Murray State University Athletics
Mel Purcell Inducted Into KY Athletics Hall Of Fame
6/22/2015 8:57:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Murray State head men's tennis coach Mel Purcell was honored June 17 with induction into the Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame.
Purcell was part of the class of 2015 that was honored at an awards dinner in Louisville at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
The Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame 2015 class included: Shandelier Boyd Smith, Randy Marsh, Mel Purcell, Sharon Garland,Paul Sanderford, Lloyd Gardner and Keeneland Race Course.
Click here to read about the class of 2015 from the Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame web page.
The following article was written by James Duane Bolin, who teaches in the Murray State University Department of History. Bolin's article was printed in the official program of the event.
Mel Purcell: Wimbledon in Our Midst
A visitor wandered up to the tennis courts and stood in the shadows of the bleachers watching a master teacher at work. Two 7 or 8 year old girls, themselves oozing with talent, quick and eager, having fun, million dollar smiles, were playing made-up games at the end of a session. Across the net, there was the teacher, Murray, Kentucky's most famous tennis player, at one time, one of the most famous tennis players in the world.
I have come to know the many accomplishments of Murray's own Mel Purcell. I've tried to read everything I can about him. I looked up Jimmy Connor's references to him in his recently-published book, "The Outsider: A Memoir"; I found Curry Kirkpatrick's 8 June 1981 Sports Illustrated feature article, "Not Many Escape the Cell," written one year after Purcell had won the Association of Tennis Professionals' 1980 Rookie of the Year Award; I tracked down David Purcell's (no relation to Mel) 22 July 1982 article, "Mel Purcell's Confidence Soars After Beating Lendl, Reaching US Pro Final," in the Christian Science Monitor; I read everything I could find about him as a player and coach on the Murray State University Athletics website.
There is really quite a lot to read. For example, as only Curry Kirkpatrick could put it: "Mel Purcell, the country-slicker idol of the tour's most frenzied groupies is well on his way to locking up a spot at the top of the sport. Last week he wowed 'em in Paree." Kirkpatrick went on to suggest that "it isn't Purcell's victories that have intrigued the masses so much as his speed and hustle and flair; the determination exemplified by his diving into courtside boxes and sprawling across the lines . . . and his plain infectious enthusiasm for the battle."
Purcell started young in Murray. He played on the Murray High School tennis team for a decade, many of them with his brother Del. Perhaps you did not read that last sentence carefully enough. I just wrote that Mel Purcell played for the Murray High School tennis team for a decade. That would mean that he had been playing against other high school tennis players since he was in the third grade. He competed in the high school state tennis tournament as a fifth grader. He and brother Del won two state doubles championships as middle-schoolers. And then, Mel won the state singles championship as a senior. No wonder the Murray High School tennis courts are named the Mel Purcell Tennis Courts.
After graduating from Murray High in 1977, Purcell played one year at the University of Memphis and then transferred to the University of Tennessee, where he won two SEC titles, an NCAA doubles championship with teammate Rodney Harmon, and was named All-American in 1980.
After turning Pro in 1980, Purcell rose quickly in the rankings, and in the ten years of his professional career, he ranked in the top 30 five of those years. He rose to a ranking of 17, beating the likes of Jimmy Connors, Boris Becker, and John McEnroe. And as he described it in the Christian Science Monitor article in 1982, his victory that year over the Czech star Ivan Lendl in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Pro Tennis Championships was "the biggest victory of my career." When asked if the heat beat him, Lendl replied, "No, Purcell did."
Purcell made six appearances at Wimbledon, reaching the quarterfinals in 1983. During one of his matches, he saw Johnny Carson at courtside get up and leave before the end of the match. Purcell rallied to win. The next day was an off day for Purcell and he found himself in the stands watching a match next to Carson. Purcell reminded Carson that he noticed he had left "before the end of the match yesterday." "I rallied to win, you know," Purcell told the popular late night host. Carson apologized affably. And then Purcell said, "Oh, it's alright. I always turn off the television at 10:30 too, right after the sports."
So I hid in the shadows for a while to watch Mel Purcell coach or teach at his tennis camp one morning. Tennis has taken him all over the world—from one end of the United States to the other; to Paris, France; all over Europe; and the rest of the continents. In 1982, he spent "38 weeks in hotels, living out of suitcases, as he [competed] in 32 tournaments." He has partied with rock bands in London, and joked with Johnny Carson at the fabled grass courts of Wimbledon. But to me his greatness lies in his effortless teaching—based on all that magnificent experience and talent and hard, hard work—yes, his greatness lies in his joyful, graceful teaching of those two small, but promising little girls on that tennis court that bright sunlit morning.
Duane Bolin teaches in the Department of History at Murray State University. Contact Duane at jbolin@murraystate.edu
Purcell was part of the class of 2015 that was honored at an awards dinner in Louisville at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
The Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame 2015 class included: Shandelier Boyd Smith, Randy Marsh, Mel Purcell, Sharon Garland,Paul Sanderford, Lloyd Gardner and Keeneland Race Course.
Click here to read about the class of 2015 from the Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame web page.
The following article was written by James Duane Bolin, who teaches in the Murray State University Department of History. Bolin's article was printed in the official program of the event.
Mel Purcell: Wimbledon in Our Midst
A visitor wandered up to the tennis courts and stood in the shadows of the bleachers watching a master teacher at work. Two 7 or 8 year old girls, themselves oozing with talent, quick and eager, having fun, million dollar smiles, were playing made-up games at the end of a session. Across the net, there was the teacher, Murray, Kentucky's most famous tennis player, at one time, one of the most famous tennis players in the world.
I have come to know the many accomplishments of Murray's own Mel Purcell. I've tried to read everything I can about him. I looked up Jimmy Connor's references to him in his recently-published book, "The Outsider: A Memoir"; I found Curry Kirkpatrick's 8 June 1981 Sports Illustrated feature article, "Not Many Escape the Cell," written one year after Purcell had won the Association of Tennis Professionals' 1980 Rookie of the Year Award; I tracked down David Purcell's (no relation to Mel) 22 July 1982 article, "Mel Purcell's Confidence Soars After Beating Lendl, Reaching US Pro Final," in the Christian Science Monitor; I read everything I could find about him as a player and coach on the Murray State University Athletics website.
There is really quite a lot to read. For example, as only Curry Kirkpatrick could put it: "Mel Purcell, the country-slicker idol of the tour's most frenzied groupies is well on his way to locking up a spot at the top of the sport. Last week he wowed 'em in Paree." Kirkpatrick went on to suggest that "it isn't Purcell's victories that have intrigued the masses so much as his speed and hustle and flair; the determination exemplified by his diving into courtside boxes and sprawling across the lines . . . and his plain infectious enthusiasm for the battle."
Purcell started young in Murray. He played on the Murray High School tennis team for a decade, many of them with his brother Del. Perhaps you did not read that last sentence carefully enough. I just wrote that Mel Purcell played for the Murray High School tennis team for a decade. That would mean that he had been playing against other high school tennis players since he was in the third grade. He competed in the high school state tennis tournament as a fifth grader. He and brother Del won two state doubles championships as middle-schoolers. And then, Mel won the state singles championship as a senior. No wonder the Murray High School tennis courts are named the Mel Purcell Tennis Courts.
After graduating from Murray High in 1977, Purcell played one year at the University of Memphis and then transferred to the University of Tennessee, where he won two SEC titles, an NCAA doubles championship with teammate Rodney Harmon, and was named All-American in 1980.
After turning Pro in 1980, Purcell rose quickly in the rankings, and in the ten years of his professional career, he ranked in the top 30 five of those years. He rose to a ranking of 17, beating the likes of Jimmy Connors, Boris Becker, and John McEnroe. And as he described it in the Christian Science Monitor article in 1982, his victory that year over the Czech star Ivan Lendl in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Pro Tennis Championships was "the biggest victory of my career." When asked if the heat beat him, Lendl replied, "No, Purcell did."
Purcell made six appearances at Wimbledon, reaching the quarterfinals in 1983. During one of his matches, he saw Johnny Carson at courtside get up and leave before the end of the match. Purcell rallied to win. The next day was an off day for Purcell and he found himself in the stands watching a match next to Carson. Purcell reminded Carson that he noticed he had left "before the end of the match yesterday." "I rallied to win, you know," Purcell told the popular late night host. Carson apologized affably. And then Purcell said, "Oh, it's alright. I always turn off the television at 10:30 too, right after the sports."
So I hid in the shadows for a while to watch Mel Purcell coach or teach at his tennis camp one morning. Tennis has taken him all over the world—from one end of the United States to the other; to Paris, France; all over Europe; and the rest of the continents. In 1982, he spent "38 weeks in hotels, living out of suitcases, as he [competed] in 32 tournaments." He has partied with rock bands in London, and joked with Johnny Carson at the fabled grass courts of Wimbledon. But to me his greatness lies in his effortless teaching—based on all that magnificent experience and talent and hard, hard work—yes, his greatness lies in his joyful, graceful teaching of those two small, but promising little girls on that tennis court that bright sunlit morning.
Duane Bolin teaches in the Department of History at Murray State University. Contact Duane at jbolin@murraystate.edu
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