Randy Gregson (December 11, 1918 – May 23, 2010) was an American tennis player and official. He was the president of the

United States Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...

from 1985 to 1986.

Early life

James Randolph (Randy) Gregson was born on December 11, 1918, in Jonesboro,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. He attended

Arkansas State University Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage la ...

, where he played tennis, and he graduated from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

with a degree in petroleum engineering. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in the Pacific. After the war, he moved to

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. ‹›

Career

Gregson became a successful amateur tennis player in New Orleans, where he joined the New Orleans Lawn Tennis Club (the oldest tennis club in the Americas) in 1948, and later in the region and the nation. For example, he won the

U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships The U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships is an annual ATP Tour tennis tournament that started in 1910. It is the last remaining ATP World Tour-level tournament in the United States to be played on clay courts. The tournament began in 1910 when the ...

in singles and doubles for the 45s and 65s age divisions. He also won 25 Southern Championships in singles and doubles, including father-son doubles. He competed in the semifinals at the

1965 Wimbledon Championships The 1965 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 21 June until Saturday 3 July 1965. It was the 79th ...

in senior doubles. Gregson served as the president of the United States Tennis Association from 1985 to 1987. During his tenure, he kept

John McEnroe John Patrick McEnroe Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is an American former professional tennis player. He was known for his shot-making and volleying skills, his rivalries with Björn Borg and Jimmy Connors, and his confrontational on-court beha ...

from competing in the

Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...

on behavioral grounds. Gregson explained that he focused on good representation and teamwork on the U. S. team as opposed to star players. Gregson was also the president of the Louisiana Tennis Association and the Southern Tennis Association. Gregson was inducted in the

Southern Tennis Hall of Fame Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

in 1987. He helped restore the tennis courts at the

City Park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...

and the Stern Tennis Center after

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. He won the 2005 Dixon Award from the

Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame is located in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame & Northwest Louisiana History Museum – Natchitoches in a new facility in the downtown historic district in Natchitoches, Louisiana. After years of planning and con ...

Death

Gregson died on May 23, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana, at the age of 91.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregson, Randy 2010 deaths People from New Orleans Arkansas State University alumni Cockrell School of Engineering alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II Tennis people from Arkansas Tennis people from Louisiana American male tennis players Year of birth uncertain 1918 births