USTA senior players maintain their edge

Fred Drilling is the son of a former college tennis athlete and has been playing the sport all of his life.

But even Drilling, of Estero, never imagined he’d still be playing highly competitive tennis at the age of 74.

He is among the hundreds of athletes who competed at the 37th International Tennis Federation Super-Seniors World Team Championships held at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona during the past two weeks.

Drilling won gold in the men’s 75-year-old doubles and was highly competitive in other events.

“All of us out here are fortunate to have gotten through various injuries and have managed to stay in shape,” Drilling said. “I marvel at the guys in the 80s and 90s groups that can still run around the tennis court and have that competitive attitude.”

He played college tennis at UCLA and Arizona before later opening a highly successful pro tennis shop near the White House, forming a close connection with President George H.W. Bush and his family. Drilling left cold weather behind and helped launch the women’s tennis program at Florida Gulf Coast University.

While he seemed destined to stay competitive in the sport, others who won big for the U.S. team took up the sport relatively late.

Brenda Carter, 71, didn’t start playing in national tournaments until she was 55.

The former math professor and associate athletics director at Georgia Southern was captain of the U.S. women's 70-year-old team and won a gold medal in the women’s 70-year-old individual doubles.

“The fact that we have, at our ages, the opportunity to continue to compete is just a real joy for all of us,” she said. “It’s a lifestyle we all love. We have a love the game.”

Roz King of San Diego is competing in the 80-year-old age group and took up the sport in her 40s.

“I was walking past a public part court and I saw people that were approximately my age playing tennis,” she said. “I think it was something I could enjoy because in high school I played field hockey and could run.”

The former nurse practitioner and healthcare administrator said she had a wonderful experience playing on the elite USTA courts and bonding with players from a wide range of other countries off the court.

It’s rare for her to find many competitors in her age group back home, so the tournament offered her a steady stream of quality matches. She rose to the challenge, winning the U.S. women’s team 80-year-old title, a gold medal in the women’s 80-year-old singles and a bronze medal in women’s 80-year-old doubles.

She thinks she can keep playing another 10 to 15 years, competing well into her 90s.

“They have gold balls for the 90s players and we all hope to have one,” she said. “It’s so much fun.”