About 30 years ago I played in the Visalia Open, a NorCal Open prize money event for women only. I played a woman from Exeter. There are no players in Exeter…or so I thought. And the woman was OLD! 46! Egads, certainly someone that old couldn’t run! Or last. (I was about 29 at the time). Lorna Brooks was my opponent that day. She came out with a purse and one or two racquets and no hat, not even a rubber band to hold her hair back. Long story short, 3 plus hours after we started Lorna was the victor. The silver lining was that I had a new practice partner and friend. Little did I know before that match that Lorna was the #2 player in SoCal juniors in her youth and one of the top juniors in the country. The #1 junior was Sally Huss, who now lives in the San Diego area.

Forward 31 years, Lorna and Sally are now about 77. Lorna played in the national hard courts in La Jolla (Sally is a member). Sally didn’t realize Lorna was in the tournament (different last name) and Lorna didn’t realize Sally lived in the area. They ran into each other at the player dinner after not having seen each other for over 30 years! It was really nice. Lorna lived in the LA area and Sally in Bakersfield. Sally used to come to practice with Lorna on a makeshift court in Lorna’s backyard. Lorna’s mom would hang laundry to dry on the net and tell the girls “do not hit the ball into the net”. No wonder Lorna has great net clearance to this day.

Tennis, the sport of a lifetime and a way to make friends for a lifetime. Sally and Lorna below.