Relaxation at Forest Hills

Puffing on his pipe, Tennistar Ted Schroeder turned a lazy eye on the grim and determined young men swatting tennis balls at each other on Forest Hills' geometrical array of grass courts. "Look at those guys," he said, nodding at his fellow competitors in the National Singles. "In another day they'll be so choked up with tension they won't be able to breathe. No more of that for me. There's no pressure on me, none at all."

It sounded strange coming from Schroeder, a high-strung will-to-winner who frequently ate 4 a.m. breakfasts because he couldn't sleep the night before a big match. At 28, he decided he had conquered all the tennis worlds worth conquering. Before he won the British title at Wimbledon two months ago, he thought of turning pro; later he changed his mind, decided to stick to his amateur standing and his year-round job with a California refrigerator company--and relaxed.

With a cat-like grin and a big serve, Schroeder easily dusted off his first three Forest Hills opponents last week. He was clearly pleased at being seeded No. 1 in the tournament, over young (21) up & coming Richard ("Pancho") Gonzales, the defending champion; there were moments when it seemed that Schroeder's big reason for entering the big show was to prove to several old adversaries (including Billy Talbert, Frank Parker and Pancho) that he was still boss.

In the quarterfinals, his relaxation was almost too good. He found himself in a dog-eat-dog match with rosy-cheeked Frank Sedgman, the 21-year-old Australian singles champion. It took five sets and some energetic net-rushing to subdue Sedgman, 6-3, 0-6, 6-4, 6-8, 6-4. Meanwhile, the other players that Schroeder wanted to meet were progressing nicely. In the opposite bracket, Parker and Gonzales fought through to the semifinals. Schroeder's semifinals foe was sophisticated, crewcut Billy Talbert. Billy, a diabetic sentenced to daily insulin doses, got off to a quick lead, but Schroeder finished him in an uphill match (2-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4).

This week, Ted strode on to the stadium court to test his new-found relaxation against the most relaxed man in big-time tennis: Pancho Gonzales, who had hammered Frankie Parker out of the tournament with his customary booming serve. On Labor Day, in a match marked by no great relaxation on either side, Pancho Gonzales beat Ted Schroeder for his second U.S. singles championship.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.