Bakersfield tennis great Ralston dies
Dennis Ralston, arguably Bakersfield’s finest tennis player, who made history in 1960 at age 17 as half of the first unseeded pair to win the men’s doubles at Wimbledon, died Sunday of cancer at age 78.
Ralston was still a senior at Bakersfield High School when he paired with Mexico’s Rafael Osuna to win at the prestigious tennis tournament. He was a five-time Grand Slam doubles champion, one of the first players signed to the professional World Championship Tennis tour in the 1960s and a member of the Tennis Hall of Fame.
“I watched him as a kid beat (Rod) Laver in five sets at the Pacific Southwest tournament at the L.A. Tennis Club,” said retired tennis pro Hank Pfister, who followed Ralston on the pro circuit a decade later.
“Laver was in his prime and so was Denny. This is how good he was — Denny double-faulted around 23 times and still won the match. He was one of the cleanest hitters around and one of the best volleyers in the world.”
Ralston was great in singles — reaching the finals of Wimbledon in 1966 (where he lost to Spain’s Manuel Santana), the semifinals at the 1960 U.S. national championships, the 1970 Australian Open as well as being the highest-ranked American in the world for three years in the 1960s — but was an even better doubles player.
In addition to the Wimbledon title, Ralston and fellow American Chuck McKinley won the U.S. national championships in 1961, ’63
and ’64. He won the 1966 French championships on clay with American Clark Graebner, and was also a three-time Grand Slam finalist in mixed doubles.
Although Ralston missed out on the big money when the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) tour was formed in 1990, he was one of the “so-called Handsome Eight” on the WCT tour in 1967, along with John Newcombe, Tony Roche, Cliff Drysdale, Earl Buchholtz, Niki Pilic, Roger Taylor and Pierre Barthes.
The WCT tour helped commercialize tennis and make a stuffy sport less so. A tiebreaker was introduced, players were encouraged to wear colorful clothing, fans could cheer and prize money soon inundated the longtime amateur sport.
Richard Dennis Ralston was born on July 27, 1942, in Bakersfield. Coached by Pancho Gonzales, Ralston followed up his Wimbledon win by attending the University of Southern California and helping the Trojans win NCAA titles in 1962, ‘63 and ‘64, when he also won the NCAA doubles title.
Ralston turned pro in 1966 after losing to Santana at Wimbledon in 1966. He won 41 titles and had a career singles record of 576-251. He retired in 1977 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.
Ralston reinvented himself as a coach and a champion of Davis Cup play. He helped win the Davis Cup title in 1963, captained the team from 1972-75 and then later coached Chris Evert for six years as well as Roscoe Tanner, Yannick Noah and Gabriela Sabatini.
“A deeply religious man, a devoted family man, and a superb player and coach.... he will be missed. RIP Dennis,” Evert (@ChrissieEvert) tweeted Sunday.
Ralston coached the men’s team at Southern Methodist University and for the last decade, he has been on the teaching staff at Grey Rock Tennis Club in Austin, Texas.
“Despite all his accomplishments on and off the court, he was incredibly humble and would help anyone. Just a caring, genuine person,” said Grey Rock’s director of tennis Darin Pleasant, who recalled Ralston’s love of sharing stories from his touring and coaching days.
Although Ralston traveled the world and lived elsewhere much of his life, he never forgot where he was from, said Alan Hodges, former manager of the Bakersfield Racquet Club.
“He was always quick to mention he was from Bakersfield and from the Bakersfield Racquet Club,” Hodges said.
Ralston had a history of injuries having had both knees replaced in the late 1990s, experiencing foot problems and having a series of infections that required amputating his left leg below the knee. He wore a prosthesis that allowed him to play USTA league tennis.
Ralston struggled with the pain and subsequently with Oxycontin, overcoming his addiction after a stint at the Betty Ford Center.
In addition to Linda, his wife of 56 years, Ralston is survived by son Mike and daughters Lori and Angela.