Tennis Champ, 89, Keeps Hitting Aces
SAN DIEGO, April 25, 2004 — -- Ted Zoob, America's newest senior tennis champion, is nearly 90 years old, sports a runner's legs and hits ferocious ground strokes.
In a sports division often associated with frailty, he is a breakthrough competitor with the athletic skills of far younger players.
"He's the poster child for senior tennis," said Steve Solomon, tournament director for the USTA-Campbell's Soup 90-And-Over Hard Court Championships in Palm Springs. "He walks like he's 55 and he runs like he's 65 or 70."
In early April, Zoob stormed through a draw of 18 players from around the world to take the U.S. hard court title. Zoob's 90th birthday will be Nov. 5. Players become eligible to compete throughout the year in which they turn 90.
"At this particular age, I can't sit around and watch other people do the things I like to do," said Zoob, a retired lawyer and former tennis teacher who lives in Boca Raton, Fla., and Flushing, N.Y. "All my strokes are fine, except for the ball toss."
Zoob dislocated his left shoulder two months ago when he tripped while carrying a puppy. The injury prevented him from lifting his arm to toss the ball on his serve. So, to win the championship, he served underhand.
The final victory was no cakewalk. Zoob defeated Georg Hunter of Germany, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.
"Physically, he's light years ahead," said Solomon, who has staged the 90-plus championships for several years. "He gets there, he stays down, he hits the ball and he moves."
Zoob took up tennis at age 8 and "really got hooked on it," he said. Playing socially for many years as he pursued a career in law, he taught schoolchildren in afternoon clinics at the Alley Pond recreation center on Long Island. He is a longtime member of the United States Professional Tennis Association, an organization of teaching professionals.
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