Judy Hollingsworth Helps Team Reach, Succeed at Nationals

As part of Women’s History Month taking place in March the USTA Missouri District is highlighting Judy Hollingsworth, a league player who helped her 65+ women’s team progress to nationals.

Judy Hollingsworth retreated to the curtain deep behind the baseline at Overland Park Racquet Club in eastern Kansas, said a quick prayer and prepared to serve.

Hollingsworth and her doubles partner, Nancy Parker, had battled back from a 5-1 deficit to grab a 10-9 lead in their third-set tiebreaker. The winner of the tiebreak between USTA Missouri and USTA Kansas would propel their team to a USTA Missouri Valley 65 & Over Invitational championship and a berth in the USTA League 7.0 National Invitational.

With about 100 people anxiously looking down from a viewing gallery, Hollingsworth stepped up to the baseline to serve match point. The ensuing return went long, team members screamed and jumped in joy, and both Hollingsworth and Parker dropped their racquets in disbelief. Their USTA Missouri 65+ 7.0 women’s team had done the unthinkable, qualifying for nationals.

“Nancy said, ‘What just happened?’” Hollingsworth recalled. “And I said, ‘I think we won.’ We were just so excited. Oh, my gosh. We were in disbelief. For days after that I would just burst into laughter thinking about the fact we had won. It seemed so impossible that had happened.”

Captain Ann Vogel — who constructed the team and had to do some convincing to get Hollingsworth to join — described the clinching moment this way:

“You just kind of hold your breath to make sure that’s what really happened. … How would you be if you won the lottery? It was just total joy.”

After their undefeated showing in the USTA Missouri Valley 65+ Invitational last July, Vogel’s crew traveled to Surprise, Arizona to compete in the USTA League 65+ 7.0 National Invitational on January 26-28. The squad had a fantastic showing, going 3-1 to finish in a four-way deadlock for second place out of 17 participating teams. Vogel’s team lost out on the tiebreakers and ultimately claimed a fifth-place finish overall.

Hollingsworth and Parker teamed up to win three of their four matches in the No. 1 doubles spot, besting opponents from USTA Southern California, USTA Florida and USTA Mid-Atlantic. Their only setback came against eventual national runner-up USTA Northern California. In fact — with five consecutive wins in Overland Park shortly after they met for the first time — Hollingsworth and Parker produced an 8-1 combined record at the section and national invitationals.

“We had so much in common. When we got on the court, our game came together,” Hollingsworth said. “You warm up with your competitor then you go back and talk about it. We would say something like ‘Looks like her backhand is a little weak.’ Then we would say, ‘Remember, we are here to win.’ And we’d walk on the court to play. It was a winner’s attitude all the way. ‘This is what we’re here for. Let’s play to win.’ And so we did.”

One of the highlights of the Arizona trip for both Hollingsworth and her teammates came when Hollingsworth’s daughter, world-class athlete Jana Green-Slyder, gave the crew a pep talk prior to their opening match. Green-Slyder — who grew up near Springfield, Mo. — won her division of the World CrossFit Games in 2019 at the age of 50.

“She is an inspiration to a lot of people and has worked with other bodybuilders and people who maybe needed some help to be on a healthier track with their life,” Hollingsworth said. “She started off by talking about lion chasers — they go after their dreams, take advantage of opportunities and want to be better.

“She said your goal as a lion chaser is to be on the court on Sunday. And to do that, you have to overcome any fear or negative thoughts about not being worthy to play. You are here because you have practiced, prepared and are ready for this. This is your moment to do your best. She read a portion of scripture from the Bible. And then it’s just like, ‘Go do it. Just go do it.’”

Green-Slyder earned the nickname “Cinderella Fire Breather” from her husband, Matt Slyder, for her work rate. The two teamed up to dole out nicknames while watching the action at nationals. Slyder, a U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, called Hollingsworth “The Sniper” for her pinpoint accuracy. Green-Slyder nicknamed Parker “The Predator” for her aggressive style at the net.

“It was really fun to have them there,” Hollingsworth said. “They are all for us. I would hear Jana on the sideline calmly saying, ‘Come on, Judith Ann. Come on.’ They were really inspirational.”

Hollingsworth grew up in a small Missouri farming community with minimal opportunities for girls to play sports. While in high school, Hollingsworth and some classmates had one softball practice before learning other nearby schools didn’t have enough players to put a team together. After high school Hollingsworth fell in love with softball and played for about 15 years, including some games with Vogel who later became her tennis captain.

Hollingsworth didn’t hear much about the sport of tennis until she was in her 30s and didn’t begin playing until her 40s. She participated in group lessons taught by legendary coach Jean Larrick and other Springfield-Greene County Park Board teaching pros for about four years. Hollingsworth currently works on her craft with lessons provided by USTA Missouri President Mallory Weber.

In the 1990s, Hollingsworth played more frequently before getting involved with USTA in 2011. Her 55 & Over team qualified for USTA Nationals in 2014. Hollingsworth and her husband then moved to North Carolina for three years where she continued playing USTA. Upon returning to Missouri, Hollingsworth played tennis three to four times a week but just recreationally.

That’s when Vogel came calling. Vogel needed one more player to complete a team traveling for a tournament in Little Rock in April 2023. Vogel reached out to Hollingsworth, who said she would ponder the offer and try to think of an individual who might want to do it.

“Well, Ann wouldn’t let it go,” Hollingsworth said. “I told her no. I didn’t want to go to Little Rock. I didn’t want to play USTA. I was already tied up with these groups I was playing with. She sent me one last text. She said, ‘I have to register my team tomorrow. I need one more player. Will you go?’”

Hollingsworth obliged, and the team ended up winning the Arkansas tourney. While there, the group decided to enter the USTA Missouri Valley invitational in Overland Park. After that dramatic victory, the crew traveled to Tulsa in September for a pre-nationals tune-up. They won that tournament, too.

“I shared with a lot of people we were headed to a national tournament — my dentist, my doctor, people in an elevator,” Hollingsworth said. “Even at the airport the morning we left, we’re telling people waiting to get on the plane: ‘Why are you going to Arizona? Well, we are going to play in a national tennis tournament.’ It was just amazing we were getting to do that. It didn’t seem possible it was us.”

While Hollingsworth had limited opportunities to play organized sports growing up in rural Missouri, she said that’s dramatically changed for today’s youth. That includes her 4-year-old great-granddaughter, Clara Rose, who has her own tennis racquet and takes lessons at Springfield’s Cooper Complex.

“If you ask her what she loves to do, one thing she will tell you is she loves to play tennis,” Hollingsworth said. “That’s the difference — if we start early we can generate that love of a sport at such a young age. There are opportunities out there for them to fall in love and do something they really enjoy for the rest of their lives. It is a totally different story than when I grew up.”

Check out last year’s Women’s History Month feature on Donna Hoffmann — a USTA Missouri league player and teammate of Hollingsworth’s — by clicking here.