Tombstone
Born: 1988 – WTT expansion franchise
Folded: September 20, 19891ASSOCIATED PRESS. “Portland loses pro tennis”. The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR). September 21, 1989
First Game:
Last Game:
TeamTennis Championships: None
Venue
Court: Tualatin Hills Tennis Center (2,000)
Marketing
Team Colors: Black & Yellow
Ownership
Owner: Jerome Kohlberg
Attendance
The Associated Press estimated the Portland Panthers attendance at 1,100 fans per game in 1988 and 1,000 per contest in 1989.2ASSOCIATED PRESS. “Portland loses pro tennis”. The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR). September 21, 1989
Background
The Portland (Oregon) Panthers played two quiet seasons in Domino’s Pizza TeamTennis (better known as World Team Tennis) in the summers of 1988 and 1989.
The Team Tennis format featured four-person rosters with two male and two female players. The Panthers’ best known player was Dianne Balestrat, better known during her 1970’s heyday as Dianne Fromholtz. The Aussie ranked in the world top ten for women’s singles from 1976 to 1979.
Other members of the 1988 Panthers team included doubles specialist Sharon Walsh-Pete, former UCLA All-American Marcel Freeman, and 28-year old Andy Kohlberg, who doubled as team President. Andy Kohlberg was the son of Panthers owner Jerome Kohlberg, founder of the leveraged buyout firm Kohlberg, Kravis Roberts & Co. (In 2008, Forbes would list the elder Kohlberg as the 785th wealthiest person on Earth, with an estimated worth of $1.5 billion).
The Panthers finished 6-8 in 1988. In 1989 the team improved to 9-5 and made the TeamTennis playoffs, where they were eliminated by the Sacramento Capitals.
After the 1989 season, the Kohlbergs pulled out of the league citing poor attendance and corporate support in Portland, and disagreements with TeamTennis’ founder and leader Billie Jean King.3ASSOCIATED PRESS. “Portland loses pro tennis”. The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR). September 21, 1989
World Team Tennis Shop
Links
##
