La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club and the Southern California Tennis Association Foundation are throwing a party for one of San Diego's own on August 19 — a special evening honoring tennis Hall of Famer Charlie Pasarell and marking the launch of his new autobiography, Serving First: Dreams Realized and Lessons Learned from Family, Friends, and a Life in Tennis. Pasarell, a long-time San Diego and Rancho Santa Fe resident, spent 15 years as a world-class player before reshaping the sport off the court as an administrator, promoter, and advocate.
The tribute runs from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the Spindrift Pavilion inside the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. Tickets cost $125 per person and include a full bar, four stations of hors d'oeuvres, and an autographed copy of Pasarell's book for every attendee. The evening will feature a moderated conversation between Pasarell and fellow International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Richard Evans, a tennis journalist and author of 23 books who has long been a friend of Pasarell's, per the same report. Joel Drucker — a historian-at-large for the International Tennis Hall of Fame and Pasarell's co-author on the new memoir — will moderate the discussion.
A Career That Reshaped Modern Tennis
Pasarell was America's number one-ranked player in 1967, not long after helping UCLA capture the 1965 NCAA team championship and then winning the individual NCAA singles and doubles titles himself in 1966, according to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. During those UCLA years, he roomed with Arthur Ashe, a friendship that would shape much of his life beyond the court. Two years later, at Wimbledon in 1969, Pasarell and Pancho Gonzales played a first-round match that stretched over 112 games and 5 hours and 12 minutes — a Wimbledon record that stood for 41 years until 2010. Gonzales saved seven match points before finally beating the 25-year-old Pasarell 22-24, 1-6, 16-14, 6-3, 11-9.
Pasarell's UCLA bond with Ashe paid off again in 1975. In Serving First, Pasarell describes meeting Ashe for a dinner strategy session the night before the Wimbledon final, crafting a tactical plan built around soft, short placements and wide serves that helped Ashe upset heavy favorite Jimmy Connors, as detailed by World Tennis Magazine. Pasarell was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2013, cementing recognition as one of the most influential players, organizers, and promoters in tennis history, the Union-Tribune reports.
From Endangered Tournament To Tennis' Fifth Major
Pasarell's biggest off-court legacy sits in the Coachella Valley. He took over an endangered ATP event in the Palm Springs area and transformed it into what became the Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open, now unofficially considered tennis' fifth most important tournament. After becoming tournament director in 1981, he grew annual attendance from roughly 30,000 to more than 370,000 spectators, according to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Under his direction the event expanded into an 89-acre complex anchored by a 16,100-seat main stadium, the second-largest tennis stadium in the world, per the Lundquist College of Business. Pasarell served as tournament director from 1981 through 2009, building it into the largest combined ATP/WTA tournament outside the four Grand Slam majors.
He also helped shape the business side of the sport itself. Pasarell helped form the Association of Tennis Professionals in 1972 alongside Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, and Cliff Drysdale, protecting player rights as tennis moved through its Open Era transition, and he served on the ATP board for decades through 2010.
A Youth Tennis Legacy Still Growing
Pasarell co-founded the National Junior Tennis League — now known as National Junior Tennis and Learning — in 1969 alongside Arthur Ashe and Sheridan Snyder. The network now encompasses more than 250 chapters nationwide, delivering free or low-cost tennis and academic programming to over 150,000 under-resourced youth every year, according to USTA Southern California. Pasarell has called founding the NJTL network “the highest thing, the best thing” he achieved in tennis. In April 2024, the United States Tennis Association presented him with the NJTL Founders' Service Award at its annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, honoring 55 years of leadership in expanding youth access to the sport.
Proceeds from the August 19 evening, after costs, will go to the Southern California Tennis Association Foundation. Linda Milan, the foundation's executive director, can be reached at [email protected] or 310-824-5139, and attendees can reserve a spot through the SCTA Foundation website. The co-hosting venue itself carries its own tennis history: La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club was converted into a tennis resort in 1935 by newspaper publisher F.W. Kellogg and has since hosted the Pacific Coast Men's Doubles Championship, USTA National Hard Court Championships, and Davis Cup and Fed Cup ties in 2006 and 2008.
