John McEnroe’s most famous tennis tantrum was probably his “You Cannot Be Serious” tirade at Wimbledon in 1981, but just before that at the Queens Club grass-court prep tournament he also had a pretty good one. The following describes the McEnroe meltdown from the June 15 chapter of the book “On This Day In Tennis History” by Randy Walker (for sale and download here).
1981 – Telling fans to “go jump in a lake” and “shut up you jerks,” John McEnroe wins the singles title at Queens Club for a third straight year, defeating Brian Gottfried 7-6, 7-5 in the final. McEnroe is given an unsportsmanlike conduct warning at the tail end of the match by chair umpire Georgina Clark, whom McEnroe verbally challenges throughout the match. In the post-match press conference, McEnroe suggests it is more difficult for him to play a match with a female chair umpire as “it is harder to get upset with a woman umpire.” Says Gottfried of McEnroe’s assertion, “An umpire is an umpire, regardless of sex, but Mac may have a problem with women because his language is sometimes a little different.”
On This Day In Tennis History ($19.95, 528 pages), is a fun and fact-filled, this compilation offers anniversaries, summaries, and anecdotes of events from the world of tennis for every day in the calendar year. Presented in a day-by-day format, the entries into this mini-encyclopedia include major tournament victory dates, summaries of the greatest matches ever played, trivia, and statistics as well as little-known and quirky happenings. Easy-to-use and packed with fascinating details, the book is the perfect companion for tennis and general sports fans alike. The book features fascinating and unique stories of players such as John McEnroe, Don Budge, Maria Sharapova, Bill Tilden, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, Jimmy Connors, Martina Navratilova, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova among many others. On This Day In Tennis History is available for purchase via on-line book retailers and in bookstores in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
Said Hall of Famer Jim Courier of the book, “On This Day In Tennis History is a fun read that chronicles some of the most important—and unusual—moments in the annals of tennis. Randy Walker is an excellent narrator of tennis history and has done an incredible job of researching and compiling this entertaining volume.” Said tennis historian Joel Drucker, author of Jimmy Connors Saved My Life, “An addictive feast that you can enjoy every possible way—dipping in for various morsels, devouring it day-by-day, or selectively finding essential ingredients. As a tennis writer, I will always keep this book at the head of my table.”
