Hilton Head's Reid inducted into Tennis Australia Hall of Fame

Former Australian Open champion and longtime Long Cove resident Kerry Melville Reid was inducted Thursday into Tennis Australia's Hall of Fame.

Reid received a bronze bust during a ceremony at Rod Laver Arena. The bust will reside in Garden Square at Melbourne Park.

Reid won the Australian Open women's singles title in 1977 by beating Dianne Fromholtz, 7-5, 6-2, in the finals. It was one of 27 career singles titles for Reid and her only Grand Slam singles title.

According to the Australian Open website, Reid was ranked in the world's top 10 from 1968 to 1979 and held a career-high ranking of No. 5.

Reid won the Australian Open doubles crown in 1968 and 1977, and Wimbledon in 1978. In singles she was runner-up to Margaret Court at the Australian Open 1970, and to Billie Jean King at the 1972 US Open.

She was a member of the Australian team that won the Fed Cup in 1968, and she held a 37-10 win-loss record from 1967 to 1979.

In 1970, Reid was a pioneer along with eight other female players including King. Supported by Gladys Headman, the founder of World Tennis magazine, the group, known as the Houston Nine, broke away from the USTA and formed the Virginia Slims Circuit, the predecessor to the Women's Tennis Association.

Reid married tennis player Grover "Raz" Reid in 1976. He later became her coach before they retired to South Carolina.

This story was originally published January 24, 2014 at 12:46 AM with the headline "Hilton Head's Reid inducted into Tennis Australia Hall of Fame."