INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Former World No.13 Amy Frazier, Wisconsin-born touring pros Tami Whitlinger-Jones and Teri Whitlinger Boynton, and the WTA’s Peachy Kellmeyer (above) were inducted into the USTA Midwest Section’s Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Indianapolis earlier this month.
Frazier, who was born in St Louis, Missouri, enjoyed a two-decade career that saw her win eight WTA singles titles and four doubles titles before her retirement at the 2006 US Open. Twice a Grand Slam quarterfinalist, she held the all-time record for Grand Slam main draw appearances (71) until being surpassed by Venus Williams at the 2016 US Open.
During her career, Tami Whitlinger Jones, a two-time All American at Stanford University, rose as high as No.41 and advanced to the fourth round at Roland Garros in 1991. Her sister Teri Whitlinger-Boynton was a four-time All American at Stanford and reached the Top 200 in singles and doubles.
Kellmeyer, a native of Charleston, West Virginia became a trailblazer on the business side of tennis when she was hired as the WTA’s first Tour Director in 1973. Before her operational career took off she was the youngest player ever invited to compete at the US National Championships at Forest Hills; represented the United States in Wightman Cup play and was the first woman to ever play on a Division 1 men’s team.
While serving as a physical education teacher at Marymount College, Kellmeyer successfully sued to overturn a ruling that barred women’s athletic scholarships – thus contributing to 1972’s momentous Title IX, a US civil rights law that required equal treatment of men and women in the education system, wherever federal funding was involved.
“You work your whole life, and you hope you’re giving back to the sport,” said Kellmeyer, who was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011 and continues to make a vital contribution to the WTA. “To get an award like this, it really just doesn’t get any better than that.”
Kellmeyer was unable to receive her latest accolade in person, but was represented by Barbara Wynne, herself a member of the Midwest Tennis HOF who is recognized for her contribution to youth tennis schemes in Indiana and across the country.
