Please join us on Saturday evening, November 23, 2024 at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa as we honor the 2024 SC Tennis Hall of Fame Class. This year’s inductees are Jean Evans and Shelby Rogers.
SC Tennis Hall of Fame Banquet Details
Banquet Tickets
The 2024 SC Tennis Hall of Fame Banquet will be held Saturday, November 23rd at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa. We will kick the evening off from 6:30pm – 7:30pm with a Cash Bar Reception, Silent Auction. and 50/50 Raffle. The dinner & Induction will follow from 7:30pm – 9:30pm.
To learn more about about the Hall of Fame Banquet and to purchase tickets, click HALL OF FAME BANQUET The deadline to purchase banquet tickets is October 31st.
Room Reservations
If you need to reserve a room for your stay at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa, you will need to do so by October 31st. Our room rate for the weekend is $172+ taxes and resort fees per night.
To reserve your room at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa, click ROOM RESERVATIONS
Meet the 2024 SC Tennis Hall of Fame Inductees
Jean Evans made an indelible mark on tennis in South Carolina. Known as one of the all-time best high school, junior and collegiate tennis players to come out of the state, Jean, who grew up in Belton, played most of her tennis prior to the “Open Era” when amateurs ruled the sport. In fact, she is one of the few South Carolinians to win the singles division in the prestigious National Jaycee Tournament.
Jean was ranked #1 in the South in singles 3 years (1959 13U, 1961 15U, and 1962 16U) and #1 in doubles 4 years (1959 13U, 1961 15U, 1962 16U and 1964 18U). Although she often played in sectional and national events, she won numerous tournaments in South Carolina including the State Closed Championships. Between 1958 and 1963, Jean won 9 singles and 3 doubles titles at the Palmetto Championships. Her all-time total of 12 Palmetto titles held the record for 28 years from 1963 until broken in 1991. However, she continues to hold the record for singles titles with 9. She won the National Jaycee singles championship in 1963, where she was also selected for the tournament’s sportsmanship award.
From 1961-1964 she won both the singles and doubles titles at the South Carolina State High School Championships. During those same 4 years, she led the Belton High School Girls Team to the SC State High School Championships. In 1963 and 1964, Jean played #1 on both the Belton High School Girls and Boys Teams, when the seasons were both played during the spring. In fact, in 1964, she was recruited to play on the men’s teams at Clemson, University of South Carolina and Presbyterian College. She opted to play tennis on the women’s team at Queens College in Charlotte, NC where she won the 1968 North Carolina Women’s Collegiate Championship against Laura Dupont from the University of North Carolina.
Jean went on to play on the European Tennis Circuit in 1969 where she competed in the Wimbledon qualifying rounds, making it to the round of 16. She moved to Cambridge, MA, where she coached the Harvard-Radcliffe Women’s Tennis team from 1969-1972. In 1972, Jean was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis which curtailed her incredible tennis journey. Although Jean may not currently reside in South Carolina, her impact still lingers. For more than 40 years, she and her family have provided the Malloy Evans Memorial Sportsmanship Award which is presented to an 18U player at the Palmetto Championships each year.
Would you like to honor Jean Evans and/or Shelby Rogers in the SC Tennis Hall of Fame Banquet Program? If so, click HERE
Shelby Rogers was born and grew up in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. As a teen, Shelby achieved more on the tennis court than most players do in a lifetime. She won five South Carolina Palmetto Championship Singles titles (10U, 12U, 14U, and 16U twice), as well as a Palmetto Championship Doubles title (18U), all before turning 15 years old. Her time playing as a top ranked junior in South Carolina and throughout the South prepared her well for the journey ahead. In 2010, she competed in Indian Harbour, Florida’s 50k Pro Event, where she took the leap to the professional level. After that, she won the SMASH Junior Cup, which awarded her with a Wild Card into the qualifying draw of the Family Circle Cup, a WTA Tour event, where she had been a ball kid just a few years earlier.
Shelby went on to win the 2010 USTA Girls’ National Championship (18U), an honor many greats such as Chris Evert, Tracy Austin, Jennifer Capriati, and Lindsay Davenport had won in prior years. Shelby was also awarded the Maureen Connelly Brinker Award for overall achievement and sportsmanship. With that victory and award, she received a Wild Card into the Main Draw of the 2010 US Open. As an advocate for tennis in South Carolina, she helped lead a successful rally cry for Charleston to be named the #1 Best Tennis Town in America by USTA.
From the time she turned pro, Shelby’s career has included a WTA ranking as high as #30 in the World. She has been a quarterfinalist at both the US and French Opens and reached the Round of 16 at the Australian Open. She has also represented the USA in the Fed Cup. She has wins over Simona Halep, Serena Williams, Ash Barty, Petra Kvitova and Elena Rybakina.
Shelby’s success as a player and tennis ambassador has certainly helped propel the growth of tennis throughout the Charleston area and the state of South Carolina. Although she no longer lives here, the Lowcountry will always be where she got her start.
Would you like to honor Jean Evans or Shelby Rogers in the SC Tennis Hall of Fame Banquet Program? If so, click HERE
Serving Up Opportunities Silent Auction
The SC Tennis Foundation will kick off a Virtual Silent Auction beginning Monday, November 4, 2024 and concluding at the Hall of Fame Banquet Saturday, November 23, 2024. Proceeds from the Silent Auction will go toward helping SCTF Serve Up Opportunities across South Carolina. In addition to maintaining the SC Tennis Hall of Fame and hosting the Annual SC Tennis Hall of Fame Banquet, SCTF provides grants and support to under-served communities, adaptive and wheelchair tennis programs, college scholarships for high school seniors, and support for high school state championships.
Play it Forward Tennis FUN-draiser!
Come join us at the Shipyard Tennis Courts Sunday morning, November 24th, for some amazing Tennis FUN while supporting the SC Tennis Foundation! You’ll help us Serve Up Opportunities for many deserving programs and individuals throughout South Carolina! To learn more and purchase tickets, click HERE
SC Tennis Hall of Fame
Jean Evans and Shelby Rogers will be the 78th and 79th individuals inducted into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame on November 23, 2024. The inaugural class was inducted in 1983. New inductees are selected each year by a Hall of Fame Selection Committee and are inducted during the Hall of Fame Banquet held during the USTA South Carolina Annual Meeting in November. The South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Belton, SC. Please take a moment and enjoy a Virtual Tour with our SC Tennis Foundation Historian, Rex Maynard.
