Seven rebuilt tennis courts at Pattonville High School will be rededicated in the memory of a graduate who went on to become a Wimbledon tennis champion. The new Chuck McKinley Memorial Tennis Courts at Pattonville High School will be rededicated at 4 p.m., Friday, May 8, 2009. A reception will follow.  McKinley, Pattonville Class of 1959, was arguably one of the greatest tennis players to come from the St. Louis area.  McKinley was a 1963 Wimbledon champion. -Read-More- The new courts were built as a result of the zero tax increase bond issue passed by voters in 2006.  The original six courts, built in the 1970s, were originally dedicated in McKinley’s memory on July 24, 1987. At the rededication ceremony, Pattonville officials will unveil a new interpretive sign which explains the story of how a pipefitter’s son from St. Ann grew up to become a top-ranked tennis player in the world.  The sign includes photos and highlights of McKinley’s tennis career as well as the stories of three former state tennis champions who have graduated from Pattonville.  Former state champions include McKinley’s younger brother, Bob McKinley, Class of 1968, McKinley’s nephew, Jack Gorsuch, Class of 1974, and Blake Strode, Class of 2005. Spurning offers to turn professional after winning Wimbledon, McKinley chose to finish his education at Trinity University and pursue a career on Wall Street in New York.  In the early and mid-1960s, professional tournament purses were not as lucrative as they are today.  McKinley eventually relocated to Dallas and continued to share his passion for tennis by volunteering his time with junior players.  McKinley developed brain cancer that took his life in 1986 at the age of 45.  Two months before he died, he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island. Chuck McKinley, Class of 1959, displays his aggressive playing style on Center Court at Wimbledon, where he won the Gentleman’s Singles title in July 1963.  Photo courtesy of the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum in Newport, Rhode Island. -End-