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104-687: Cal State LA's more than 11 acres (4.5 ha) of athletic facilities is named the Billie Jean King Sports Complex. The sports complex—designation which was approved by the CSU Board of Trustees Sept. 21—features the Eagles Nest Gymnasium, the University Stadium, Jesse Owens Track and Field, Reeder Field (baseball), the swimming pool, and tennis and basketball courts. The Eagles Nest is home to

208-473: A transgender athlete , to enter. Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, and Betty Stöve (president of the WTA) criticized King's decision because of Richards's unresolved and highly controversial status on the women's tennis tour. Evert said she was disappointed with King and that until Richards's status was resolved, "all of the women should stick together." Navratilova said, "Billie Jean is a bad girl pouting. She made

312-526: A St. Petersburg semi-final to Evert (6–2, 6–3). King did not lose again until mid-August, winning six consecutive tournaments. She won the tournaments in Tucson and Indianapolis. King then won the French Open without losing a set and completed a career Grand Slam. She defeated Virginia Wade in the quarterfinals, Helga Niessen Masthoff in the semi-finals, and Goolagong in the final. On grass, King then won

416-476: A bad decision. She's mad because she could not get what she wanted." Stöve said that if King had wanted the competition, "[T]here are plenty of men around here she could've played with. She didn't have to choose a 'disputed' tournament." The draw in San Antonio called for King to play Richards in the semi-finals had form held; however, Richards lost in the quarterfinals. King eventually won the tournament. At

520-486: A child, playing shortstop at 10 years old on a team with girls 4–5 years older than she. The team went on to win the Long Beach softball championship. She switched from softball to tennis at the age of 11, because her parents suggested she should find a more 'ladylike' sport. She saved her own money, $ 8 ($ 92.40 in 2024 terms), to buy her first racket. She went with a school friend to take her first tennis lesson on

624-549: A conservative Methodist family, the daughter of Betty (née Jerman), a housewife, and Bill Moffitt, a firefighter. Her family was athletic; her mother excelled at swimming, and her father played basketball, baseball and ran track. Her younger brother, Randy Moffitt , became a Major League Baseball pitcher, pitching for 12 years in the major leagues for the San Francisco Giants , Houston Astros , and Toronto Blue Jays . She also excelled at baseball and softball as

728-553: A full-time commitment to tennis. While a history major at Los Angeles State College, King made the decision to play full-time when businessman Robert Mitchell offered to pay her way to Australia so that she could train under the great Australian coach Mervyn Rose . While in Australia, King played three tournaments that year and lost in the quarterfinals of the Queensland Grass Court Championships,

832-401: A library in 1963. The pair became engaged while still in school when Billie Jean was 20 and Larry 19 years old and married on September 17, 1965, in Long Beach. King's French Open win in 1972 made her only the fifth woman in tennis history to win the singles titles at all four Grand Slam events, a "career Grand Slam". She also won a career Grand Slam in mixed doubles. In women's doubles, only

936-471: A long, arduous process. I will suffer. But I will be back." There was a small historic note at Wimbledon 1977 in that it was the first time ever that King competed at the championships that she did not reach a final. From her debut in 1961 until 1976, she had played in the final of one of the three championship events for women every year. Perhaps there was irony in this in that as the Wimbledon champion with

1040-581: A player herself. She made her Grand Slam debut at the 1959 U.S. Championships when she was 15. She lost in the first round. She began playing at local, regional, and international tennis championships. Sports Illustrated already claimed her as "one of the most promising youngsters on the West Coast." She won her first tournament the next year in Philadelphia at the 1960 Philadelphia and District Grass Court Championships. At her second attempt at

1144-461: A quarterfinal 7–5, 6–2. Afterward, King did not play a tour match until the US Open , where she won her fourth singles title and third in the last four years. She defeated Rosemary Casals in a straight sets quarterfinal, avenged in the semi-finals her previous year's loss to Julie Heldman, and narrowly defeated Evonne Goolagong in the final. King did not reach a tournament final during the remainder of

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1248-1094: A semi-final loss at the Pacific Coast Championships in Berkeley, California . To close out the year, King in November won the Virginia Slims Invitational in Richmond, Virginia and the Embassy Indoor Tennis Championships in London. During the European clay court season, King warmed-up for the French Open by playing in Monte Carlo (losing in the semi-finals), winning the Italian Open (saving three match points against Virginia Wade in

1352-822: A straight-sets final. The following week, King lost in the semi-finals of the New Zealand Championships. Upon her return to the United States, King won the Pacific Coast Pro and the Los Angeles Pro. King then won two tournaments in South Africa, including the South African Open. During the European summer clay court season, King lost in the quarterfinals of both the Italian Open and the French Open. On grass at

1456-483: A television audience estimated at 50 million people (U.S.), and 90 million in 37 countries, 29-year-old King beat the 55-year-old Riggs 6–4, 6–3, 6–3. The match is considered a significant event in developing greater recognition and respect for women's tennis. as King said to author and photographer Lynn Gilbert in her book Particular Passions: Talks with Women who Have Shaped Our Times , "I thought it would set us back 50 years if I didn't win that match. It would ruin

1560-652: A two-day match on Centre Court. Despite these performances. she could not get a sports scholarship when later that year she attended Los Angeles State (now California State). For the 1962 singles tournament at Wimbledon , King upset Margaret Court , the World No. 1 and top seed, in a second round match by attacking Court's forehand This was the first time in Wimbledon history that the women's top seed had lost her first match. That same year, King and Hantze repeated their doubles victory at Wimbledon. In 1963, King again faced Margaret Court at Wimbledon. This time they met in

1664-473: A wrist injury. She then lost in the third round at the Virginia Slims of Miami tournament but won the Virginia Slims of Indianapolis tournament, defeating Court in the semi-finals 6–7, 7–6, 6–3 and Rosemary Casals in the final. The semi-final victory ended Court's 12-tournament and 59-match winning streaks, with King saving at least three match points when down 5–4 (40–0) in the second set. Indianapolis

1768-698: Is one national club team championship: CSU Los Angeles had 71 Golden Eagles win NCAA individual championships at the Division II level. At the NCAA Division I level, CSU Los Angeles garnered 12 individual championships. The baseball field was officially renamed as Reeder Field in honor of baseball coach Jim Reeder. Reeder never had a losing season prior to his untimely death in January 1972. On January 3, 1998, Cal State LA head baseball coach John Herbold

1872-503: The 1977 CWS to finish in 4th place. The CSU Los Angeles Golden Eagles competed in the NCAA Tournament across 13 active sports (6 men's and 7 women's) 158 times at the Division II level. The Golden Eagles participated in the 1974 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament , going 0–1 with an 88–80 loss to Dayton . The Golden Eagles of CSU Los Angeles earned five NCAA team championships at the Division II level. Results Below

1976-604: The All England Club , King defeated both Wade and Ann Haydon-Jones in straight sets. Many things bothered King concerning her advocacy for women's rights in sports. Among these concerns, she sought better pay for female tennis players, given the substantial differences in budgets between male and female players. In September 1970, there was the Pacific Southwest Open which was a tennis tournament. The prize money for men and women varied significantly, with

2080-907: The BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award . In 2020, the Federation Cup was renamed the Billie Jean King Cup in her honor. In 2022, she was awarded the French Legion of Honour , and in 2024, she received a Congressional Gold Medal . On October 7, 2024, King was named the Grand Marshal of the 2025 Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game . Billie Jean Moffitt was born in Long Beach, California , into

2184-642: The California Collegiate Athletic Association to the Pacific West Conference . See NCAA Women's Division II Tennis Championship . Two-story, 8,500 sf facility is sited between the CSULA stadium running track and the university tennis center. The lower level women's and men's locker / training facilities and the public rest rooms are accessible for use by both the stadium and the tennis courts. This allows

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2288-655: The Rothmans North of England Championships on grass in Hoylake , United Kingdom, beating Virginia Wade, Court, and Casals in the last three rounds. She then played two clay court tournaments in Europe, winning neither, before resuming play in the United States. In August, King won the indoor Houston tournament and the U.S. Women's Clay Court Championships in Indianapolis . King then switched back to grass and won

2392-817: The US Open without losing a set, defeating Evert in the semi-finals (6–3, 6–2) and Casals in the final. King then won the tournaments in Louisville , Phoenix , and London (Wembley Pro). King and Casals both defaulted at 6–6 in the final of the Pepsi Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles in September when their request to remove a lineswoman was denied, eventually resulting in the United States Lawn Tennis Association fining both players US$ 2,500. To end

2496-400: The 1930s and 1940s in both the amateur and professional ranks. He won the Wimbledon men's singles title in 1939, and was considered the World No. 1 male tennis player for 1941, 1946, and 1947. He then became a self-described tennis "hustler" who played in promotional challenge matches. Claiming that the women's game was so inferior to the men's game that even a 55-year-old like himself could beat

2600-643: The 1969 Australian summer tour for the second consecutive year. Unlike the previous year, King did not win a tournament. She lost in the quarterfinals of the Tasmanian Championships and the semi-finals of the New South Wales Championships. At the Australian Open, King defeated 17-year-old Evonne Goolagong in the second round 6–3, 6–1 and Ann Haydon-Jones in a three-set semi-final before losing to Margaret Court in

2704-562: The 1970s and went on to serve on the board of their parent company Philip Morris in the 2000s. Regarded by many as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, King was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987. The Fed Cup Award of Excellence was bestowed on her in 2010. In 1972, she was the joint winner, with John Wooden , of the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of

2808-602: The Australian Open despite being nearby when she played in New Zealand in late 1971. King said, "I was twenty-eight years old, and I was at the height of my powers. I'm quite sure I could have won the Grand Slam [in] ... 1972, but the Australian was such a minor-league tournament at that time.... More important, I did not want to miss any Virginia Slims winter tournaments. I was playing enough as it was." Her dominance

2912-439: The Australian Open eluded her. King won a record 20 career titles at Wimbledon – six in singles, 10 in women's doubles, and four in mixed doubles. King played 51 Grand Slam singles events from 1959 through 1983, reaching at least the semi-finals in 27 and at least the quarterfinals in 40 of her attempts. King was the runner-up in six Grand Slam singles events. An indicator of her mental toughness in Grand Slam singles tournaments

3016-644: The Brethren , where the minister was former athlete and two-time Olympic pole-vaulting champion Bob Richards . One day, when King was 13 or 14, Richards asked her, "What are you going to do with your life?" She said: "Reverend, I'm going to be the best tennis player in the world." King attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School . After graduating in 1961, she attended Los Angeles State College, now California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA). She did not graduate, leaving school in 1964 to focus on tennis. While attending Cal State, she met Larry King in

3120-672: The Cal State LA basketball and volleyball teams. The arena seats just over 3,200 fans at full capacity. In 1984, the Eagles Nest hosted the Summer XXIII (23rd) Olympics judo competition. In July 1984 the Olympic Mural , “Olympic Fantasy,” a mosaic tile work by muralist Guillermo "Bill" Granizo, was installed on west side of the arena in remembrance of the event. The Fight Song Golden Eagles! We're behind you all

3224-535: The French Open 2–6, 8–6, 6–1. At Wimbledon , Court needed seven match points to defeat King in the final 14–12, 11–9 in one of the greatest women's finals in the history of the tournament. On July 22, King had right knee surgery, which forced her to miss the US Open . King returned to the tour in September, where she had a first round loss at the Virginia Slims Invitational in Houston and

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3328-729: The Head Men's Soccer Coach of the Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles at California State University-Los Angeles. During CSULA's time in Division I, the baseball team made two NCAA baseball tournament appearances, including an improbable run to the College World Series in 1977. That year , the Diablos defeated then 10-time-champions USC twice to advance out of the regional, and went 2-2 in

3432-607: The Irish Open for the second time in her career. In the final Grand Slam tournament of the year, King lost in the quarterfinals of the US Open to Nancy Richey Gunter 6–4, 8–6. This was the first year since 1965 that King did not win at least one Grand Slam singles title. King finished the year with titles at the Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles, the Stockholm Indoors, and the Midland (Texas) Pro. She said during

3536-632: The Long Beach Tennis Patrons, the Century Club, and Harold Guiver raised $ 2,000 to send her to Wimbledon . There, she won the women's doubles title in her first attempt while partnering Karen Hantze . King was 17 and Hantze was 18, making them the youngest team to win the Wimbledon Doubles Title. King had less luck that year in the 1961 Wimbledon women's singles , losing to fifth-seeded Yola Ramírez in

3640-457: The Long Beach, Press-Telegram wrote about her success in a weekly tennis column. One of King's first conflicts with the tennis establishments and status-quo came in her youth, when she was forbidden from being in a group picture at a tournament because she was wearing tennis shorts (sewn by her mother) instead of the usual white tennis dress. King's family in Long Beach attended the Church of

3744-537: The Open Era. In none of the preceding tournaments, however, did King play Court. Their rivalry resumed in the final of the Virginia Slims of Nashville tournament, where Court won for the third time in four matches against King in 1973. (This was the last ever singles match between those players, with Court winning 21 and King 13 of their 34 matches.) Three weeks later at the US Open , King retired from her fourth-round match with Julie Heldman while ill and suffering from

3848-409: The Pacific Southwest Open, "It has been a bad year for me. My left knee has been OK, but I have been bothered by a severe tennis elbow for seven months. I expect to have a real big year in 1970, though, because I really have the motivation now. I feel like a kid again." In 1970, Margaret Court won all four Grand Slam singles tournaments and was clearly the World No. 1. King lost to Court three times in

3952-560: The U.S. Championships, King made it to the third round, losing to Bernice Carr Vukovich of South Africa. Also in 1960, she reached the final of the National Girls' 18 and Under Championships, losing to Karen Hantze Susman . Her national tennis ranking improved from number 19 in 1959 to number 4 in 1960. Despite the success, Marble terminated her professional relationship with King, for reasons stemming from King's ambition. King first gained international recognition in 1961 when

4056-664: The US Open, however, King won the tournament without losing a set, including a quarterfinal win over Wade, a semi-final defeat of Court, and a final win over Kerry Melville Reid. King finished the year by winning the tournaments in Charlotte and Phoenix (defeating Court in the final of both), a runner-up finish in Oakland (losing to Court), and a semifinal finish at the year-end championships in Boca Raton (losing to Evert). 1973

4160-515: The US Open. She lost to Dianne Fromholtz Balestrat in both of the singles tournaments she played the remainder of the year. Looking back, King said, "I wasted 1976. After watching Chris Evert and Evonne [Goolagong] Cawley play the final at Wimbledon I asked myself what I was doing. So, despite my age and the operations, the Old Lady came back...." King had knee surgery for the third time on November 9, this time on her right knee, and did not play

4264-635: The Virginia Slims points list, had left the tour due to her fourth pregnancy and thus failed to qualify for the tournament because she did not play enough Virginia Slims tournaments leading up to the championships. This left a spot open in the draw, which the WTA filled with Mima Jaušovec . King then decided to play the Lionel Cup tournament in San Antonio , Texas, which the WTA harshly criticized because tournament officials there had allowed Renée Richards ,

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4368-686: The Western Australia Championships, defeating Margaret Court in the final. In Hobart , King won the Tasmanian Championships by defeating Judy Tegart-Dalton in the final. King then won the Australian Championships for the first time, defeating Dalton in the semi-finals and Court in the final. King continued to win tournaments upon her return to the United States, winning three indoor tournaments before Nancy Richey Gunter defeated King in

4472-400: The Wills Open in Bristol , United Kingdom, King defeated Virginia Wade in the semi-finals (6–8, 11–9, 6–2) before losing to Court. At Wimbledon , King lost only 13 points while defeating Rosemary Casals in the semi-finals 6–1, 6–0; however, Jones upset King in the final and prevented King from winning her fourth consecutive singles title there. The week after, King again defeated Wade to win

4576-449: The Wimbledon warm-up tournaments in Nottingham and Bristol and won Wimbledon itself for the fourth time. She lost only one set during the tournament, to Wade in the quarterfinals. That was followed by straight set wins over Rosemary Casals and Goolagong. When the tour returned to the United States, King did not win any of the three tournaments she played before the US Open , including a straight sets loss to Margaret Court in Newport . At

4680-416: The World No. 3 in the other year. King won 97 of her career 129 singles titles during this period and was the runner-up in 36 other tournaments. In 1966, King defeated Dorothy "Dodo" Cheney (then 49 years old) for the first time in five career matches, winning their semi-final at the Southern California Championships 6–0, 6–3. King also ended her nine-match losing streak to Margaret Court by defeating her in

4784-415: The Year award and was one of the Time Persons of the Year in 1975. She has also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year lifetime achievement award. She was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1990, and in 2006, the USTA National Tennis Center in New York City was renamed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. In 2018, she won

4888-423: The baseball field is named. Billie Jean King Billie Jean King (née Moffitt ; born November 22, 1943), also known as BJK , is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles . King was a member of the victorious United States team in seven Federation Cups and nine Wightman Cups . For three years, she

4992-411: The building includes grandstands for viewing tennis and an outdoor assembly area for university events. In 1964 , the undefeated Diablos were voted national champions, via the UPI coaches' poll, for the NCAA's College Division. Cal State LA's football program was disbanded after the 1977 season. Bob Clark won the NCAA Division I Golf Championship in 1969. Since 2018 Michael Erush has been

5096-414: The clay court US Open , winning 6–2, 6–0. This loss prompted King to say, "I better get it together by October or November or that's it. I'll have to make some big decisions. I'm not 20-years-old and I can't just go out and change my game. It's only the last four weeks I haven't been in [knee] pain. [But if] I keep using that as a copout, I shouldn't play." The remainder of the year, King's win–loss record

5200-409: The clay court Family Circle Cup in late March, King played for the last time her long-time rival Nancy Richey Gunter in the first round. King won 0–6, 7–6, 6–2. She defeated another clay court specialist, Virginia Ruzici , in the second round before winning only one game from Evert in the final. At Wimbledon in the third round, King played Maria Bueno for the last time, with King winning 6–2, 7–5. In

5304-434: The current top female players, he challenged and defeated Margaret Court 6–2, 6–1. King, who previously had rejected challenges from Riggs, then accepted a lucrative financial offer to play him for $ 100,000 in a winner-takes-all match. Dubbed "the Battle of the Sexes", the Riggs–King match took place at the Houston Astrodome in Texas on September 20, 1973. The match garnered huge publicity. In front of 30,492 spectators and

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5408-402: The day after the Riggs match, and then lost the following day to Casals in the semifinals 7–6, 6–1. According to King, "I had nothing left to give." To end the year, King won tournaments in Phoenix, Hawaii, and Tokyo and was the runner-up in Baltimore . In 1973, King defeated Bobby Riggs in an exhibition match, winning $ 100,000 ($ 707,000 in 2024 terms ). Riggs had been a top men's player in

5512-453: The final of a Grand Slam singles tournament in 14 out of 25 attempts and had a 12–2 win–loss record in those finals. Court won seven of the 12 Grand Slam finals she played against King during these years, including 2–1 in singles finals, 4–1 in women's doubles finals, and 1–3 in mixed doubles finals. King was the year-ending World No. 1 in six of the ten years from 1966 through 1975. She was the year-ending World No. 2 in three of those years and

5616-417: The final of a professional tournament at Madison Square Garden. Playing the French Open for only the second time in her career and attempting to win four consecutive Grand Slam singles titles (a "non-calendar year Grand Slam"), King defeated Maria Bueno in a quarterfinal before losing to Gunter in a semi-final 2–6, 6–3, 6–4. King rebounded to win her third consecutive Wimbledon singles title, defeating Jones in

5720-415: The final of the New South Wales Championships (to Court), and the third round of the Victorian Championships. In early 1965, King continued her three-month tour of Australia. She lost in the final of the South Australian Championships and the first round of the Western Australia Championships. At the Fed Cup in Melbourne, she defeated Ann Haydon-Jones to help the United States defeat the United Kingdom in

5824-400: The final of the Colgate Series Championships in Mission Hills, California . King then won her Wightman Cup matches, defeated Navratilova to win the tournament in Japan, and beat Wade to win the Bremar Cup in London. King said, "I have never had a run like this, even in the years when I was Wimbledon champion. At 34, I feel fitter than when I was 24." King played ten singles tournaments during

5928-470: The final of the South African Tennis Championships. She also won the women's singles in the Ojai Tennis Tournament . At the Wightman Cup just before Wimbledon , King defeated Virginia Wade and Ann Haydon-Jones. After thirteen unsuccessful attempts to win a Grand Slam singles title from 1959 through 1965, King at the age of 22 finally won the first of her six singles titles at Wimbledon and the first of twelve Grand Slam singles titles overall, defeating Court in

6032-538: The final set. Evert blamed her semifinal defeat on a loss of concentration when she saw Jimmy Connors , her former fiancé, escorting Susan George into Centre Court. King, however, believes that the match turned around because King planned for and totally prepared for Wimbledon that year and told herself when she was on the verge of defeat, "Hey, Billie Jean, this is ridiculous. You paid the price. For once, you looked ahead. You're supposed to win. Get your bahoola in gear." King then defeated fourth seeded Goolagong Cawley in

6136-401: The final, King led 5–3 in both sets, was two points from winning the first set, and had two set points in the second set before losing to Court in straight sets. She said that losing while being so close to winning was devastating, but the match proved to her that she was "good enough to be the best in the world. I'm going to win Wimbledon next year." She won six tournaments during the year. For

6240-406: The final, and Court prevailed. In 1964, King won four relatively minor titles but lost to Margaret Court in the Wimbledon semi-finals. She defeated Ann Haydon-Jones at both the Wightman Cup and Fed Cup but lost to Court in the final of the Federation Cup. At the U.S. Championships, fifth-seeded Nancy Richey upset third-seeded King in the quarterfinals. Late in the year, King decided to make

6344-445: The final. She played the French Championships for the first time in her career, falling in the quarterfinals to Annette Van Zyl of South Africa. At the Federation Cup one week later in West Germany on clay , King won all four of her matches, including victories over DuPlooy, Ann Haydon-Jones, and Helga Niessen . King then successfully switched surfaces and won her second consecutive Wimbledon singles title, defeating Virginia Wade in

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6448-413: The final. The following week, King won the Sarasota, Florida tournament, defeating Evert in the final 6–3, 6–2. Evert said immediately after the final, which was her thirteenth career match with King, "I think that's the best that Billie Jean has ever played. I hit some great shots but they just kept coming back at me." Looking back at that match, King said, "I probably played so well because I had to, for

6552-417: The first four months of the year, in Philadelphia, Dallas, and Johannesburg (at the South African Open). Court, however, was not totally dominant during this period as King defeated her in Sydney and Durban , South Africa. Where Court dominated was at the Grand Slam tournaments. King did not play the Australian Open. King had leg cramps and lost to Helga Niessen Masthoff of West Germany in the quarterfinals of

6656-409: The first time in 81 years, the annual convention of the United States Lawn Tennis Association overruled its ranking committee's recommendation to award her the sole U.S. No. 1 position and voted 59,810 to 40,966 to rank Nancy Richey Gunter and King as co-U.S. No. 1. Six of King's Grand Slam singles titles were at Wimbledon, four were at the U.S. Championships/Open, one was at the French Open, and one

6760-692: The last seven Grand Slam singles finals she contested, six of them in straight sets and four of them against Evonne Goolagong . All but one of her Grand Slam singles titles were on grass . King's Grand Slam record from 1966 through 1975 was comparable to that of Margaret Court, her primary rival during these years. One or both of these women played 35 of the 40 Grand Slam singles tournaments held during this period, and together they won 24 of them. During this period, Court won 31 of her career 64 Grand Slam titles, including 12 of her 24 Grand Slam singles titles, 11 of her 19 Grand Slam women's doubles titles, and eight of her 21 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. Court reached

6864-402: The many free public courts in Long Beach, taking advantage of the free lessons offered by professional Clyde Walker, who worked for the City of Long Beach. One of the city's tennis facilities has subsequently been named the Billie Jean Moffitt King Tennis Center. As a kid playing in her first tennis tournaments, she was often hindered by her aggressive playing style. Bob Martin, sportswriter for

6968-407: The match, "Maybe I can be happy being number eight instead of number one. At this stage, just playing, that's winning enough for me." But when asked about retirement, King said, "Retire? Quit tournament tennis? You gotta be kidding. It just means I've got a lot more work. I've got to make myself match tough ... mentally as well as physically. I gotta go out and kill myself for the next six months. It's

7072-404: The money. Out of frustration comes creativity. Right?" Two months later, Wade defeated King in the semi-finals of the Philadelphia tournament. At the Austin, Texas , tournament in April, King defeated Evonne Goolagong 6–1, 6–3 before losing to Evert in the final. As King was serving for the match at 6–5 in the third set, a disputed line call went in Evert's favor. King said after the match that she

7176-427: The most titles in its history, the event was celebrating its centenary in the year King failed to make a final for the first time. The only other years she competed at the championship and did not feature in a final were 1980 and 1982. In her entire Wimbledon career of 22 competitions, King never failed to be a semi-finalist in at least one event every year. Evert repeated her Wimbledon quarterfinal victory over King at

7280-405: The next week to win the German Open in Hamburg on clay . Four weeks later at the Queen's Club tournament in London, King played Margaret Court for the first time in 1971, losing their final. At Wimbledon , King defeated Janes in the fourth round (6–2, 7–5) and Durr in the quarterfinals before losing unexpectedly to Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals 6–4, 6–4. Two weeks after Wimbledon, King won

7384-444: The oppressive heat and humidity. When Heldman complained to the match umpire that King was taking too long between games, King reportedly told Heldman, "If you want the match that badly, you can have it!" The Battle of the Sexes match against Bobby Riggs was held in the middle of the Virginia Slims of Houston tournament. King won her first and second round matches three days before playing Riggs, defeated Riggs, won her quarterfinal match

7488-507: The quarterfinals 7–5, 6–2 and Jones. At the Wightman Cup, King again defeated Wade and Jones. King won her second Grand Slam singles title of the year when she won the U.S. Championships for the first time and without losing a set, defeating Wade, Van Zyl, Françoise Dürr , and Jones in consecutive matches. Jones pulled her left hamstring muscle early in the final and saved four match points in the second set before King prevailed. King won

7592-631: The quarterfinals); Washington, D.C. (losing in the second round); and Dallas (losing to Nancy Richey Gunter after defeating Evert in the quarterfinals 6–7(4–5), 6–3, 7–5 and Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals 1–6, 6–4, 6–1). King won the title in Richmond; however, one week later, King lost in the semi-finals of the tournament in San Juan. This was followed in successive weeks by a loss in the Jacksonville final to Marie Neumannová Pinterová and in

7696-438: The quarterfinals, Evert defeated King for the first time at a Grand Slam singles tournament and for the first time on grass 6–1, 6–2 in just 46 minutes. Evert said it was the best match she had ever played on grass up to that point in her career, and King said, "No excuses. Let's forget knees, ankles, toes, everything else. She just played beautiful tennis. I don't think many players would've beaten her today." King also said after

7800-466: The quarterfinals, Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals on her eighth match point, and Chris Evert in the final. King lost only nine points in the 6–0 bageling of Evert in the first set of their final. King also completed the Triple Crown at Wimbledon (winning the singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles titles in the same year), thus becoming the first, and only, player to do so at Wimbledon in

7904-520: The remainder of the year. King spent the first three months of the year rehabilitating her right knee after surgery in November 1976. In March 1977, King requested that the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) exercise its right to grant a wild card entry to King for the eight-player Virginia Slims Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Margaret Court, who finished in sixth place on

8008-859: The second game of the third set of that match. However, King won the Victorian Championships in Melbourne the following week, defeating Dalton, Reid, and Lesley Turner in the last three rounds. At a team event in Adelaide , King won all three of her singles and doubles matches to help the U.S. defeat Australia 5–1. To finish the year, King lost to Tegart in the final of the South Australian Championships in Adelaide. In early 1968, King won three consecutive tournaments to end her Australian tour. In Perth , King won

8112-457: The second most lopsided women's final ever at Wimbledon (6–0, 6–1). King called her performance a "near perfect match" and said to the news media, "I'm never coming back." Except for five Federation Cup singles matches that she won in straight sets in August, King played only in doubles and mixed doubles events from January through September. She partnered Phil Dent to the mixed doubles title at

8216-795: The second round in Palm Harbor, Florida , and Fromholtz Balestrat in the semi-finals in Atlanta . She then won three hard court tournaments in three consecutive weeks. She defeated Navratilova and Wendy Turnbull to win in Phoenix, losing only four points to Turnbull in the third set of the final. The next week, she defeated Navratilova, Fromholtz Balestrat, and Wimbledon runner-up Stöve to win in São Paulo . The third week, she defeated Ruzici, Stöve, and Janet Newberry Wright to win in San Juan. In November, Evert snapped King's 18-match winning streak in

8320-482: The second round. However, Margaret Court again defeated her in the final. At the Australian Championships two weeks later, she lost to Court in the semi-finals in two sets. At Wimbledon , she again lost in the semi-finals, this time in three sets to Maria Bueno. Her last tournament of the year was the U.S. Championships, where she defeated Jones in the quarterfinals and Bueno in the semi-finals. In

8424-554: The semi-finals 6–3, 6–3 and Maria Bueno in the final. King credited her semi-final victory to her forehand down the line, a new shot in her repertoire. She also said that the strategy for playing Court is, "Simple. Just chip the ball back at her feet." At the U.S. Championships, an ill King was upset by Kerry Melville in the second round. King successfully defended her title at the South African Tennis Championships in 1967, defeating Maria Bueno in

8528-540: The semi-finals and Dalton in the final. At the US Open , King defeated Bueno in a semi-final before being upset in the final by Virginia Wade. On September 24, she had surgery to repair cartilage in her left knee and did not play in tournaments the remainder of the year. King said that it took eight months (May 1969) for her knee to recover completely from the surgery. In 1977, King said that her doctors predicted in 1968 that her left knee would allow her to play competitive tennis for only two more years. King participated in

8632-637: The semi-finals but lost to Evert in the final. King then won tournaments in Fairfax, Virginia and Detroit before losing a semi-final match to Virginia Wade in Chicago. King won both tournaments she played in March, defeating Gunter in the Akron, Ohio final and Evert at the U.S. Indoor Championships final. Olga Morozova then upset King in her next two tournaments, at Philadelphia in the final and at Wimbledon in

8736-566: The semi-finals of the Madison Square Garden Challenge Trophy amateur tournament in New York City before 10,233 spectators. The match started with Gunter taking a 4–2 lead in the first set, before King won 9 of the next 10 games. King served for the match at 5–1 and had a match point at 5–3 in the second set; however, she lost the final 12 games and the match 4–6, 7–5, 6–0. King then won three consecutive tournaments in Europe before losing to Ann Haydon-Jones in

8840-736: The semi-finals), playing in Bournemouth (losing to Wade in the quarterfinals), and playing in Berlin (losing to Masthoff in the semi-finals). The Italian Open victory was the first important clay court title of King's career. Along the way, she defeated Masthoff in a three-set quarterfinal and Wade in a three-set semi-final, saving two match points at 4–5 in the second set. The twelfth game of that set (with King leading 6–5) had 21 deuces and lasted 22 minutes, with Wade saving seven set points and holding sixteen game points before King won. In Wightman Cup competition two weeks before Wimbledon but played at

8944-631: The series of women-only tournaments. Although King won only one Grand Slam singles title in 1971, this was the best year of her career in terms of tournaments won (17). According to the International Tennis Hall of Fame , she played in 31 singles tournaments and compiled a 112–13 win–loss record. She started the year by winning eight of the first thirteen tournaments she played, defeating Rosemary Casals in seven finals. King's five losses during this period were to Françoise Dürr (twice), Casals (once), Ann Haydon-Jones (once), and Chris Evert (in St. Petersburg ). At

9048-669: The singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles titles at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Championships, the first woman to do that since Alice Marble in 1939. King then returned to the Australian summer tour in December for the first time since 1965, playing seven events there and Judy Tegart in six of those events (winning four of their matches). King lost in the quarterfinals of the New South Wales Championships in Sydney to Tegart after King injured her left knee in

9152-414: The time, King said that retiring from the match with Evert after splitting the first two sets was necessary because of leg cramps. But in early 1972, King admitted that cramps associated with an abortion caused the retirement. At the tournament in early May at Hurlingham , United Kingdom, King lost a second round match to an old rival, Christine Truman Janes (now 30 years old), 6–4, 6–2; but King recovered

9256-452: The top prize for men being $ 12,500 and for women, a mere $ 1,500. Women's expenses were not covered unless they made the quarterfinals. This had bothered King and was the final straw for her. King and other 8 women did not play because of the budgets which they were willing to take the risk of expulsion from the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association. King and the other women organized the women-only Houston Virginia Slims invitational and this helped launch

9360-467: The university soccer, track and field and tennis teams to share the facilities. The upper level contains both the CSULA Sports Hall of Fame and a hospitality suite with a small serving kitchen. This level is enclosed with floor to ceiling windows and contains a covered outdoor terrace for uninterrupted viewing of both the tennis courts and the stadium soccer field and track. The site surrounding

9464-498: The way. Golden Eagles! Black and Gold is here to stay. Golden Eagles! Now it's on to win the day. We will fight, fight, fight. Fight with all our might for Cal State L.A.! –Fran Baxter Entering the 2017–2018 school year, Cal State LA has won a total of 75 conference championships in the university's history. This is in addition to the nine National Championships and 10 National Runner-Up Finishes. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS WON Cal State LA moved its tennis program in 2014 from

9568-503: The women's tour and affect all women's self-esteem," and that "to beat a 55-year-old guy was no thrill for me. The thrill was exposing a lot of new people to tennis." King won five of the first seven tournaments she contested in 1974. She won the Virginia Slims of San Francisco, defeating Nancy Richey Gunter in the semi-finals and Chris Evert in the final. The following week in Indian Wells, California , King again defeated Gunter in

9672-536: The year, King played two tournaments in New Zealand but did not win either. She lost in Christchurch to Durr and in Auckland to Kerry Melville Reid. In 1971, King was the first female tennis player to earn $ 100,000 a year. Being one of her greatest accomplishments, this earned her congratulatory phone call from President Richard M. Nixon. King won three Grand Slam singles titles in 1972, electing not to play

9776-555: The year, losing to Heldman in an Orlando semi-final, Wade in a Phoenix semi-final, and Goolagong in a semi-final of the tour-ending Virginia Slims Championships in Los Angeles. In 1975, King played singles only half the year, as she retired (temporarily, as it turned out) from tournament singles competition immediately after winning her sixth Wimbledon singles title. She began the year in San Francisco, defeating Françoise Dürr and Virginia Wade before losing to Chris Evert in

9880-447: Was 22–4, winning her last nine matches (six in singles and three in doubles). The United States won the cup in ten of the 11 years in which she participated. In singles, King was 6–1 against Ann Haydon-Jones , 4–0 against Virginia Wade , and 1–1 against Christine Truman Janes . As Billie Jean King began competing in 1959, she began working with new coaches including Frank Brennan and Alice Marble , who had won 18 Grand Slam titles as

9984-405: Was 31–3, losing to only Evert, Dianne Fromholtz Balestrat, and Michelle Tyler . King won five of the eight tournaments she entered plus both of her Wightman Cup matches. She defeated Navratilova all four times they played, including three times in three consecutive weeks, and beat Wimbledon champion Virginia Wade twice. Beginning September 26, King played seven consecutive weeks. She lost to Tyler in

10088-423: Was Margaret Court's turn to win three Grand Slam singles titles, failing to win only Wimbledon, and was the clear world No. 1 for the year; this was her first full season since winning the Grand Slam in 1970, as she had missed significant portions of 1971 and 1972 due to childbirth. As during the previous year, King started 1973 inconsistently. She missed the first three Virginia Slims tournaments in January because of

10192-708: Was aided by rival Margaret Court 's absence from the tour due to childbirth during most of the 1972 season. At the beginning of the year, King failed to win eight of the first ten tournaments she played. She won the title in San Francisco in mid-January. But then King lost in Long Beach to Françoise Dürr (although King claimed in her 1982 autobiography that she intentionally lost the match because of an argument with her husband ) and in Fort Lauderdale on clay to Chris Evert 6–1, 6–0. The inconsistent results continued through mid-April, in Oklahoma City (losing in

10296-406: Was at the Australian Championships. King reached the final of a Grand Slam singles tournament in 16 out of 25 attempts and had a 12–4 win–loss record in those finals. In the nine tournaments that she failed to reach the final, she was a losing semi-finalist twice and a losing quarter finalist five times. From 1971 through 1975, she won seven of the ten Grand Slam singles tournaments she played. She won

10400-481: Was cheated out of the match and that she had never been angrier about a match. King played only one of the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments, defeating Olga Morozova in the Eastbourne semi-finals before losing to Wade in the final. Seeded third at Wimbledon, King defeated seventh seeded Morozova in the quarterfinals (6–3, 6–3) and then top seeded Evert in the semi-finals (2–6, 6–2, 6–3) after being down 3–0 (40–15) in

10504-467: Was followed by five tournaments that King failed to win (Detroit, Boston , Chicago, Jacksonville , and the inaugural Family Circle Cup in Hilton Head, South Carolina ). King lost to Court in two of those tournaments. After deciding not to defend her French Open singles title, King won four consecutive tournaments, including her fifth Wimbledon singles title when she defeated Kerry Melville Reid in

10608-537: Was her 11–2 career record in deuce third sets, i.e., third sets that were tied 5–5 before being resolved. King won 129 singles titles, 78 of which were WTA titles, and her career prize money totaled US$ 1,966,487. In Federation Cup finals, she was on the winning United States team seven times, in 1963, 1966, 1967, and 1976 through 1979. Her career win–loss record was 52–4. She won the last 30 matches she played, including 15 straight wins in both singles and doubles. In Wightman Cup competition, her career win–loss record

10712-679: Was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Hall of Fame during the ABCA's national convention in San Diego, CA. Herbold was later honored by Cal State LA Intercollegiate Athletics for becoming baseball coach with the most wins in University history. Cal State LA has won 398 baseball games since he became head coach in 1984. The previous record of 397 wins was held by Jim Reeder, for whom

10816-570: Was the U.S. captain in the Federation Cup. King is an advocate of gender equality and has long been a pioneer for equality and social justice. In 1973, at the age of 29, she famously won the " Battle of the Sexes " tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs . King was also the founder of the Women's Tennis Association and the Women's Sports Foundation . She was instrumental in persuading cigarette brand Virginia Slims to sponsor women's tennis in

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