original nine women, from left to right, Billie Jean King, Peaches Bartkowicz, Kristy Pigeon, Valerie Ziegenfuss, Judy Tegart Dalton, Julie Heldman, Kerry Melville Reid, Nancy Richey and Rosie Casals, who helped start the women's professional tennis tour are honored at the Family Circle Cup tennis tournament in Charleston, S.C. The nine signed a dollar contract 50 years ago, and it turned into millions for female tennis players.
So the Original 9 broke with the tennis establishment and joined promoter Gladys Heldman to form the Virginia Slims circuit. They signed $1 contracts with Heldman on Sept. 23, 1970, despite a threat from the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association to ban them from Grand Slam tournaments or from representing their country at international events.“We risked our careers,” King said in an interview with The Associated Press.
The WTA and U.S. Tennis Association will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founders’ achievement during the U.S. Open. All four Grand Slam tournaments now pay women the same prize money as men after years of advocacy by King for equal pay. The women’s and men’s champions at this year’s U.S. Open will each receive $3 million.
That galvanized the nine women to launch their own tour. Julie Heldman said the upstart group benefited from the “holy trinity” of tennis — her mother’s connections as publisher of World Tennis magazine, King’s star power and the financial backing of Philip Morris. “When we held up that $1 bill, that really was the start of women’s pro tennis the way we know it today,” King said. “We talked about the future generations a lot in our meetings.”Casals and Dalton played in the final of the first Virginia Slims event. The 21-year-old Casals won in three sets.
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