The Banning of Bill Tilden: Amateur Tennis and Professional Journalism in Jazz-Age America

In 1924, the USLTA announced that any amateur tennis player would be banned from competition if he or she accepted money for writing about the sport. Bill Tilden, a journalist before he became the world's No. 1 player, responded that he would retire from tennis rather than give up journalism. The ensuing debate reflected not only the evolving conflict between professional and amateur sports, but a…