Rosie Casals

Photo Gallery

 

 

Rosie, Billie Jean King, Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Lesley Turner Bowrey were special guests at the 2010 Australian Open,
honoring the 40th Anniversary of  Margaret Court's Grand Slam. 
In 1970, Margaret became the second women in tennis history to win the four majors in a calendar year. 
She had final round wins over Lesley in the  Australian Open, over Helga Niessen in the French Open,
over Billie Jean at Wimbledon and over Rosie at the U. S. Open.

 

Rosie and Tracy Austin

Honoring Lee Jackson at the annual Women's Tennis Legends reception in New York City in 2001

Rosie and Martina Navratilova

 

Rosie giving a tennis clinic in Chile,
summer of 2007

 

The Virginia Slims Legends Tour visited U.S. cities from 1995 through 1998. 
Among the former tour players who competed were (on left) Billie Jean King, Wendy Turnbull, Martina Navratilova, Rosie, Zina Garrrison and (on right) Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Virginia Wade, Chris Evert, Pam Shriver and Ilana Kloss.

 

The Original Nine - the women who played in the first Virginia Slims tournament
in Houston in 1970 - had a reunion at the 1986 Virginia Slims Championships in New York.  Left to right: Judy Dalton, Kerry Melville Reid, Rosie Casals, Julie M. Heldman, Billie Jean King (seated), Kristy Pigeon, Peaches Bartkowicz, Nancy Richey and Valerie Ziegenfuss.

 

Rosie organized the Women's Tennis Classics, an over-30 tour with stops in six cities, in 1983.  The inaugural event - called the Snoopy Cup - was held in Santa Rosa, California.  Snoopy creator Charles M. Schulz donated his 1500-seat Redwood Empire Arena and designed the trophies. Hanging out here with Snoopy, Linus, Lucy and Charlie Brown are Francoise Durr, Betty Stove, Rosie and Wendy Turnbull.

 

The Women's Tennis Association annual March of Dimes benefit dinner, New York 1983.  Left to right: Andrea Jaeger, Leslie Allen, Carling Bassett Seguso, Andrea Temesvari, Chris Evert, Tracy Austin, Rosie, Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver.

 

Rosie and fellow touring professional Betty Stove competed in the cycling event in ABC-TV's "Women Superstars" at Freeport, Bahamas in 1980.

 

A 1980 reunion of the Original Nine in New York City. Showing their symbolic dollars are women's tour catalysts Gladys Heldman and Billie Jean King, with original pros Valerie Ziegenfuss, Peaches Bartkowicz, Phillip Morris' Joe Cullman, Nancy Richey, Julie M. Heldman and Rosie.

 

A painting by Rosemary Taylor.

 

 Unusual angles: At left, a photo taken during the 1977 Virginia Slims circuit.  At right, an overhead shot from the 1974 Virginia Slims Championships in Los Angeles.

 

The 100th Virginia Slims tournament was held in Detroit, February 1976. 
(Left to right): Chris Evert won the singles title in Detroit; Rosie won the first Slims tournament in Houston 1970 and was a finalist to Chris in Detroit; Gladys Heldman was the editor of World Tennis magazine and founded the Virginia Slims circuit; famed dress designer Ted Tinling was hired by the Slims tour to design outfits for the players.

 

World Tennis, May 1972


World Tennis, August 1974

Virginia Slims circuit advertisement, 1978


 

 Virginia Slims of San Francisco, 1974

From World Tennis magazine, March 1974: "Getting into her best ballgirl crouch, Rosie pitched in when the event needed help in that department.  Would a leading golf pro offer to caddy?"
 

(Left) Wimbledon, 1973

 

(Right) Virginia Slims of Houston

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

A 1973 advertisement for Spalding.

 


 

1973 US Open, Forest Hills NY

 

(Left) Rosie reached the quarterfinals in singles, where Chris Evert prevailed 6-1 7-5.

 

(Right) Rosie and Billie Jean King lost a close women's doubles final to Margaret Court and
Virginia Wade, 3-6 6-3 7-5.

 

 Wimbledon, 1972: For her semi-final match against Billie Jean King on Centre Court (lower right), Rosie wore a dress trimmed in a purple design that read "VS" (for Virginia Slims).  Referee Mike Gibson felt the outfit was inappropriate for Wimbledon's all-white dress policy; the dress was banned and the press had a field day.

 

In September 1970, Gladys Heldman, editor of World Tennis magazine, organized a women's-only prize money event in Houston.  The Virginia Slims Invitational was a response to the disparity between men's and women's prize money.  Heldman signed the nine players to one-week, one-dollar contracts in order to avoid suspension from the USLTA.  The players were suspended anyway, but it made no difference: by early 1971, the World Tennis Women's Pro Tour had signed twenty women and offered prize money of more than $200,000.  This photo was taken forty-five minutes before the first match was played at the Houston Racquet Club.

Left to right, seated: Judy Tegart Dalton, Kerry Melville Reid, Rosie, Gladys Heldman, Kristy Pigeon.  Standing, left to right: Valerie Ziegenfuss, Billie Jean King, Nancy Richey, Peaches Bartkowicz.  Missing from photo is Julie M. Heldman.

Rosie won this first Virginia Slims tournament with wins over Valerie Ziegenfuss 6-1 7-5, Kerry Melville Reid 6-4 4-6 6-4, and Judy Tegart Dalton 5-7 6-1 7-5.

 

For several years World Tennis magazine had a monthly "Distinguished Woman of Tennis" article that profiled the careers of many current stars.  Some of these players are shown here, at Forest Hills in 1970: (left to right): Julie M. Heldman, Francoise Durr, Christine Truman Janes, Rosie, Peaches Bartkowicz, Lesley Turner Bowrey, Faye Urban, Virginia Wade and Billie Jean King.

 

 

Ann Jones, Francoise Durr, Rosie and Billie Jean King watch Roy Emerson sign his agreement to play on George MacCall's National Tennis League, a professional touring group.  The four women played on the tour from 1968 through 1970.

 

Rosie reached the finals of the 1967 U.S. National Clay Court Championships with a semi-final win over Billie Jean King.  At left, Billie Jean (far court) is serving to Rosie on the stadium court at the Town Club in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Wimbledon 1977