Ed Emmett: A Life Shaped by Tennis
Early Lessons Learned
Eddie Emmett, as he was known in junior high school in Tyler, could beat his neighborhood friends at tennis, so when he read about the East Texas Open, he entered. Wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt, Eddie was thoroughly embarrassed as he lost 6-0, 6-0. As he sat on the bleachers watching others play, a man named Bill Lust sat beside him and encouraged him to keep playing and a love affair with tennis was begun. Eddie would later learn that Bill Lust was one of the premier tennis players in Texas. More importantly, a young man began to understand that winning requires work and dedication, as well as losing along the way.
Public Parks Provided Friends and Learning
Two years later, Eddie won a city parks tournament at Bergfeld Park. He was hooked and started going to tournaments around East Texas and Dallas while also playing on the John Tyler High School team. He seldom got past the second round, but he kept playing. When his family moved to Houston after his junior year in high school, Eddie didn’t have a group of friends yet from his new school, Bellaire High, so he spent his summer evenings at the Hermann Park tennis courts, playing with anyone who needed a match. When the Bellaire tennis tryouts were held in the Fall, Eddie Emmett was the top player. In the Spring, he and his doubles partner won the district championship. The next year, Ed Emmett, enrolled at Rice University and was a member of the Rice tennis team for two years, although he is quick to point out that he was merely a part of the practice squad and never played in a match. While at Rice, he worked as an assistant to Lee LeClear at MacGregor Park and, upon graduation, spent two years as the teaching pro at Golfcrest Country Club.
From Tennis to Public Service
Ed Emmett wasn’t destined to be a great tennis player. However, he became a member of the Texas Legislature, a Commissioner at the U.S. Interstate Commerce Commission and Harris County Judge. Judge Emmett has publicly said that much of his career is owed to tennis and the public parks. Problem-solving, controlling emotions, respecting people of different backgrounds, and learning to deal with setbacks were all things acquired through tennis. Without access to public parks, Ed Emmett would not have been the same man.