Roger Greenup, left, and Ronny Green had a chair umpire at the net for the first time ever when they won the National Senior Games men's 65s tennis championship in Houston last month.

By CAROL STUART
For Brentwood Home Page
Roger Greenup has never let being born with one hand stop him from playing all kinds of sports during his 64 years, and now he and doubles partner Ronny Jones have brought a National Senior Games 65s tennis championship home to Brentwood. 

Greenup and Jones, almost 69, qualified for their third national tennis tourney during last year's Tennessee Seniors Olympics, which are again being staged in Brentwood and Franklin again through Thursday. Only the even-numbered years are used for qualifying in tennis for the National Games, which are held the following odd-numbered year.

"It's not been a problem," said Greenup, who was born without a left hand. "I toss the ball with the one hand, and it has served me well. It's not been an handicap as far as tennis is concerned."

Greenup also played baseball and basketball (was an honorable mention all-state) during his high school days at Bradford in West Tennessee, and was inducted into the Gibson County Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.

He even pitched and played shortstop on the diamond using the same hand to catch and throw with 00 similar to college, Olympic and major league left-handed pitcher Jim Abbott.

"I played just about everything I wanted to do ... It's just like brushing your teeth, once you start doing it," he said about baseball, "... But  you have to have a pretty limber glove."

But Greenup, a retired certified public accountant, didn't really take up tennis until after college at the University of Tennessee when a traveling work partner from Palestine told him he had to learn the game to travel with him. Jones played some American Legion baseball growing up in Gallatin, but likewise started playing tennis around college.

"Actually after I got out of college I started trying to learn how to play golf; my golf game got worse, so I decided to try tennis," said Jones, retired from sales in electrical equipment for Square D.

Roger Greenup, left, and Ronny Jones of Brentwood show off their medals after winning National Senior Games title in Houston last month.

Duo teamed up at Dolphin Club

Jones and Greenup met up on the courts at the former Dolphin Club in Brentwood.

"Actually seeing him play didn't strike me as amazing," Jones said, "because at the Dolphin Club back when it first started, our No. 1 singles player was Dr. Bush, and he played with just one hand. So I'd had already seen that so it wasn't as big a deal as Roger came along.

"It is amazing how they learn to serve that ball and hold the racket at the same time. ... His first serve is very good when he gets it in -- the one hand doesn't affect his ability to serve well."

Jones also points out quickly that Greenup plays golf and has previously played basketball on a Brentwood Baptist Church team.

"He's really a great athlete," Ronny said of his tennis partner.

After the Dolphin Club closed, several of the players moved to the Indoor Sports Complex as a Williamson County Parks team. They now play their home matches out of Crockett Park in the Middle Tennessee Tennis League out of Crockett Park.

"I couldn't make the team to start with, but I eventually did make the team," Jones recalled. "The guys thatwere there when the Dolphin Club disappeared are still together, a whole lot of us."

Doubles partnership won on third trip to National Senior Games

Greenup and Jones have paired up as partners for the last decade or more, and the third time really was the charm in their trip to the Seniors Nationals (which don't use the Olympics name) in Houston last month.

The Brentwood duo had placed sixth in 2007 in Louisville and had to withdraw after losing the first match at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., in '09 duo to Jones' strained ACL & MCL knee ligaments. Jones also went two previous times with other partners, in '01 at DisneyWorld and '05 in Pittsburgh.

"These games are very well attended, and there's very good competition from across the country," Greenup said.

"We were both healthy and that was the main thing. Sometimes there's usually club teaching pros that play, and you get some of them in this competition. ... I think it's probably just our time."

Greenup-Jones actually came in second in the 2010 Tennessee Olympics to ISC tennis partner Mike Martin and his partner who were unable to attend nationals. They lost only in a third-set tiebreaker in the state finals, but the top two qualified for state.

The Brentwood team played indoors in a 17-court facility, avoiding the heat of Houston.

"This is at the very top," Jones said of his tennis accomplishments.

Jones, a left-hander which helps in tennis doubles, says his own strength is going to the net for volleys and that Greenup's is hitting the ball harder.

Greenup gave up the grueling singles game after a while, saying he enjoyed doubles more: "You get to meet a lot of people and play a lot of different teams."

The championship doubles team isn't entered in this year's state senior games since they just came back from nationals, but Martin asked them to play an exhibition Sunday against a younger 50-54 age team that doesn' t have any state competition.

Jones and Greenup, however, will compete in state next summer to try to make it to the national senior games in Cleveland, Ohio.

"It's been tremendous to help me keep in shape," said Jones, who also enjoys four-mile walks with his wife these days. "Back before I retired I was probably working 10-12 hours a day. Tennis was about the only thing I could work in where i could get some exercise."