Wikipedia

Roscoe Tanner

Leonard Roscoe Tanner (born October 15, 1951) is an American former professional tennis player.[1] He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 4 on July 30, 1979.

Roscoe Tanner
Country (sports) United States
ResidenceKiawah Island, South Carolina, US
Born (1951-10-15) October 15, 1951 (age 73)
Chattanooga, Tennessee, US
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Turned pro1972 (amateur from 1969)
Retired1985
PlaysLeft-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money$1,696,198
Singles
Career record592–293 (66.9%)
Career titles16
Highest rankingNo. 4 (July 30, 1979)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (1977Jan)
French Open4R (1978)
WimbledonF (1979)
US OpenSF (1974, 1979)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsRR (1976, 1977, 1979, 1981)
WCT FinalsSF (1981)
Doubles
Career record272-182 (59.9%)
Career titles13
Highest rankingNo. 14 (August 23, 1977)

Tanner won 16 titles throughout his career. Tanner was famous for his big left-handed serve, which was reportedly clocked at 153 miles per hour (246 km/h) at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California on February 19, 1978 during the 1978 American Airlines Tennis Games singles final against Raúl Ramírez.[2][3][4] He is also known for winning the men's singles title at the first of two Australian Open tournaments held in 1977. Tanner won the tournament held in January. Tanner reached the Wimbledon final in 1979, narrowly losing to Björn Borg in five sets.

After his retirement, Tanner received media attention in the 2000s for legal problems that included stretches of imprisonment, arrests for missing child support payments, allegations of financial misdeeds, and bankruptcy (see § Legal issues).

Early life

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Leonard Roscoe Tanner III[5] was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee on 15 October 1951.[6] He is the son of Leonard Roscoe Tanner Jr., an attorney who played collegiate tennis at the University of Chattanooga, and Anne Tanner.[7] Tanner grew up in Lookout Mountain, Tennessee where he was introduced to tennis at the age of 6.[8] He competed against Jimmy Connors throughout juniors and Tanner said in an interview that he won most of their matches.[9] He won his first Junior U.S. Nationals Tournament at 16-years-old.[10]

Tanner graduated from Baylor School[11] with honors, where he was captain of the tennis team and recipient of the Senior Tennis Award. He went on to help lead Stanford University's rise to national prominence in collegiate tennis with teammate, Sandy Mayer.Tanner played number one singles, with Mayer playing number two. In 1972, Tanner and Mayer won the NCAA doubles championship, and the Stanford team finished second in the NCAA tournament, behind Trinity (TX). The team also featured Chico Hagey, Rick Fisher, Jim Delaney, Gery Groslimond, Chip Fisher, Paul Sidone, and Tim Noonan.

Career

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Early career (1969–73)

 
Stanford tennis coach Gould holds the 1972 NCAA Championship trophy won by Roscoe Tanner and Sandy Mayer playing men's doubles.

Tanner defeated Haroon Rahim 10–8 in the fifth set to win the 1970 United States Amateur Championships. While attending Stanford, Tanner began playing professional tennis tournaments throughout the U.S., which earned him a ranking in the top 20.[9] Tanner graduated from Stanford, forgoed law school, and officially turned pro in 1972.[12] That same year, the world no.1, Arthur Ashe, asked Tanner to be his doubles partner and Tanner says, "One of the biggest turning points for me was playing doubles with Arthur Ashe," in a 2020 interview. His first tournament on tour was the 1972 Wimbledon Championships, where he lost to Colin Dibley in the 3rd round.[13] Tanner made it to the quarterfinals of the 1972 U.S. Open, where he lost to Tom Gorman in 5 sets.[14] Tanner won his first professional tournament in doubles with Arthur Ashe in 1973 Denver WCT.[15]

Peak years (1974–79)

Tanner claimed the singles and doubles titles at Denver WCT in 1974 where he defeated Arthur Ashe.[16] Tanner lost in a 1975 Wimbledon semifinal to Jimmy Connors[17] and lost in a 1976 Wimbledon semifinal to Björn Borg. In the round of 16 in the 1976 U.S. Open, Tanner lost to Ilie Nastase – where Tanner told the umpire to change the call on Nastase's ball from "out" to "in".[18] Tanner defeated Guillermo Vilas in three straight sets in the 1977 Australian Open (January) final, to win his first and only Grand Slam title.

 
Tanner prepares to serve at the 1979 Wimbledon final.

Tanner went on to clock a 153 mph serve at the 1978 Palm Springs Tournament where he defeated Raul Ramirez. His booming 153 mph serve was the fastest ever recorded in tournament competition from February 1978[2][3][4] until Andy Roddick posted a 155 mph serve[7] in a Davis Cup semifinal in September 2004 against Vladimir Voltchkov. Research has shown that the advancements made to modern day tennis rackets have allowed serve speed to increase by 17.5%.[19]

Tanner lost a five set match to Björn Borg in the 1979 Wimbledon final, which was the first Wimbledon final to be broadcast live in the United States as part of NBC's Breakfast at Wimbledon. Tanner avenged this loss to Borg by beating him in four sets in the US Open quarterfinals two months later, a match where Tanner's 140 mph serve brought the net down during the fourth set.[6] Tanner lost to Vitas Gerulaitis in a five-set thriller in the semifinals. Tanner described his 1979 US Open win over Borg and loss to Gerulaitis in his autobiography as "the highest of my highs and the lowest of my lows on a tennis court within two days of each other".[2]

1980s

Tanner advanced to the quarter-finals of the U.S Open in 1980 and 1981. He made it to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 1980 and 1983, despite suffering an injury to his left elbow, his serving arm. He won the Davis Cup in 1981 playing with John McEnroe, Eliot Teltscher and Peter Fleming on a team captained by Arthur Ashe that defeated Argentina in the final, played at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati.

1985: Retirement

Tanner officially retired from professional tennis in 1985.[20] He coached in Europe for a brief period and led clinics at tennis resorts in the United States. He played in the Over-50s tennis tournaments and was ranked 2nd in the world during that period.

Playing style

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In January 1977, Tanner won the Australian Open.

Tanner was known for his unorthodox, very strong left-handed serve was tossed very low and struck with a lunge involving the whole body, earning him the nickname "The Rocket".[5] In a 2023 podcast interview, Tanner explained how he first learned his service motion: "When [Jerry Evert] taught me how to serve... he took me to the woods beside the court without a ball, and had me do the service motion knocking leaves off of trees."[21] His game consisted of a powerful serve with an approach to the net and strong volleys.

In a video for Jack Kramer, Tanner said, "The offensive style of game which is closest to my heart is basically the attacking style... that is a serve and volley type of game. That's really moving at the other player, picking out their weaknesses and attacking them, being aggressive."[22] Tanner played with a PDP Open racket, which was the "stiffest" racket on tour at the time, which added speed and power to his strokes and volleys.[23]

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

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Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
Tournament 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 SR W–L
Australian Open1 A A A A A A A A W 1R A A A 2R A 3R A 1 / 4 9–3
French Open A A A A A 1R 3R A A 4R A A A A A A 0 / 3 5–3
Wimbledon A A A 3R A 4R SF SF 1R 4R F QF 2R 4R QF A 0 / 11 36–11
US Open 1R 2R 3R QF 3R SF 3R 4R 4R 4R SF QF QF 2R 3R 1R 0 / 16 40–16
Win–loss 0–1 0–1 2–1 6–2 2–1 8–3 9–3 8–2 9–3 9–3 11–2 8–2 6–3 4–2 8–3 0–1 1 / 34 90–33

1The Australian Open was played twice in 1977, in January and December.

Grand Slam finals

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Singles: 2 (1 titles, 1 runner-up)

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Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win 1977 Australian Open (Jan.) Grass   Guillermo Vilas 6–3, 6–3, 6–3
Loss 1979 Wimbledon Grass   Björn Borg 7–6(7–4), 1–6, 6–3, 3–6, 4–6

Career finals

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Singles (15 titles, 26 runner-ups)

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Result No. Year Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Loss 1. 1972 Albany, U.S. Hard (i)   Jimmy Connors 2–6, 6–7
Loss 2. 1972 Los Angeles, U.S. Hard   Stan Smith 4–6, 4–6
Loss 3. 1973 Milan WCT, Italy Carpet (i)   Marty Riessen 6–7, 0–6, 6–7
Loss 4. 1974 Palm Desert WCT, U.S. Hard   Rod Laver 4–6, 2–6
Win 1. 1974 Denver WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe 6–2, 6–4
Loss 5. 1974 Columbus, U.S. Hard   Raúl Ramírez 6–3, 6–7, 4–6
Loss 6. 1974 Maui, U.S. Hard   John Newcombe 6–7, 6–7
Win 2. 1974 Christchurch, New Zealand Carpet (i)   Ray Ruffels 6–4, 6–2
Loss 7. 1975 St. Petersburg WCT, U.S. Hard   Raúl Ramírez 0–6, 6–1, 2–6
Loss 8. 1975 St. Louis WCT, U.S. Clay   Vitas Gerulaitis 6–2, 2–6, 3–6
Loss 9. 1975 Charlotte, U.S. Clay   Raúl Ramírez 6–3, 4–6, 3–6
Win 3. 1975 Las Vegas WCT, U.S. Hard   Ross Case 5–7, 7–5, 7–6
Win 4. 1975 Chicago, U.S. Carpet (i)   John Alexander 6–1, 6–7, 7–6
Loss 10. 1975 Los Angeles, U.S. Hard   Arthur Ashe 6–3, 5–7, 3–6
Loss 11. 1976 Birmingham, U.S. Carpet (i)   Jimmy Connors 4–6, 6–3, 1–6
Loss 12. 1976 Rancho Mirage, U.S. Hard   Jimmy Connors 4–6, 4–6
Win 5. 1976 Cincinnati, U.S. Clay   Eddie Dibbs 7–6, 6–3
Win 6. 1976 Columbus, U.S. Hard   Stan Smith 6–4, 7–6
Loss 13. 1976 South Orange, U.S. Clay   Ilie Năstase 4–6, 2–6
Win 7. 1976 San Francisco, U.S. Hard (i)   Brian Gottfried 4–6, 7–5, 6–1
Win 8. 1976 Tokyo Outdoor, Japan Clay   Corrado Barazzutti 6–3, 6–2
Loss 14. 1976 Wembley, U.K. Carpet (i)   Jimmy Connors 6–3, 6–7, 4–6
Win 9. 1977 (Jan.) Australian Open, Melbourne Grass   Guillermo Vilas 6–3, 6–3, 6–3
Loss 15. 1977 South Orange, U.S. Clay   Guillermo Vilas 4–6, 1–6
Loss 16. 1977 Hilton Head, U.S. Clay   Björn Borg 4–6, 5–7
Loss 17. 1977 WCT Challenge Cup, Las Vegas Carpet (i)   Jimmy Connors 2–6, 6–5, 6–3, 2–6, 5–6
Win 10. 1977 Sydney Outdoor, Australia Grass   Brian Teacher 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 6–7, 6–4
Loss 18. 1978 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (i)   Jimmy Connors 2–6, 4–6, 3–6
Win 11. 1978 Rancho Mirage, U.S. Hard   Raúl Ramírez 6–1, 7–6
Win 12. 1978 New Orleans, U.S. Carpet (i)   Victor Amaya 6–3, 7–5
Win 13. 1979 Rancho Mirage, U.S. Hard   Brian Gottfried 6–4, 6–2
Win 14. 1979 Washington Indoor, U.S. Carpet (i)   Brian Gottfried 6–4, 6–4
Loss 19. 1979 New Orleans, U.S. Carpet (i)   John McEnroe 4–6, 2–6
Loss 20. 1979 Wimbledon, U.K. Grass   Björn Borg 7–6, 1–6, 6–3, 3–6, 4–6
Loss 21. 1979 Cincinnati, U.S. Hard   Peter Fleming 4–6, 2–6
Loss 22. 1980 Richmond WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   John McEnroe 1–6, 2–6
Win 15. 1981 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (i)   Wojtek Fibak 6–2, 7–6, 7–5
Loss 23. 1981 Memphis, U.S. Carpet (i)   Gene Mayer 2–6, 4–6
Loss 24. 1981 Bristol, U.K. Grass   Mark Edmondson 3–6, 7–5, 4–6
Loss 25. 1981 Sydney Indoor, Australia Hard (i)   John McEnroe 4–6, 5–7, 2–6
Loss 26. 1982 La Costa WCT, U.S. Hard   Johan Kriek 0–6, 6–4, 0–6, 4–6

Doubles titles (13 titles, 16 runner-ups)

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Result No. Year Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1. 1971 Cincinnati, U.S. Clay   Sandy Mayer   Stan Smith
  Erik van Dillen 		4–6, 4–6
Loss 2. 1971 Columbus, U.S. Hard   Jimmy Connors   Jim McManus
  Jim Osborne 		6–4, 5–7, 2–6
Loss 3. 1973 London WCT, U.K. Hard (i)   Arthur Ashe   Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen 		3–6, 3–6
Loss 4. 1973 Washington WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe   Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen 		6–4, 6–7, 2–6
Loss 5. 1973 Houston WCT, U.S. Clay   Arthur Ashe   Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen 		5–7, 5–7
Win 1. 1973 Denver WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe   Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen 		3–6, 6–3, 7–6
Loss 6. 1973 Paris Indoor, France Hard (i)   Arthur Ashe   Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Ilie Năstase 		2–6, 6–4, 5–7
Loss 7. 1974 Bologna Indoor, Italy Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe   Ove Bengtson
  Björn Borg 		4–6, 7–5, 6–4, 6–7, 2–6
Win 2. 1974 Barcelona WCT, Spain Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe   Tom Edlefsen
  Tom Leonard 		6–3, 6–4
Loss 8. 1974 Houston, U.S. Clay   Arthur Ashe   Colin Dibley
  Rod Laver 		6–4, 6–7, 4–6
Win 3. 1974 Denver WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   Arthur Ashe   Mark Cox
  Jun Kamiwazumi 		6–3, 7–6
Win 4. 1974 Maui, U.S. Hard   Dick Stockton   Owen Davidson
  John Newcombe 		6–3, 7–6
Win 5. 1974 Christchurch, New Zealand Carpet (i)   Ismail El Shafei   Syd Ball
  Ray Ruffels 		w/o
Win 6. 1974 Jakarta, Indonesia Hard   Ismail El Shafei   Jürgen Fassbender
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann 		7–5, 6–3
Loss 9. 1975 St. Petersburg WCT, U.S. Hard   Charlie Pasarell   Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez 		4–6, 4–6
Loss 10. 1975 La Costa WCT, U.S. Hard   Charlie Pasarell   Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez 		5–7, 4–6
Win 7. 1975 Nottingham, U.K. Grass   Charlie Pasarell   Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen 		6–2, 6–3
Loss 11. 1975 Stockholm, Sweden Hard (i)   Charlie Pasarell   Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan 		6–3, 3–6, 4–6
Loss 12. 1976 Memphis WCT, U.S. Carpet (i)   Marty Riessen   Anand Amritraj
  Vijay Amritraj 		3–6, 4–6
Win 8. 1976 La Costa WCT, U.S. Hard   Marty Riessen   Peter Fleming
  Gene Mayer 		7–6, 7–6
Win 9. 1976 Johannesburg WCT, South Africa Hard   Marty Riessen   Frew McMillan
  Tom Okker 		6–2, 7–5
Win 10. 1976 San Francisco, U.S. Hard (i)   Dick Stockton   Brian Gottfried
  Bob Hewitt 		6–3, 6–4
Loss 13. 1976 Maui, U.S. Hard   Dick Stockton   Raymond Moore
  Allan Stone 		7–6, 3–6, 4–6
Win 11. 1976 Perth, Australia Hard (i)   Dick Stockton   Bob Carmichael
  Ismail El Shafei 		6–7, 6–1, 6–2
Win 12. 1976 Wembley, U.K. Carpet (i)   Stan Smith   Wojtek Fibak
  Brian Gottfried 		7–6, 6–3
Loss 14. 1977 Palm Springs, U.S. Hard   Marty Riessen   Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan 		6–7, 6–7
Loss 15. 1977 Cincinnati, U.S. Hard   Bob Hewitt   John Alexander
  Phil Dent 		3–6, 6–7
Loss 16. 1977 Hong Kong Hard   Marty Riessen   Syd Ball
  Kim Warwick 		6–7, 3–6
Win 13. 1978 Palm Springs, U.S. Hard   Raymond Moore   Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan 		6–4, 6–4

Personal life

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Tanner has been married three times, first to Nancy, then Charlotte, and last to Margaret. He has five children, Omega Anne Romano, Tamara Tanner, Lauren Tanner, Anne Monique, and Lacey Tanner.[5] He went through a costly divorce with his first wife, Nancy, that led to financial troubles. Tanner has said he holds a strong relationship to the Christian faith.[2]

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Tanner's conflicts with the law stem from financial mismanagement. He was first arrested in 1997 for failure to pay child support.[24] He was arrested again in June 2003 on a fugitive warrant on charges related to passing a bad check.[3] He pleaded guilty and received an initial sentence of probation. Tanner violated his probation and served one year in prison in Florida, but was then jailed for contempt of court in California.[8]

In 2008, Tanner was again arrested for writing a bad check in Knoxville, Tennessee, but it was settled out of court.[25][10] After being evicted from his home, Tanner was arrested in January 2012 for writing another bad check.[26][better source needed] In March 2013, Tanner was arrested in Florida for writing a bad check and grand theft, and in 2014, he served 10 days for driving with a suspended license.[27] In 2015, Tanner was arrested for failure to appear in court on a previous warrant.[27]

Daughters

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His second book, Second Serve: My Fall From Grace and Road to Reconciliation, is dedicated to his daughters. Tamara, Lacey Turner, and Anne Monique Tanner went on to play collegiate tennis. Anne Monique now works at the Women's Tennis Association. Lacey Turner currently plays NCAA Division 1 tennis at Valparaiso University.[citation needed]

Tennis clinics

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Roscoe offers a tennis clinic in Tucson, AZ

Tanner has a venture in teaching tennis. He has taught at doubles tennis camps with other professionals,[28] and is the camp director at his own training camp.[29] Tanner is passionate about helping underprivileged children gain access to the sport. The Roscoe Tanner Tennis Clinic has become a mainstay event in Tucson, Arizona and Houston, Texas. The clinic encompasses the mechanics of serving including stance, location, stroke, contact point, toss, and follow-through, creating weight transfer. Roscoe covers placement, types of serve (flat, slice, kick), and when to use it. He also has a section on volleys and net play.[30]

Books

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Double Fault: My Rise And Fall, And My Road Back (2005) by Roscoe Tanner and Mike Yorkey, Foreword by Stan Smith.[2]

Recognition

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Roscoe Tanner is known for holding the record for the fastest serve in the world (153 mph) from 1978–2005. His offensive playing style led him to a career high of No. 4 in the world in 1979. He is the Grand Slam singles champion of the 1977 Australian Open. Tanner received the "Fair Play Award" from the United Nations in 1979.[31]

References

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  1. ^ "The Big Interview Roscoe Tanner". The Times. London. December 5, 2004.[dead link]
  2. ^ a b c d e Yorkey, Mike; Roscoe Tanner (2005). Double Fault: My Rise And Fall, And My Road Back. Liguori, Mo: Triumph Books. ISBN 1572437790.
  3. ^ a b c L. Jon Wertheim (November 29, 2004). "Outside Looking In". Sports Illustrated.
  4. ^ a b Wimbledon '99: Secrets of an express delivery, by Ronald Atkin, The Independent, June 20, 1999 Retrieved December 9, 2009.
  5. ^ a b c Wigmore, Barry (August 8, 2003). "How the rocket crashed to earth". The Times. UK. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Powering up". St. Petersburg Times. August 27, 2007. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  7. ^ a b "Serving up a tennis treat..." The Press. October 24, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  8. ^ a b "Roscoe Tanner in Trouble With Law, Again". WTVC. May 29, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2009. [dead link]
  9. ^ a b Roscoe Tanner Discusses A Troubled Life with Craig Shapiro. February 28, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2025 – via shows.acast.com.
  10. ^ a b "Theft Charges Dismissed Against Roscoe Tanner After Restitution Made". The Chattanoogan. August 14, 2008. Archived from the original on July 30, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  11. ^ "Baylor School: Leonard Roscoe Tanner, Jr. '69". baylorschool.org. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  12. ^ "Player Profile: Roscoe Tanner". Golden Age of Tennis.
  13. ^ "Wimbledon 1972 Tennis Tournament". www.itftennis.com. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  14. ^ "US Open Men's Singles 1972". www.db4tennis.com.
  15. ^ "Tanner Defeats Rosewall, 6–1, 6–2". The New York Times. April 27, 1973.
  16. ^ "1974 Denver WCT Tournament Results, Stats, and Analysis". www.tennisabstract.com.
  17. ^ "Wimbledon 1975 Tennis Tournament". itftennis.com.
  18. ^ "Nastase Wins Five‐Set Battle; Hostile Fans Disrupt Play". The New York Times. September 8, 1976.
  19. ^ Tennis science & technology 3. London: International Tennis Federation. 2007. ISBN 978-1-903013-34-2.
  20. ^ "Player Profile: Roscoe Tanner". Golden Age of Tennis. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  21. ^ "Roscoe Tanner Discusses A Troubled Life with Craig Shapiro". shows.acast.com. February 28, 2023.
  22. ^ Vicente Sala (November 27, 2021). Roscoe Tanner: the offensive game (Jack Kramer tennis lessons). Retrieved March 19, 2025 – via YouTube.
  23. ^ Roscoe Tanner: Tennis, Racquets and BOLT. May 5, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2025 – via YouTube.
  24. ^ Greg Garber (June 24, 2006). "Jailed Tanner's losses: Game, set, match...family". ESPN.
  25. ^ Tanner accused of not returning vehicles after check bounced, Associated Press, May 28, 2008. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  26. ^ "Leonard Roscoe Tanner - Florida". mugshots.com. January 30, 2012.
  27. ^ a b "Inmate Booking Details". Indian River County Sheriff's Office.
  28. ^ "Tennis Camp with Roscoe Tanner". Archived from the original on June 25, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  29. ^ "Roscoe Tanner tennis training". Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  30. ^ "Roscoe Tanner Tennis Clinic TUCSON, KXCI". kxci.org. Retrieved March 19, 2025.
  31. ^ "Tennis Legend Roscoe Tanner Set to Headline "Serve Challenge" Event on Saturday, November 11th". www.prweb.com. Retrieved March 19, 2025.
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