Before he was Craig Tiley — national championship-winning men’s tennis coach, Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open director — he was Craig Tiley, free golf moocher.
“The first place I rented when I moved to Champaign was on Hartwell Court at the UI Golf Course, where I´d sometimes enjoy jumping on the course and playing a few holes and having great barbecue on the balcony," says Tiley, who joined household names George Halas and Bob Zuppke as members of the inaugural Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame class who were honored for their coaching.
Tiley didn't just improve his handicap at the Orange and Blue Course — "it was in this place I remember spending many hours late at night writing up a 10-year plan for Illinois tennis," he says.
“The first place I owned as Illinois tennis coach was on Tahoe Court in Champaign. The biggest house I owned was on Lakeview Drive.
"Everyone joked with me: I moved three times over the 10 years and each place was not more than a mile from the other.”
