Tennis - 2026

A San Fernando Valley native, and an expansive contributor to the tennis community for six decades, Gene starred at Grant High School before playing at Pierce College, where, as he had at Grant, he was also on the basketball team. He briefly attended the University of Utah before finishing at Cal State Los Angeles. He then competed on the ATP Tour from 1972 to 1982, and had singles wins over some of the best players in the world, including John Newcombe, an Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open singles champion, Roscoe Tanner, an Australian Open winner, and Adriano Panatta, a Roland-Garros titlist.

Known for having one of the biggest serves in tennis, his was once clocked at 129 mph. A holder of 10 national senior titles, Gene was ranked No. 2 in singles and No. 1 in US Men’s 35 doubles and was an ITF Men’s 35 World Doubles Champion. He was the reigning National Men 45 Hard Court champion for three consecutive years.

Gene coached the India Davis Cup team to the 1987 final against Sweden. He advised and trained Vijay Armitraj, a 2024 International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee, and guided WTA tour standouts such as Bonnie Gadusek (No. 8), Barbara Potter (No. 16) and Stephanie Rehe (No. 10).

He developed a comprehensive tennis teaching approach, for players of all ability levels, covering the mental, physical and strategic aspects of the game. His methods became storied at Bel Air Ridge Tennis Center, and he continues to work as a private instructor.