Strawberry tennis legend Vic Seixas turns 100
Updated: Jul 16
Editor’s note — This article won third place for best sports feature and best profile feature in the National Newspaper Association’s 2024 Better Newspapers Contest, as well as fifth place for best sports feature in the California News Publishers Association’s 2023 California Journalism Awards.
Strawberry resident Vic Seixas racked up a long list of accolades during his hall-of-fame career as a professional tennis player.
But today, Aug. 30, he reaches a personal milestone: his 100th birthday.
“I guess this is probably a pretty noteworthy occasion for me,” Seixas said Aug. 23. “I don’t expect anything unusual to happen, but I’m glad to have made it this far. I’ve been very lucky.”
Among his noteworthy accomplishments is compiling an awe-inspiring athletic resume.
He’s the oldest living Grand Slam champion, winning men’s singles trophies at Wimbledon in 1953 and the U.S. National Championships, now known as the U.S. Open, in 1954 — two of the four Grand Slam tournaments. They’re the cherries on top of a storied tennis career. He also won five majors in men’s doubles and eight in mixed doubles — including four straight at Wimbledon from 1953 to 1956.
All told, Seixas (pronounced SAY-shus) had 15 majors victories in a career that included 28 appearances at the U.S. Nationals between 1940 and 1969, with a record 24 straight. That endurance was also reflected on the court: At age 42, in the 1966 Philadelphia Grass Championship, he played 94 games over four hours to beat 22-year-old Bill Bowrey, 32-34, 6-4, 10-8.
Seixas was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971.
“I did pretty much what I wanted to accomplish, and I’m very happy about that,” he says. “And I’m not looking for anything special, but I’m glad I did what I did because it meant something to me, and that obviously means something to some people who want to read about tennis.”
Seixas is still a recognizable figure to those who might spot him around his Harbor Point apartment, says longtime friend and neighbor Dianne Featherston.
“I have a friend that lives in Texas. She came here and she saw him. And she just said, ‘You know, that’s Vic Seixas,’” Featherston recalls. “And I said, ‘It is.’ So I knew that (there) was a very famous person living here.”
Seixas was born and raised in Philadelphia. He was introduced to tennis by his father and began playing at a small community club in his hometown. He grew to enjoy the sport, and people around him took notice as “one thing led to another and they said, ‘Hey, he’s got pretty good pretty early,’” he recalls. “I just kept getting better and better, and I liked it and I stayed with it.”
Seixas participated in his first U.S. Nationals when he was still a teen, but his tennis career was interrupted by World War II. He shipped out to New Guinea, where he served as a test pilot and maintenance officer in the U.S. Army Air Corps. He recalls building airplanes that were shipped over to New Guinea to partake in the Pacific Theater. He also test-flew planes before they went out to combat.
“I really, really rather enjoyed it in the sense that I didn’t want to be in the service particularly — I wanted to get out, like everybody,” Seixas says. “I was fortunate, I think, doing something that I enjoyed doing and it was interesting, interesting work.”
Seixas returned to the tennis court after the war, playing three years at the University of North Carolina before serving and volleying his way to Wimbledon in 1953. His 9-7, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Danish opponent Kurt Nielsen in the final added his name to an accomplished roster. Wimbledon is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, dating back to 1877, and other men’s single’s champions include Björn Borg, John McEnroe, Novak Djokovic, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer.
“As far as tennis players go, I think if you asked any tennis player what’s the one tournament they want to win, it would be Wimbledon,” Seixas says. “And I feel fortunate to have been one of the ones that did it. Even more fortunate to still be alive. I’m the oldest one.”
Seixas, who uses a wheelchair, hasn’t been able to attend the tournament in a while, but he lauded its continued stature in the world of tennis. He also looked back fondly on his win at the U.S. Nationals in 1954, when it was still an amateur-only competition. However, he also remembers the matches that didn’t go his way.
Seixas lost the 1951 U.S. Open final to Australian Frank Sedgman, who also had a storied career. Seixas, who beat No. 1-seed Dick Savitt to make the final, says Sedgman is the one player he would love to play one more time if he could. Sedgman himself turns 96 in October.
“I did beat him once or twice, but he did beat me more,” he says.
He is quick to recall the score of that 1951 loss — 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 — and recalled New York Times tennis reporter Allison Danzig kept statistics of the final that showed how much Sedgman outshone Seixas.
In a Sept. 5, 1951, article on the match, Danzig wrote that Sedgman’s all-around quality, both in playstyle and conditioning, was so good that Sedgman “were to all but take the heart out of his opponent.”
“It was an amazing turnaround because I didn’t feel like I played very badly, but I only got six games,” Seixas says. “Frank Sedgman was, in my opinion, one of the best players.”
The bulk of Seixas’ tennis career was before the current era of tennis, known as the Open Era, began in 1968, allowing professionals to compete alongside amateurs at Grand Slam tournaments. That meant Seixas missed out on the prize money that now comes with winning those majors.
Seixas’ prize for winning Wimbledon in 1953 was, he recalls, something along the lines of a food voucher for 25 British pounds. In contrast, Carlos Alcaraz, who won the men’s single’s championship at Wimbledon this year, took home 2.35 million pounds, or just shy of $3 million.
While he says he would have liked to play with that type of prize money available, he notes his expenses were covered as he traveled worldwide to play tennis. It cost him nothing, but he earned nothing, he says.
“I’m not complaining because I lived like a king, and even though I didn’t make any money, I still enjoyed all the things that the guys would make doing now that they’re making money for,” he says. “It would’ve been nice to make some money, but I don’t feel like I’ve been unjustly treated or anything like that.”
Seixas says he watches tennis “once in a while” to keep tab on winners and losers but doesn’t know any of today’s current crop. He notes the long rallies and baseline work that marks the sport today is a far cry from how Seixas and his contemporaries played.
“It’s not better or it’s not worse, it’s just different,” he says.
Seixas described his play style as “very simple: serve and volley.” He would not let the ball bounce and would always get up to the net, which is where most of his fellow players would play from, especially on grass courts, which he says is more conducive to serve-and-volley tennis.
“It’s, in essence, an aggressive way to play,” Seixas says. “I felt if I stayed back, I’d had less chance to win the points. I wanted to get to the net as soon as I could.”
As he marks his 100th birthday, Seixas says he’s been fortunate to retain his health and a sound mind.
“I’ve been very, very healthy all my life,” he says. “And I think I still have all my marbles.”
A birthday celebration is planned for Seixas today, Aug. 30, but he notes he’s received one birthday card ahead of time — from none other than Frank Sedgman.
Reach Tiburon reporter Francisco Martinez at 415-944-4634.
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