Chris Mayotte was a gifted tennis player, and as proud as he is of his accomplishments, he gives tribute to his former coach, Ron Smarr, and teammates for helping him achieve at a level that not only saw him become a two-time All-American for South Carolina, but also enjoy a successful professional career. Now he’s one of eight members of the 2023 class for the University of South Carolina Association of Lettermen’s Athletics Hall of Fame.
“I was very excited about getting in,” said Mayotte, a native of Springfield, Massachusetts, who now lives in Norwalk, Connecticut. “The credit really goes to Ron for being persistent in getting me in. Two years ago, he told me he was going to really make an effort to get me into the South Carolina Hall of Fame. I’m very proud of my accomplishments at South Carolina. I guess I do feel like I deserve it relative to the other tennis players that are in there, and it’s just really exciting to be in.
“The guys on the team were always great. And Ron was always really good. Ron was always there. He recruited me. He was at every practice. There was never any drama. He gets credit for getting me in there, and he gets credit for all my results because he created the environment that he promised me when I was recruited. He did that for all the guys. I was an Irish-Catholic guy from the North. Coming to South Carolina was a big transition, culturally. The cultural experience of being in South Carolina, I appreciate it more now than I did then.”
“Ron recruited Barry Gilbert, and I was already there. Barry had a brother, Brad, who became number four in the world. We were the ‘brothers of’ (great players). We used to argue who was going to have a better career, my brother Timmy, or his brother, Brad.”
Mayotte starred for the Gamecocks from 1976-79. posting a 93-25 record in singles and a 62-18 mark in doubles. From 1977-78, he recorded an impressive 42-10 mark in singles play. He was the recipient of the 1979 Rafael Osuna Award, signifying outstanding sportsmanship, character, scholastic achievement, and tennis-playing accomplishments. The competition he faced in college put him against some of the top players in the world. Following his collegiate career, he went on to play professionally, winning three doubles titles and was the first Gamecock to play singles in all four Grand Slam events.
“Getting into South Carolina was great,” Mayotte said. “That first year, I was maybe number five on the…