2 0 0 0 A W A R D W I N N E R
He had a love of God and his church, and I
would attend with him every Sunday. At night, I would visit
with him while he strung rackets in his basement. There we
talked about tennis strategy and he would relate stories about
the University of Kentucky where he had played."
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| Tom Cundy's childhood home in Bellevue, Kentucky. |
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Tennis quickly became the focus of Cundy's life. When he entered
ninth grade, he became the caretaker of the Bellevue tennis
courts. "I made $2 a week working four hours each morning
brushing, scraping, hosing down the courts, and then lining
them. Even though it was a long process, I would have done
it for free because of my love of tennis and Coach Klein.
I considered the job an honor."
Tom Cundy became an excellent tennis player, winning the first
tournament he entered. He won against many players who represented
local country clubs. "We would go to tennis tournaments
without a dime in our pockets," says Cundy. "We
couldn't even buy a lemonade or a sandwich, but I found that
motivational. Coach Klein once asked me to write down three
important things I wanted to accomplish in life. My goals
were: 1 .Win the state high school tennis tournament and obtain
a scholarship to a good university; 2. achieve business success;
and 3. be a millionaire."
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| Tom Cundy (right) with boyhood tennis coach, Roger Klein. |
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Coach Klein's best friend, Joe O'Brien, also had a profound influence
on Cundy. "He was a world class tennis player. I played
doubles with him all summer, it was a great opportunity for
me to grow and improve. But it was his attitude about life
that made the biggest impact on me. Although Joe only had
one arm, he never viewed that as a handicap. He taught me
that we should always live up to our full potential doing
the best with what we have. I have a great amount of love
and respect for him."
Cundy accomplished his first goal in 1951 by winning the Kentucky
state high school tennis championship. This win brought him
scholarship offers from many Big Ten schools as well as the
Naval Academy, but he chose Florida State University.
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