Graydon Nichols
Graydon Nichols: Passed away on MaRch 24, 2022 at the age of 97
Senior tennis lost one of its elder statesmen with the passing of Graydon Nichols on March 24 at the age of 97 in California. He leaves behind a family steeped in tennis, with wife Virginia, daughters Carolyn (yes, the Carolyn Nichols), Eileen, and son Chuck, all who played competitively. Graydon was also the founder of Nichols Farms, a giant agricultural enterprise employing over 400 people near Hanford California.
Graydon played tennis from the get-go with his seven brothers and sisters on the family’s homemade court. He attended Fresno State where he played his collegiate tennis, and later transferred to Cal Berkeley. Virginia, his wife since 1954, also plays a fair game herself - she won the World Championships in the 75 Women’s Doubles! And we wondered how Carolyn has been able to compile one of the finest-ever women’s senior records??
Interestingly, Graydon didn’t win a gold ball until age 71. (He won his first gold ball on the day that Gardnar Mulloy won his 100th.) In the next twenty years, the floodgates opened as he garnered 63 more! Along the way, he and his buddy Tony Franco won two doubles Grand Slams. He was ranked #1 in the world in the 80 & over, represented the US on ten teams in the ITF World Team Championships, and served as Captain of several of them. Not bad for a late starter!
Graydon was proud of the fact that he was able to beat some of the senior players who had reached Grand Slam finals in their younger days. “I guess I just wore these guys out,” he says. “Tennis has been a pleasure and my life is all the better for it.” He was inducted into the NorCal Tennis Hall of Fame in 2009.
Like many senior competitors, Graydon had a whole other life off the court. His farm near Haydon, California produces almonds, pistachios, berries, and tomatoes. But more than that, the enterprise is a prime employer in the region. Graydon was known to look out for his employees. “He wants to take care of people,” it was said. What better accolade than one from his son Chuck, who summed it up simply, saying “He just was a very good man who made things better.”