It was Thursday morning, less than 24 hours before Dudley Bearden returned to competitive tennis for the first time in eight years.
So, naturally, he was in training, right?
“Nah,” he said when a Dispatch reporter called. “Right now, I’m making a beer run,”
Bearden, whose ties to Columbus tennis span more than 50 years, will be among the 290 players from throughout Mississippi who will participate in U.S. Tennis Association Southern 65 & Over Mississippi Championship. The tournament begins today and continues through Sunday with matches at Magnolia Tennis Club, the event host, and Mississippi University for Women.
The players — all over the age of 65, men and women — will compete in three skills divisions in a doubles competition.
While Bearden, 69, has had his share of competitive matches, this event generally doesn’t feature the fierce competition often associated with young players.
“At our age, it’s social and more health-focused,” Bearden admits. “Saying that, there are still going to be some people playing this weekend that don’t like to lose.”
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Bearden grew up in Columbus, leaving his hometown only for the nine years he served as U.S. Marine pilot. He returned to Columbus when he left the service to become a commercial pilot with United Airlines. Based in Chicago, Bearden commuted from Columbus for the entirety of his 25 years with the airline, continuing to play tennis at Magnolia Tennis Club.
How long has he been playing tennis? When he started, the tennis balls were white and the courts were red clay.
“I was about 12 years old when the first tennis club started,” he recalls. “They built four red clay courts on the Southside at Sandfield Park. I was the only kid in the club. In fact, they gave me a kid’s membership — $15 for a whole year.”
In the late 1960s, when 30 of the city’s most avid players came together to build Magnolia Tennis Club, across the street from Heritage Academy, Bearden signed on, becoming one of the club’s 50 shareholders. He has been a shareholder ever since and his wife now serves on the club’s board of directors.
After retiring from United Airlines, Bearden served for eight years as a simulator instructor at Columbus Air Force Base. He retired from that job a few months ago.
“I didn’t play any tennis while I was sim instructor,” he says. “So I’ve only been playing again for a couple of months.”
In more than 50 years of playing tennis, Bearden has had his share of success. While he is eager to return to the court, much of the fun for him will be helping make sure the tournament runs smoothly.
“It takes a lot of work to put on this type of a tournament,” he says. “Billy Clark and the staff at Magnolia put a lot of work into it, along with club members and volunteers. I know they’ll do a great job. They deserve an awful lot of credit.”
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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