The Jack Kramer Autograph: A Tale of Hope

[John Yandell]

Let's discuss Geoff William's article, "The Jack Kramer Autograph:
A Tale of Hope"

[GeoffWilliams]

Here is a picture of Yannick Noah, shortly after the great champion, Arthur Ashe gave him a Jack Kramer autograph, strung with gut. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yannick_Noah

Noah said, "He gave me a dream.", and the dream came from that racquet. It is the dream of every great coach, to hand out dreams like tennis balls to passer bys!

I have a dream, and that dream is to create a world class serve, the best string job ever done, at the advanced old age of 58! Without Ashes' gift of the Kramer, Noah would have languished in Cameroon without the great man's help. So I dedicate this article to Ashe and his championship nature.

country France
Born 18 May 1960 (age 54)
Sedan, France
Height 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Turned pro 1977
Retired 1996
Plays Right-handed (1-handed backhand)
Prize money $3,440,660
Int. Tennis HOF 2005 (member page)
Singles
Career record 476–210 (ATP, Grand Prix, WCT and Grand Slam level, and Davis Cup)
Career titles 23
Highest ranking No. 3 (7 July 1986)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open SF (1990)
French Open W (1983)
Wimbledon 3R (1979, 1985)
US Open QF (1983, 1985, 1989)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals QF (1982)
WCT Finals SF (1988)
Doubles
Career record 213–109 (ATP, Grand Prix, WCT and Grand Slam level, and Davis Cup)
Career titles 16

[gzhpcu]

Cool Geoff, I grew up playing with Jack Kramer rackets. I would get them as hand-me-downs from my father. Problem was my dad would pick up the balls on court by rubbing the racket on the ground near his foot, so that the top of the racket was worn thin. Very thin.

Later, we had the Pancho Gonzales model... In those days, Sam Match had a tennis shop near the Beverly Hills tennis club, and about the only rackets you could get were the Wilson Jack Kramer racket, a Slazenger model and a Spaulding model. The Wilson's were our favorites, along with the Wilson tennis balls, in a yellow pressurized can. On the hard courts in L.A. they would last a couple of hours and then become as bald as Yul Brynner...

[klacr]

Geoff,
Thanks for sharing. Nice article. A great racquet for a great era. Something magical about the power of a nice racquet in your hand. Gives you the confidence to take on Goliath and beat him.
They don't make them like that anymore. Literally and figuratively.

We have a wooden racquet tourney/mixer each year at my club. A few Jack Kramer's appear. Always love to give them a swing. Great feel. Once in a while I play against some of the better male members. They use their frames, I use a wooden racquet. I manage to make magic happen. Undeafeated, so far...

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[GeoffWilliams]

No matter what the era, if you are equipped to hit you have the best chance to improve and win against those who are not.

[gzhpcu]

I had an older model.... this one...

[gzhpcu]

Had to keep it in a press too....

[GeoffWilliams]

Laver made a court out of back yard red dirt hard scrabble, and used to string his frames with his brother in world record time by hand. Here is one of his frames strung with victor imperial blue streak gut. This frame strung with this string was amazingly powerful and accurate. When Philippoussis was asked to hit a serve with a woodie he hit 124mph. He then hit 127 with his mfil-200 dunlop. Blake still uses that frame and I have one as well. Mine is siliconed and leaded up to 375g. Do you think these guys coming up have ever even seen Laver play a match? Or Sampras for that matter? Or build their own court, string their own frames, customize their own silicone? Not many.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Philippoussis

[privas]

Nice article

Geoff, thanks brother for a wonderful contribution. King Solomon also preferred cedar and cypress. And the king of Tyre was happy to oblige. The temple was destroyed but we still have hope. I take out my Dunlop McEnroe Maxply once a year, and I give it a whirl on the grass, against my buddy who also has a Maxply. This is what tennis was meant to be. But it's all good.

[GeoffWilliams]

Geoff, thanks brother for a wonderful contribution. King Solomon also preferred cedar and cypress. And the king of Tyre was happy to oblige. The temple was destroyed but we still have hope. I take out my Dunlop McEnroe Maxply once a year, and I give it a whirl on the grass, against my buddy who also has a Maxply. This is what tennis was meant to be. But it's all good.

Too bad we can't get Mac and borg to play with their woodies again in Wimbledon!

[GeoffWilliams]

Geoff,
Thanks for sharing. Nice article. A great racquet for a great era. Something magical about the power of a nice racquet in your hand. Gives you the confidence to take on Goliath and beat him.
They don't make them like that anymore. Literally and figuratively.

We have a wooden racquet tourney/mixer each year at my club. A few Jack Kramer's appear. Always love to give them a swing. Great feel. Once in a while I play against some of the better male members. They use their frames, I use a wooden racquet. I manage to make magic happen. Undeafeated, so far...

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Always great to hear Kyle stories. Maybe you can get K to meet up and hit with you. He's the tournament director there in the dutch tournament. That would be a way of contacting him for sure. I was hitting at the berkeley rose garden against a young guy with a woodie, and Wayne Ferreira walked by and said, "Playing with a woodie, eh?", when he lived there on Santa Barbara he'd take his son William down to hit the wall there/. HIts with the cal berkeley guys and is listed as a volunteer coach, I guess for liability reasons. Makes them look like beginners!

The fact that a wolrld class guy noticed the woodie and volunteered a comment says something, as those guys are normally trying pretty hard not to be noticed and ganged up on in public!

[GeoffWilliams]

The head vector/graphite, when they began to combine materials with wood.

[GeoffWilliams]

My original first racquet, the FRS also a wood/fiberglass/steel cabled reinforced frame. You can see the small steel cables in the upper throat. Strung with gut.

[stotty]

Mac versus Djokovic...both using wood

I would like to make McEnroe 22 again. I'd stick him in a Wimbledon final against Djokovic today on a 1970s grass court. Both players to use wooden rackets. Now that would be interesting...

[GeoffWilliams]

The horse steroids ok with you on Mac? He can't hit a serve over 108mph. Graf had a faster serve. Joker would kill him. He'd just use that over size head woodie frame with graphite/gut alu.
18 x 20