The South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame,
located in the newly renovated (2007) and air-conditioned historic Belton Depot on Main Street in Belton, is one of the finest
sports museums in the country. Opened in 1984, the Hall of Fame honors
the state's top players (both professional and amateur) and tennis
officials. Trophies, racquets and other tennis memorabilia from the
past are on display. The Hall of Fame is operated by South Carolina
Tennis Patrons Foundation. Through 2006 the Hall of Fame has 43
inductees, including 4 inductees from Belton...Janie
Haynie Hentz,
Fluffy Rice,
Jim Russell and
Rex Maynard. New inductees are elected each June by
the Board of the Patrons Foundation and are inducted during
the Hall of Fame Banquet held in December.
The Palmetto Fling 2007 was held Saturday
evening on June 9, 2007. A special ceremony was held during the
party to unveil the portrait of the 2006 inductee into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame,
Dan Santorum from Hilton
Head. Santorum, the Executive Director of the Professional Tennis
Registry, is a long-time tennis volunteer. He is a former president of
USTA-South Carolina and Treasurer of USTA-Southern. He has served on a
number of USTA national committees, as well as several tennis related
boards. Santorum was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame last
December. His portrait was painted by Wayland Moore, a Belton native,
and will hang with those of the 42 other inductees in the Hall of Fame
Museum, which is located in the newly renovated historic Belton Depot.
The focal point of the Hall
is the inductees' portrait gallery. Every portrait was painted by
Wayland Moore, a Belton native. Each new portrait is
unveiled and placed in the Hall during special ceremonies at The Palmetto Fling, held the week of the
Wachovia Palmetto
Championships each June. Old Racquets, books, trophies,
pictures and many other tennis artifacts are on display.
These include a memento from each of the inductees tennis
career.
South Carolina Tennis Patrons Foundation
Hall of Fame Inductees Information
The Tennis Hall of Fame is
available to the public during the hours of operation for the
Belton Museums in the Belton Depot. Those times are as follows:
Wednesdays through
Saturdays -
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Contact
Museum Curator/Depot
Director
Phone: 338-7400
Fax: 338-8855
50 North Main Street
PO Box 335
Belton, SC 29627