View source for Billie Jean King

{{short description|American tennis player (born 1943)}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Billie Jean King
| image              = BJK headshot 2011 5x7 300dpi.jpg
| image_upright      = .8
| caption            = King in 2011
| birth_name         = Billie Jean Moffitt
| birth_date         = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1943|11|22}}
| birth_place        = [[Long Beach, California]], US
| height             = {{height|ft=5|in=5}}
| module             = {{Infobox tennis biography | embed=yes
  | country_represented   = {{USA}}
  | college               = [[California State University, Los Angeles]]
  | turnedpro             = 1968
  | retired               = 1990
  | plays                 = Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
  | careerprizemoney      = $1,966,487<ref name="sonyericssonwtatour">{{cite web |url=http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/page/Player/Stats/0,,12781~4011,00.html |title=Women's Tennis Association biography of Billie Jean King |publisher=Sonyericssonwtatour.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090705094136/http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/page/Player/Stats/0%2C%2C12781~4011%2C00.html |archive-date=July 5, 2009 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>
  | tennishofyear         = 1987
  | tennishofid           = billie-jean-king
  | website               = {{URL|https://www.billiejeanking.com/|billiejeanking.com}}
  | singlesrecord         = 1124–262 (81.1%)<ref>{{cite web |title=Billie Jean King Match Results |url=https://www.tennisabstract.com/cgi-bin/wplayer.cgi?p=BillieJeanKing |website=www.tennisabstract.com |access-date=19 June 2025}}</ref> 
  | singlestitles         = 129 <small>(67 during [[Tennis Open Era|Open Era]])</small>
  | highestsinglesranking = [[World number 1 ranked female tennis players|No. 1]] (1966<small>, [[Lance Tingay]]</small>)
  | AustralianOpenresult  = '''W''' ([[1968 Australian Championships – Women's singles|1968]])
  | FrenchOpenresult      = '''W''' ([[1972 French Open – Women's singles|1972]])
  | Wimbledonresult       = '''W''' ([[1966 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1966]], [[1967 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1967]], [[1968 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1968]], [[1972 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1972]], [[1973 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1973]], [[1975 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1975]])
  | USOpenresult          = '''W''' ([[1967 U.S. National Championships (tennis)|1967]], [[1971 US Open – Women's singles|1971]], [[1972 US Open – Women's singles|1972]], [[1974 US Open – Women's singles|1974]])

  | doublesrecord                 = 87–37 <small>(as shown on WTA website)</small><ref name = "sonyericssonwtatour" />
  | doublestitles                 =
  | highestdoublesranking         = No. 1 (1967)
  | AustralianOpenDoublesresult   = F ([[1965 Australian Championships (tennis)|1965]], [[1969 Australian Open|1969]])
  | FrenchOpenDoublesresult       = '''W''' ([[1972 French Open|1972]])
  | WimbledonDoublesresult        = '''W''' ([[1961 Wimbledon Championships|1961]], [[1962 Wimbledon Championships|1962]], [[1965 Wimbledon Championships|1965]], [[1967 Wimbledon Championships|1967]], [[1968 Wimbledon Championships|1968]], [[1970 Wimbledon Championships|1970]], [[1971 Wimbledon Championships|1971]], [[1972 Wimbledon Championships|1972]], [[1973 Wimbledon Championships|1973]], [[1979 Wimbledon Championships|1979]])
  | USOpenDoublesresult           = '''W''' ([[1964 U.S. National Championships (tennis)|1964]], [[1967 U.S. National Championships (tennis)|1967]], [[1974 US Open (tennis)|1974]], [[1978 US Open (tennis)|1978]], [[1980 US Open (tennis)|1980]])
  | OthertournamentsDoubles       = yes
  | WTAChampionshipsDoublesresult = '''W''' ([[1974 Virginia Slims Championships|1974]], [[1976 Virginia Slims Championships|1976]], [[1978 Virginia Slims Championships|1978]], [[1980 Avon Championships – Doubles|1980]])
  | Mixed                         = yes
  | mixedtitles                   = 11
  | mixedrecord                   = 
  | AustralianOpenMixedresult     = '''W''' ([[1968 Australian Championships (tennis)|1968]])
  | FrenchOpenMixedresult         = '''W''' ([[1967 French Championships (tennis)|1967]], [[1970 French Open|1970]])
  | WimbledonMixedresult          = '''W''' ([[1967 Wimbledon Championships|1967]], [[1971 Wimbledon Championships|1971]], [[1973 Wimbledon Championships|1973]], [[1974 Wimbledon Championships|1974]])
  | USOpenMixedresult             = '''W''' ([[1967 U.S. National Championships (tennis)|1967]], [[1971 US Open (tennis)|1971]], [[1973 US Open (tennis)|1973]], [[1976 US Open (tennis)|1976]])

  | Team                          = yes
  | FedCupresult                  = '''W''' (1963, 1966, 1967, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979) <small>(as player)</small><br>'''W''' (1976, 1996, 1999, 2000) <small>(as captain)</small>

  | CoachYears            = 
  | CoachPlayers          = [[Tim Mayotte]] <br /> [[Martina Navratilova]]
  | CoachSinglesTitles    = 
  | CoachDoublesTitles    = 
  | CoachTournamentRecord =
  }}
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|[[Larry King (tennis)|Larry W. King]]<br>|1965|1987|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|[[Ilana Kloss]]
<br>|2018}}}}
}}

'''Billie Jean King''' (née '''Moffitt'''; born November 22, 1943), also known as '''BJK''', is an American former [[World number 1 ranked female tennis players|world No. 1]] [[tennis]] player. King won 39 [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in [[mixed doubles]]. She was a member of the victorious [[United States Billie Jean King Cup team|United States]] team in seven [[Billie Jean King Cup|Federation Cups]] and nine [[Wightman Cup]]s.

King is an advocate of gender equality and has long been a pioneer for equality and social justice.<ref>{{cite web |last=King |first=Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean King – Speaker |publisher=TED |url=https://www.ted.com/speakers/billie_jean_king}}</ref> In 1973, at the age of 29, she famously won the "[[Battle of the Sexes (tennis)|Battle of the Sexes]]" tennis match against the 55-year-old [[Bobby Riggs]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Deixlia |date= |title=Billie Jean King in 1973 Wimbledon match against Bobby Riggs |url=https://elasticreviews.com/why-do-tennis-players-wear-skirts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210914023332/https://elasticreviews.com/why-do-tennis-players-wear-skirts/ |archive-date=September 14, 2021 |access-date=September 14, 2021 |website=ElasticReviews.com }}</ref> King was also the founder of the [[Women's Tennis Association]] and the [[Women's Sports Foundation]]. She was instrumental in persuading cigarette brand [[Virginia Slims]] to sponsor women's tennis in the 1970s and went on to serve on the board of their parent company [[Philip Morris USA|Philip Morris]] in the 2000s.

King was inducted into the [[International Tennis Hall of Fame]] in 1987. The Fed Cup Award of Excellence was bestowed on her in 2010. In 1972, she was the joint winner, with [[John Wooden]], of the ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' [[Sportsman of the Year]] award and was one of the ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' Persons of the Year in 1975. She has also received the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] and the ''Sunday Times'' Sportswoman of the Year lifetime achievement award. She was inducted into the [[National Women's Hall of Fame]] in 1990, and in 2006, the [[USTA National Tennis Center]] in New York City was renamed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. In 2018, she won the [[BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award]]. In 2020, the Federation Cup was renamed the Billie Jean King Cup in her honor. In 2022, she was awarded the French [[Legion of Honour]], and in 2024, she received a [[Congressional Gold Medal]].

==Early life==
Billie Jean Moffitt was born in [[Long Beach, California]], into a [[Methodist]] family, the daughter of Betty (née Jerman), a housewife, and Bill Moffitt, a firefighter.<ref name="Official Wimbledon profile of BJK">{{cite web | url=https://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/about/history/billiejean_king.html | title=Official Wimbledon profile of Billie Jean King | access-date=February 15, 2007 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070225034336/http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/about/history/billiejean_king.html | archive-date=February 25, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia | url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/article-1G2-2591304957/king-billie-jean-1943.html | title=King, Billie Jean (1943—) – Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia | encyclopedia=Encyclopedia.com | access-date=June 29, 2014}}</ref> Her family was athletic; her mother excelled at swimming, and her father played basketball and baseball and ran track.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/25/magazine/plays-tennis-like-a-man-speaks-out-like-billie-jean-king.html|title=Plays Tennis Like a Man, Speaks Out Like – Billie Jean King|last=Higdon|first=Hal|date=August 23, 2013|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 16, 2017|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=March 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328200927/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/25/magazine/plays-tennis-like-a-man-speaks-out-like-billie-jean-king.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Her younger brother, [[Randy Moffitt]], became a Major League Baseball pitcher, pitching for 12 years in the major leagues for the [[San Francisco Giants]], [[Houston Astros]], and [[Toronto Blue Jays]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/m/moffira01.shtml|title=Randy Moffitt Statistics|access-date=February 15, 2007|archive-date=February 6, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070206122342/http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/moffira01.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref> She also excelled at baseball and softball as a child, playing shortstop at 10 years old on a team with girls 4–5 years older than she.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> The team went on to win the Long Beach softball championship.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" />

She switched from softball to tennis at the age of 11,<ref name=":1">{{cite news|url=https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/billie-jean-king/|title=King, Billie Jean – National Women's Hall of Fame|work=National Women's Hall of Fame|access-date=September 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191001122619/https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/billie-jean-king/|archive-date=October 1, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> because her parents suggested she should find a more 'ladylike' sport.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> She saved her own money, $8 ($92.40 in 2024<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1956?amount=1|title=$1 in 1956 → 2024 &#124; Inflation Calculator|website=www.in2013dollars.com}}</ref> terms), to buy her first racket.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> She went with a school friend to take her first tennis lesson on the many free public courts in Long Beach, taking advantage of the free lessons offered by professional Clyde Walker, who worked for the City of Long Beach.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> One of the city's tennis facilities has subsequently been named the Billie Jean Moffitt King Tennis Center.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.longbeach.gov/park/park-and-facilities/directory/billie-jean-king-tennis-center/ |title=Billie Jean King Moffitt Tennis Center |access-date=August 26, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829212231/http://www.longbeach.gov/park/park-and-facilities/directory/billie-jean-king-tennis-center/ |archive-date=August 29, 2017 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref> As a kid playing in her first tennis tournaments, she was often hindered by her aggressive playing style.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> One of King's first conflicts with the tennis establishments and status-quo came in her youth, when she was forbidden from being in a group picture at a tournament because she was wearing tennis shorts (sewn by her mother) instead of the usual white tennis dress.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ware |first=Susan |title=Game, Set, Match: Billie Jean King and the Revolution in Women's Sports |publisher=The University of North Carolina Press |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina |year=2012|pages=20}}</ref>

King's family in Long Beach attended the [[Church of the Brethren]], where the minister was former athlete and two-time Olympic pole-vaulting champion [[Bob Richards]]. One day, when King was 13 or 14, Richards asked her, "What are you going to do with your life?" She said: "Reverend, I'm going to be the best tennis player in the world."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1975/05/19/mrs-billie-jean-king|title=MRS. BILLIE JEAN KING!|work=Sports Illustrated Vault|access-date=February 28, 2020|archive-date=February 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228183153/https://vault.si.com/vault/1975/05/19/mrs-billie-jean-king|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/06/30/sports/a-fan-at-the-game-john-leonard.html|title=A FAN AT THE GAME/John Leonard (Published 1982)|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 30, 1982}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Cope |first=Myron |title=They Cheer When the Parson Is Pitching |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1968/05/27/they-cheer-when-the-parson-is-pitching |website=Sports Illustrated Vault |access-date=31 August 2020 }}</ref>

King attended [[Long Beach Polytechnic High School]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kingsschools.org/pr_si-article.asp|title=Press Release – King's Schools|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061224233102/http://kingsschools.org/pr_si-article.asp|archive-date=December 24, 2006|access-date=February 15, 2007}}</ref> After graduating in 1961, she attended Los Angeles State College, now [[California State University, Los Angeles]] (Cal State LA).<ref name=":1" /> She did not graduate, leaving school in 1964 to focus on tennis, although she returned in 2025 with the intent of finishing her degree.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.questia.com/read/121600472/game-set-match-billie-jean-king-and-the-revolution|title=Game, Set, Match: Billie Jean King and the Revolution in Women's Sports|last=Ware|first=Susuan|date=2011|website=|access-date=|page=25|archive-date=October 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171001074933/https://www.questia.com/read/121600472/game-set-match-billie-jean-king-and-the-revolution|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-31/she-left-csula-in-the-1960s-to-conquer-tennis-at-81-billie-jean-king-is-back-chasing-a-degree|title=She left college to conquer tennis. At 81, Billie Jean King is back, chasing a degree|last=Lopez|first=Steve|date=2025|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=|page=|archive-date=July 31, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250731144318/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-31/she-left-csula-in-the-1960s-to-conquer-tennis-at-81-billie-jean-king-is-back-chasing-a-degree|url-status=live}}</ref> While attending Cal State, she met [[Larry King (tennis)|Larry King]] in a library in 1963.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> The pair became engaged while still in school when Billie Jean was 20 and Larry 19 years old and married on September 17, 1965, in Long Beach.<ref name=":4">{{cite news|url=http://www.phillymag.com/articles/billie-jean-king-racquet-revolutionary/4/|title=Billie Jean King: Racquet Revolutionary|page=4|last=Hingston|first=Sandy|date=June 17, 2011|work=Philadelphia Magazine|access-date=September 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930101842/http://www.phillymag.com/articles/billie-jean-king-racquet-revolutionary/4/|archive-date=September 30, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Career==
[[File:Billy Jean Moffitt.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|Billie Jean Moffitt (later King) in the 1960s at the [[Tennis Ireland|Irish Open]] at [[Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club]], Dublin, where she won her first international title]]
King's French Open win in 1972 made her only the fifth woman in tennis history to win the singles titles at all four Grand Slam events, a "career Grand Slam".{{efn|Five additional women have completed a career Grand Slam since King.}} She also won a career Grand Slam in mixed doubles. In women's doubles, only the Australian Open eluded her.

King won a record 20 career titles at Wimbledon – six in singles, 10 in women's doubles, and four in mixed doubles.{{efn|[[Martina Navratilova]] also has 20 career titles at Wimbledon.}}

King played 51 Grand Slam singles events from 1959 through 1983, reaching at least the semi-finals in 27 and at least the quarterfinals in 40 of her attempts. King was the runner-up in six Grand Slam singles events. An indicator of her mental toughness in Grand Slam singles tournaments was her 11–2 career record in deuce third sets, i.e., third sets that were tied 5–5 before being resolved.{{Citation needed|date=November 2017}}

King won 129 singles titles,<ref>{{cite book|author-link1=Murry R. Nelson|last1=Nelson|first1=Murry R.|title=American Sports: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas [4 Volumes]: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas|date=May 23, 2013|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-39753-0|page=665|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tfTXAQAAQBAJ&q=129+singles+titles&pg=PA665}}</ref> 78 of which were WTA titles, and her career prize money totaled US$1,966,487.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/110100/title/billie-jean-king | title=Billie Jean King: Overview | work=WTA Tennis | date=April 7, 2017 | publisher=Women's Tennis Association | access-date=August 26, 2017}}</ref>

In Federation Cup finals, she was on the winning United States team seven times, in 1963, 1966, 1967, and 1976 through 1979. Her career win–loss record was 52–4.{{efn|26–3 in singles and 26–1 in doubles}} She won the last 30 matches she played,{{efn|excluding two unfinished matches}} including 15 straight wins in both singles and doubles.<ref>[http://www.fedcup.com/en/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=20000786 Billie Jean King record in Federation Cup] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723173839/http://www.fedcup.com/en/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=20000786 |date=July 23, 2015}}</ref> In Wightman Cup competition, her career win–loss record was 22–4,{{efn|14–2 in singles and 8–2 in women's doubles}} winning her last nine matches (six in singles and three in doubles). The United States won the cup in ten of the 11 years in which she participated. In singles, King was 6–1 against [[Ann Jones (tennis)|Ann Haydon-Jones]], 4–0 against [[Virginia Wade]], and 1–1 against [[Christine Truman Janes]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hollander |first1=Zander |last2=Collins |first2=Bud |author-link1=Zander Hollander |title=Bud Collins' Modern Encyclopedia of Tennis |url=https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll |publisher=Visible Ink Press |location=Detroit|year=1994 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll/page/580 580–581] |isbn=0-8103-9443-X}}</ref>

===The early years: 1959–1963===
As Billie Jean King began competing in 1959, she began working with new coaches including Frank Brennan<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> and [[Alice Marble]], who had won 18 Grand Slam titles as a player herself.<ref>Teele, Jack, "The Sports Beat", ''Long Beach Press-Telegram'', November 12, 1959, page D-3</ref> She made her Grand Slam debut at the 1959 [[US Open (tennis)|U.S. Championships]] when she was 15.<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=https://www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/billie-jean-king/|title=Billie Jean King|website=International Tennis Hall of Fame|access-date=September 15, 2017|archive-date=August 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180820203433/https://www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/billie-jean-king/|url-status=live}}</ref> She lost in the first round.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.stltoday.com/sports/other/three-aces-for-tennis/article_acd07a75-cff4-519e-93f7-f36979bf7b99.html|title=Three aces for Tennis|last=Nelson|first=Kathleen|date=July 3, 2011|work=stltoday.com|access-date=September 24, 2017}}</ref> She began playing at local, regional, and international tennis championships.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hYydgQsTz-AC&pg=PA164|title=101 Changemakers: Rebels and Radicals Who Changed U.S. History|last1=Bollinger|first1=Michele|last2=Tran|first2=Dao|date=November 6, 2012|publisher=Haymarket Books|isbn=978-1-60846-156-1}}</ref>{{Rp|164}} Sports Illustrated already claimed her as "one of the most promising youngsters on the West Coast."<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.si.com/vault/1959/02/16/604435/new-hopes-are-abounding-on-the-courts|title=New Hopes are Abounding on the Courts|last=Talbert|first=William F.|date=February 16, 1959|work=SI.com|access-date=October 8, 2017}}</ref> She won her first tournament the next year in Philadelphia at the 1960 Philadelphia and District Grass Court Championships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.phillymag.com/articles/billie-jean-king-racquet-revolutionary/4/|title=Billie Jean King: Racquet Revolutionary|page=4|last=Hingston|first=Sandy|date=June 17, 2011|work=Philadelphia Magazine|access-date=September 27, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930101842/http://www.phillymag.com/articles/billie-jean-king-racquet-revolutionary/4/|archive-date=September 30, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> At her second attempt at the U.S. Championships, King made it to the third round, losing to [[Bernice Carr Vukovich]] of South Africa.{{Citation needed|date=September 2017}} Also in 1960, she reached the final of the National Girls' 18 and Under Championships, losing to [[Karen Hantze Susman]].<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> Her national tennis ranking improved from number 19 in 1959 to number 4 in 1960.<ref name="Ware, Susan, Game, Set, Match">{{cite web|url=https://www.questia.com/read/121600470/game-set-match-billie-jean-king-and-the-revolution|title=Game, Set, Match: Billie Jean King and the Revolution in Women's Sports|last=Ware|first=Susan|date=2011|website=|access-date=|archive-date=October 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016015353/https://www.questia.com/read/121600470/game-set-match-billie-jean-king-and-the-revolution|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{Rp|23}} Despite the success, Marble terminated her professional relationship with King, for reasons stemming from King's ambition.<ref name="Ware, Susan, Game, Set, Match" />{{Rp|23}}

King first gained international recognition in 1961 when the Long Beach Tennis Patrons, the Century Club, and [[Harold Guiver]] raised $2,000 to send her to [[Wimbledon Championships|Wimbledon]].<ref name="ITHF biography">{{cite web|url=http://www.tennisfame.com/famer.aspx?pgID=867&hof_id=171|title=International Tennis Hall of Fame biography of Billie Jean Moffitt King|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061119112817/http://www.tennisfame.com/famer.aspx?pgID=867&hof_id=171 <!-- Bot retrieved archive -->|archive-date=November 19, 2006|access-date=February 15, 2007}}</ref> There, she won the women's doubles title in her first attempt while partnering [[Karen Hantze]].<ref name="Official Wimbledon profile of BJK" /> King was 17 and Hantze was 18, making them the youngest team to win the Wimbledon Doubles Title.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> King had less luck that year in the [[1961 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|1961 Wimbledon women's singles]], losing to fifth-seeded [[Yola Ramírez]] in a two-day match on Centre Court.<ref>{{cite book|title=My Life With the Pros|url=https://archive.org/details/mylifewithpros00coll_0|url-access=registration|author=Collins, Bud|publisher=E. P. Dutton|year=1989|isbn=0-525-24659-2|location=New York|page=[https://archive.org/details/mylifewithpros00coll_0/page/261 261]}}</ref> Despite these performances, she could not get a sports scholarship when later that year she attended Los Angeles State (now California State).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/tennis-legend-billie-jean-king-transformed-the-game-11628872390|title=Tennis Legend Billie Jean King Transformed the Game|last=Bobrow|first=Emily|newspaper=WSJ |date=August 13, 2021|access-date=December 20, 2023|archive-date=August 23, 2021|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210823092936/https://www.wsj.com/articles/tennis-legend-billie-jean-king-transformed-the-game-11628872390}}</ref> For the 1962 singles tournament at [[1962 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King upset [[Margaret Court]], the World No. 1 and top seed, in a second round match by attacking Court's forehand<ref name="Billie Moffitt's Strategy">Billie Moffitt's Strategy – Attack!", ''Kansas City Times'', June 27, 1962, page 15</ref><ref name="Starr, Cynthia, We have come a long way">{{cite book |author1=Starr, Cynthia |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/106 106] |isbn=0-07-034625-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/106 }}</ref> This was the first time in Wimbledon history that the women's top seed had lost her first match.<ref name="Wimbledon Upset, Post-Herald">"Wimbledon Upset", Beckley (West Virginia) Post-Herald, June 27, 1962, page 2</ref> That same year, King and Hantze repeated their doubles victory at Wimbledon.<ref name="Ware, Susan, Game, Set, Match" />{{Rp|24}} In 1963, King again faced Margaret Court at Wimbledon.<ref name="Ware, Susan, Game, Set, Match" />{{Rp|24}} This time they met in the final, and Court prevailed.<ref name="Ware, Susan, Game, Set, Match" />{{Rp|24}}

===1964===
In 1964, King won four relatively minor titles{{Citation needed|date=October 2017}} but lost to Margaret Court in the [[1964 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] semi-finals.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.si.com/vault/1964/07/13/608312/the-outcasts-are-counted-in|title=The Outcasts are Counted In|last=Lovesey|first=John|date=July 13, 1964|work=SI.com|access-date=October 15, 2017}}</ref> She defeated Ann Haydon-Jones at both the Wightman Cup and [[Fed Cup]] but lost to Court in the final of the Federation Cup. At the U.S. Championships, fifth-seeded [[Nancy Richey]] upset third-seeded King in the quarterfinals. Late in the year, King decided to make a full-time commitment to tennis. While a history major at Los Angeles State College, King made the decision to play full-time when businessman Robert Mitchell offered to pay her way to Australia so that she could train under the great Australian coach [[Mervyn Rose]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Starr |first1=Cynthia |last2=King |first2=Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/113 113–114] |isbn=0-07-034625-9}}</ref> While in Australia, King played three tournaments that year and lost in the quarterfinals of the Queensland Grass Court Championships, the final of the [[N.S.W. Open/Medibank International|New South Wales Championships]] (to Court), and the third round of the Victorian Championships.

===1965===
In early 1965, King continued her three-month tour of Australia. She lost in the final of the South Australian Championships and the first round of the Western Australia Championships. At the [[Fed Cup]] in Melbourne, she defeated Ann Haydon-Jones to help the United States defeat the United Kingdom in the second round. However, Margaret Court again defeated her in the final. At the [[Australian Open|Australian Championships]] two weeks later, she lost to Court in the semi-finals in two sets. At [[1965 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], she again lost in the semi-finals, this time in three sets to Maria Bueno.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /> Her last tournament of the year was the U.S. Championships, where she defeated Jones in the quarterfinals and Bueno in the semi-finals. In the final, King led 5–3 in both sets, was two points from winning the first set, and had two set points in the second set<ref>Santana, Miss Smith Grab U.S. Tennis Championships", ''Pacific Stars & Stripes'', September 14, 1965, page 20</ref> before losing to Court in straight sets. She said that losing while being so close to winning was devastating, but the match proved to her that she was "good enough to be the best in the world. I'm going to win Wimbledon next year."<ref name="Starr-BillieJean">{{cite book |author1=Starr, Cynthia |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/114 114] |isbn=0-07-034625-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/114 }}</ref> She won six tournaments during the year. For the first time in 81 years, the annual convention of the [[United States Tennis Association|United States Lawn Tennis Association]] overruled its ranking committee's recommendation to award her the sole U.S. No. 1 position and voted 59,810 to 40,966 to rank Nancy Richey Gunter and King as co-U.S. No. 1.<ref>"Billie Jean Must Share No. 1 Rating", ''Independent Press-Telegram'' (Long Beach, California), February 6, 1966, page C-1</ref>

===Prime competitive years: 1966–1975===

====Overview====

Six of King's Grand Slam singles titles were at Wimbledon, four were at the U.S. Championships/Open, one was at the French Open, and one was at the Australian Championships. King reached the final of a Grand Slam singles tournament in 16 out of 25 attempts and had a 12–4 win–loss record in those finals. In the nine tournaments that she failed to reach the final, she was a losing semi-finalist twice and a losing quarter finalist five times. From 1971 through 1975, she won seven of the ten Grand Slam singles tournaments she played. She won the last seven Grand Slam singles finals she contested, six of them in straight sets and four of them against [[Evonne Goolagong Cawley|Evonne Goolagong]]. All but one of her Grand Slam singles titles were on [[grass court|grass]].

King's Grand Slam record from 1966 through 1975 was comparable to that of Margaret Court, her primary rival during these years. One or both of these women played 35 of the 40 Grand Slam singles tournaments held during this period, and together they won 24 of them. During this period, Court won 31 of her career 64 Grand Slam titles, including 12 of her 24 Grand Slam singles titles, 11 of her 19 Grand Slam women's doubles titles, and eight of her 21 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. Court reached the final of a Grand Slam singles tournament in 14 out of 25 attempts and had a 12–2 win–loss record in those finals. Court won seven of the 12 Grand Slam finals she played against King during these years, including 2–1 in singles finals, 4–1 in women's doubles finals, and 1–3 in mixed doubles finals.

King was the year-ending World No. 1 in six of the ten years from 1966 through 1975. She was the year-ending World No. 2 in three of those years and the World No. 3 in the other year.

King won 97 of her career 129 singles titles during this period and was the runner-up in 36 other tournaments.

====1966====
[[File:USA_Fed_Cup_1966_Turin.jpg|right|thumb|upright=.7|From left to right: the United States national team tenniswomen Carole Caldwell Graebner, Julie Heldman and Billie Jean King in Turin, Italy, holding the Federations Cup 1966 won against West Germany women's national tennis team]]
In 1966, King defeated Dorothy "Dodo" Cheney (then 49 years old) for the first time in five career matches, winning their semi-final at the Southern California Championships 6–0, 6–3. King also ended her nine-match losing streak to Margaret Court by defeating her in the final of the South African Tennis Championships. She also won the women's singles in the [[Ojai Tennis Tournament]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://theojai.net/tournament-info/|title=Tournament Facts}}</ref> At the Wightman Cup just before [[1966 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King defeated Virginia Wade and Ann Haydon-Jones. After thirteen unsuccessful attempts to win a Grand Slam singles title from 1959 through 1965, King at the age of 22 finally won the first of her six singles titles at Wimbledon and the first of twelve Grand Slam singles titles overall, defeating Court in the semi-finals 6–3, 6–3 and [[Maria Bueno]] in the final. King credited her semi-final victory to her forehand down the line, a new shot in her repertoire.<ref name = "Starr-BillieJean" /> She also said that the strategy for playing Court is, "Simple. Just chip the ball back at her feet."<ref>{{cite news |author=Lovesey, John |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1966/07/11/manolo-is-king-and-a-king-is-queen/ |title=Manolo is king, and a King is queen |publisher=[[Sports Illustrated]] |date=July 11, 1966 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209092229/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1078753/index.htm |archive-date=December 9, 2008 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> At the U.S. Championships, an ill King was upset by [[Kerry Melville]] in the second round.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.elementfx.com/1966-tennis.html |title=News Archive; 1966: Tennis |publisher=News.elementfx.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220250/http://news.elementfx.com/1966-tennis.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

====1967====
King successfully defended her title at the South African Tennis Championships in 1967, defeating Maria Bueno in the final. She played the French Championships for the first time in her career,<ref>King claims that the United States Lawn Tennis Association prohibited her from playing the French Championships earlier in her career because the association needed her to play grass court tournaments in the United States to draw crowds. {{cite book |author1=Starr, Cynthia |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/114 114] |isbn=0-07-034625-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/114 }}</ref> falling in the quarterfinals to [[Annette Van Zyl]] of South Africa. At the Federation Cup one week later in West Germany on [[clay court|clay]], King won all four of her matches, including victories over DuPlooy, Ann Haydon-Jones, and [[Helga Niessen]]. King then successfully switched surfaces and won her second consecutive [[1967 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] singles title, defeating Virginia Wade in the quarterfinals 7–5, 6–2 and Jones. At the Wightman Cup, King again defeated Wade and Jones. King won her second Grand Slam singles title of the year when she won the U.S. Championships for the first time and without losing a set, defeating Wade, Van Zyl, [[Françoise Dürr]], and Jones in consecutive matches. Jones pulled her left hamstring muscle early in the final and saved four match points in the second set before King prevailed.<ref>"Aussie, Billie Jean Capture U.S. Titles", ''Oakland Tribune'', September 11, 1967, page 40-E</ref> King won the singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles titles at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Championships, the first woman to do that since [[Alice Marble]] in 1939.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.elementfx.com/1967-tennis.html |title=News Archive; 1967: Tennis |publisher=News.elementfx.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233137/http://news.elementfx.com/1967-tennis.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> King then returned to the Australian summer tour in December for the first time since 1965, playing seven events there and [[Judy Tegart]] in six of those events (winning four of their matches). King lost in the quarterfinals of the [[Medibank International|New South Wales Championships]] in Sydney to Tegart after King injured her left knee in the second game of the third set of that match.<ref>Injury May Force King Out Of Tennis Tourney", ''Florence Morning News'', November 25, 1967, page 6</ref> However, King won the Victorian Championships in Melbourne the following week, defeating Dalton, Reid, and [[Lesley Turner Bowrey|Lesley Turner]] in the last three rounds. At a team event in [[Adelaide]], King won all three of her singles and doubles matches to help the U.S. defeat Australia 5–1. To finish the year, King lost to Tegart in the final of the South Australian Championships in Adelaide.

====1968====
In early 1968, King won three consecutive tournaments to end her Australian tour. In [[Perth]], King won the Western Australia Championships, defeating Margaret Court in the final. In [[Hobart, Tasmania|Hobart]], King won the [[Tasmania]]n Championships by defeating [[Judy Tegart-Dalton]] in the final. King then won the Australian Championships for the first time, defeating Dalton in the semi-finals and Court in the final. King continued to win tournaments upon her return to the United States, winning three indoor tournaments before Nancy Richey Gunter defeated King in the semi-finals of the [[Madison Square Garden]] Challenge Trophy amateur tournament in New York City before 10,233 spectators.<ref>{{cite news|last=Anderson |first=Dave |url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0F15F8345D147493C2AA1788D85F4C8685F9 |title=Miss Richey Upsets Mrs. King, 4–6, 7–5, 6–0, to Gain Garden Tennis Final |newspaper=The New York Times |date=March 30, 1968 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref> The match started with Gunter taking a 4–2 lead in the first set, before King won 9 of the next 10 games. King served for the match at 5–1 and had a match point at 5–3 in the second set; however, she lost the final 12 games and the match 4–6, 7–5, 6–0.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.elementfx.com/1968-tennis.html |title=News Archive; 1968: Tennis |publisher=News.elementfx.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304115624/http://news.elementfx.com/1968-tennis.html |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> King then won three consecutive tournaments in Europe before losing to Ann Haydon-Jones in the final of a professional tournament at Madison Square Garden. Playing the French Open for only the second time in her career and attempting to win four consecutive Grand Slam singles titles (a "non-calendar year Grand Slam"), King defeated Maria Bueno in a quarterfinal before losing to Gunter in a semi-final 2–6, 6–3, 6–4. King rebounded to win her third consecutive [[1968 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] singles title, defeating Jones in the semi-finals and Dalton in the final. At the [[1968 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]], King defeated Bueno in a semi-final before being upset in the final by Virginia Wade. On September 24, she had surgery to repair cartilage in her left knee<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1968/09/24/archives/mrs-king-undergoes-successful-surgery.html |title=Mrs. King Undergoes Successful Surgery |newspaper=The New York Times |date=June 3, 2011 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref> and did not play in tournaments the remainder of the year. King said that it took eight months (May 1969) for her knee to recover completely from the surgery.<ref>{{cite news|title=Surgery for Billie Jean|work=Independent Press-Telegram|location=Long Beach, California |date=July 11, 1970 |page=C-1}}</ref> In 1977, King said that her doctors predicted in 1968 that her left knee would allow her to play competitive tennis for only two more years.<ref>{{cite news|title=King Will Resume Singles Competition|work=The Pocono Record| location=Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania |date=January 20, 1977 |page=14}}</ref>

====1969====
King participated in the 1969 Australian summer tour for the second consecutive year. Unlike the previous year, King did not win a tournament. She lost in the quarterfinals of the Tasmanian Championships and the semi-finals of the New South Wales Championships. At the Australian Open, King defeated 17-year-old Evonne Goolagong in the second round 6–3, 6–1 and Ann Haydon-Jones in a three-set semi-final before losing to Margaret Court in a straight-sets final. The following week, King lost in the semi-finals of the New Zealand Championships. Upon her return to the United States, King won the Pacific Coast Pro and the Los Angeles Pro. King then won two tournaments in South Africa, including the South African Open. During the European summer clay court season, King lost in the quarterfinals of both the [[Rome Masters|Italian Open]] and the French Open. On grass at the Wills Open in [[Bristol]], United Kingdom, King defeated Virginia Wade in the semi-finals (6–8, 11–9, 6–2) before losing to Court. At [[1969 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King lost only 13 points while defeating [[Rosemary Casals]] in the semi-finals 6–1, 6–0;<ref>"Mrs. King Crushes Foe", ''Abilene (Texas) Reporter-News'', July 3, 1969, page 12-A</ref> however, Jones upset King in the final and prevented King from winning her fourth consecutive singles title there. The week after, King again defeated Wade to win the Irish Open for the second time in her career. In the final Grand Slam tournament of the year, King lost in the quarterfinals of the [[1969 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]] to Nancy Richey Gunter 6–4, 8–6. This was the first year since 1965 that King did not win at least one Grand Slam singles title. King finished the year with titles at the Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles, the [[Stockholm]] Indoors, and the [[Midland, Texas|Midland (Texas)]] Pro. She said during the Pacific Southwest Open, "It has been a bad year for me. My left knee has been OK, but I have been bothered by a severe tennis elbow for seven months. I expect to have a real big year in 1970, though, because I really have the motivation now. I feel like a kid again."<ref>Billie Jean, Pancho Gain Pacific Southwest Finals", ''Independent Press-Telegram'', Long Beach, California, September 28, 1969, page S-6</ref>

====1970====
[[File:Billie_Moffitt-King_en_1970.jpg|right|thumb|upright=.7|Billie Jean King in 1970]]
In 1970, Margaret Court won all four Grand Slam singles tournaments and was clearly the World No. 1. King lost to Court three times in the first four months of the year, in Philadelphia, Dallas, and [[Johannesburg]] (at the South African Open). Court, however, was not totally dominant during this period as King defeated her in Sydney and [[Durban]], South Africa. Where Court dominated was at the Grand Slam tournaments. King did not play the Australian Open. King had leg cramps and lost to Helga Niessen Masthoff of West Germany in the quarterfinals of the French Open 2–6, 8–6, 6–1.<ref>{{cite news |author=Katz, Michael |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1970/06/04/archives/mrs-king-hobbled-by-leg-cramps-loses-to-miss-niessen-in-french.html |title=Mrs. King, Hobbled by Leg Cramps, Loses to Miss Niessen in French Tennis |newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 4, 1970 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref> At [[1970 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], Court needed seven match points<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wimbledon2000/fans_guide/769768.stm |title=Classic women's singles finals |publisher=BBC News |date=June 11, 2000 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref> to defeat King in the final 14–12, 11–9 in one of the greatest women's finals in the history of the tournament.<ref>[http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/about/history/margaret_court.html Margaret Court/Smith (Wimbledon official website)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515135547/http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/about/history/margaret_court.html |date=May 15, 2009 }}</ref> On July 22,<ref>"Billie Jean Has Knee Surgery", ''Wisconsin State Journal'', July 23, 1970, section 2, page 3</ref> King had right knee surgery, which forced her to miss the [[1970 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]]. King returned to the tour in September, where she had a first round loss at the [[Virginia Slims]] Invitational in Houston and a semi-final loss at the [[Pacific Coast Championships]] in [[Berkeley, California]]. To close out the year, King in November won the [[Virginia Slims of Richmond|Virginia Slims Invitational]] in [[Richmond, Virginia]] and the Embassy Indoor Tennis Championships in London. During the European clay court season, King warmed-up for the French Open by playing in [[Monte Carlo]] (losing in the semi-finals), winning the [[1970 Italian Open (tennis)|Italian Open]] (saving three match points against Virginia Wade in the semi-finals),<ref>"Billie Jean King, Julia Heldman score victories", ''Winona (Minnesota) Daily News'', April 26, 1970, page 7b</ref> playing in [[Bournemouth]] (losing to Wade in the quarterfinals), and playing in [[Berlin, Germany|Berlin]] (losing to Masthoff in the semi-finals). The Italian Open victory was the first important clay court title of King's career. Along the way, she defeated Masthoff in a three-set quarterfinal and Wade in a three-set semi-final, saving two match points at 4–5 in the second set. The twelfth game of that set (with King leading 6–5) had 21 deuces and lasted 22 minutes,<ref>{{cite book |author=Tingay, Lance |title=The Guinness Book of Tennis Facts & Feats |publisher=Guinness Superlatives |location=Enfield, Middlesex |year=1983 |page=26 |isbn=0-85112-268-X }}</ref> with Wade saving seven set points and holding sixteen game points before King won. In Wightman Cup competition two weeks before Wimbledon but played at the [[All England Club]], King defeated both Wade and Ann Haydon-Jones in straight sets.
Many things bothered King concerning her advocacy for women's rights in sports. Among these concerns, she sought better pay for female tennis players, given the substantial differences in budgets between male and female players. In September 1970, there was the Pacific Southwest Open which was a tennis tournament. The prize money for men and women varied significantly, with the top prize for men being $12,500 and for women, a mere $1,500. Women's expenses were not covered unless they made the quarterfinals. This had bothered King and was the final straw for her. King and other 8 women did not play because of the budgets which they were willing to take the risk of expulsion from the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association. King and the other women organized the women-only Houston Virginia Slims invitational and this helped launch the series of women-only tournaments.<ref name="jstor.org">Pappano, Laura. “Women Win On and Off Court.” The Women’s Review of Books, vol. 28, no. 3, 2011, pp. 7–9. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41331726. Accessed 1 Oct. 2023.</ref>

====1971====
Although King won only one Grand Slam singles title in 1971, this was the best year of her career in terms of tournaments won (17). According to the [[International Tennis Hall of Fame]], she played in 31 singles tournaments and compiled a 112–13 win–loss record.<ref name="ITHF biography" />

She started the year by winning eight of the first thirteen tournaments she played, defeating Rosemary Casals in seven finals. King's five losses during this period were to Françoise Dürr (twice), Casals (once), Ann Haydon-Jones (once), and Chris Evert (in [[St. Petersburg, Florida|St. Petersburg]]). At the time, King said that retiring from the match with Evert after splitting the first two sets was necessary because of leg cramps. But in early 1972, King admitted that cramps associated with an abortion caused the retirement.<ref>"Tennis Pro Favors Abortion", ''Tucson (Arizona) Daily-Citizen'', February 23, 1972, page 16.</ref>

At the tournament in early May at [[Hurlingham Club|Hurlingham]], United Kingdom, King lost a second round match to an old rival, Christine Truman Janes (now 30 years old), 6–4, 6–2; but King recovered the next week to win the [[Qatar Telecom German Open|German Open]] in Hamburg on [[Clay court|clay]]. Four weeks later at the [[Queen's Club]] tournament in London, King played Margaret Court for the first time in 1971, losing their final. At [[1971 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King defeated Janes in the fourth round (6–2, 7–5) and Durr in the quarterfinals before losing unexpectedly to Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals 6–4, 6–4. Two weeks after Wimbledon, King won the [[Rothmans North of England Championships]] on grass in [[Hoylake]], United Kingdom, beating Virginia Wade, Court, and Casals in the last three rounds. She then played two clay court tournaments in Europe, winning neither, before resuming play in the United States.

In August, King won the indoor [[Houston]] tournament and the U.S. Women's Clay Court Championships in [[Indianapolis]]. King then switched back to grass and won the [[1971 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]] without losing a set, defeating Evert in the semi-finals (6–3, 6–2) and Casals in the final. King then won the tournaments in [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]], and London (Wembley Pro). King and Casals both defaulted at 6–6 in the final of the Pepsi Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles in September when their request to remove a lineswoman was denied, eventually resulting in the [[United States Lawn Tennis Association]] fining both players US$2,500.<ref>"Female tennis stars 'even{{' "}}, ''The Idaho Free Press'', January 5, 1972, page 12</ref> To end the year, King played two tournaments in New Zealand but did not win either. She lost in [[Christchurch]] to Durr and in [[Auckland]] to Kerry Melville Reid.
In 1971, King was the first female tennis  player to earn $100,000 a year. Being  one of her greatest accomplishments, this earned her congratulatory phone call from President Richard M. Nixon.<ref name="jstor.org"/>

====1972====
King won three Grand Slam singles titles in 1972, electing not to play the Australian Open despite being nearby when she played in New Zealand in late 1971. King said, "I was twenty-eight years old, and I was at the height of my powers. I'm quite sure I could have won the Grand Slam [in] ... 1972, but the Australian was such a minor-league tournament at that time.... More important, I did not want to miss any Virginia Slims winter tournaments. I was playing enough as it was."<ref>{{cite book |author1=Deford, Frank |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean |publisher=Viking |location=New York City |year=1982 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/20 20] |isbn=0-670-47843-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/20 }}</ref> Her dominance was aided by rival [[Margaret Court]]'s absence from the tour due to childbirth during most of the 1972 season.

At the beginning of the year, King failed to win eight of the first ten tournaments she played. She won the title in San Francisco in mid-January. But then King lost in Long Beach to Françoise Dürr (although King claimed in her 1982 autobiography that she intentionally lost the match because of an argument with her husband<ref>{{cite book |author1=Deford, Frank |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean |publisher=Viking |location=New York, N.Y. |year=1982 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/93 93] |isbn=0-670-47843-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/93 }}</ref>) and in [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]] on [[clay court|clay]] to Chris Evert 6–1, 6–0. The inconsistent results continued through mid-April, in [[Oklahoma City]] (losing in the quarterfinals); Washington, D.C. (losing in the second round); and Dallas (losing to Nancy Richey Gunter after defeating Evert in the quarterfinals 6–7(4–5), 6–3, 7–5 and Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals 1–6, 6–4, 6–1).<ref>For a description of the Dallas tournament in 1972, see [http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1085895/2/index.htm the ''Sports Illustrated'' article "Shoot-Out at the T Bar M"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209092234/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1085895/2/index.htm |date=December 9, 2008 }}</ref> King won the title in Richmond; however, one week later, King lost in the semi-finals of the tournament in San Juan. This was followed in successive weeks by a loss in the [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]] final to [[Marie Pinterová|Marie Neumannová Pinterová]] and in a St. Petersburg semi-final to Evert (6–2, 6–3).

King did not lose again until mid-August, winning six consecutive tournaments. She won the tournaments in [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]] and Indianapolis. King then won the French Open without losing a set and completed a career Grand Slam. She defeated Virginia Wade in the quarterfinals, Helga Niessen Masthoff in the semi-finals, and Goolagong in the final.<ref>After winning the French Open in 1972, King stayed away from the tournament for seven consecutive years and, in fact, played the tournament only twice more during her career, in 1980 and 1982.</ref> On grass, King then won the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments in [[Nottingham]] and Bristol and won [[1972 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] itself for the fourth time. She lost only one set during the tournament, to Wade in the quarterfinals. That was followed by straight set wins over Rosemary Casals and Goolagong. When the tour returned to the United States, King did not win any of the three tournaments she played before the [[1972 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]], including a straight sets loss to Margaret Court in [[Newport, Rhode Island|Newport]]. At the US Open, however, King won the tournament without losing a set, including a quarterfinal win over Wade, a semi-final defeat of Court, and a final win over Kerry Melville Reid. King finished the year by winning the tournaments in Charlotte and Phoenix (defeating Court in the final of both), a runner-up finish in [[Oakland]] (losing to Court), and a semifinal finish at the year-end championships in [[Boca Raton, Florida|Boca Raton]] (losing to Evert).

====1973====
[[File:Fig4-Billie-Jean-Kings-dress-by-Ted-Tinling-1973.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|The dress worn by King in 1973 during the Battle of the Sexes match. The [[National Museum of American History]]]]
1973 was Margaret Court's turn to win three Grand Slam singles titles, failing to win only Wimbledon, and was the clear world No. 1 for the year; this was her first full season since winning the Grand Slam in 1970, as she had missed significant portions of 1971 and 1972 due to childbirth. As during the previous year, King started 1973 inconsistently. She missed the first three Virginia Slims tournaments in January because of a wrist injury.<ref>"King bows in, on courts", ''Daily Review'', [[Hayward, California]], February 8, 1973, page 30</ref> She then lost in the third round at the Virginia Slims of Miami tournament but won the Virginia Slims of Indianapolis tournament, defeating Court in the semi-finals 6–7, 7–6, 6–3 and Rosemary Casals in the final. The semi-final victory ended Court's 12-tournament and 59-match winning streaks,<ref>{{" '}}Sweetie' upset for Billie Jean", ''Oakland Tribune'', February 26, 1973, page E27</ref> with King saving at least three match points when down 5–4 (40–0) in the second set. Indianapolis was followed by five tournaments that King failed to win (Detroit, [[1973 Virginia Slims of Boston|Boston]], Chicago, [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]], and the inaugural [[Family Circle Cup]] in [[Hilton Head, South Carolina]]). King lost to Court in two of those tournaments. After deciding not to defend her French Open singles title, King won four consecutive tournaments, including her fifth [[1973 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] singles title when she defeated Kerry Melville Reid in the quarterfinals, Evonne Goolagong in the semi-finals on her eighth match point,<ref>"Evert Shatters Court, Sets Up American Finals", ''Abilene (Texas) Reporter-News'', July 5, 1973, page 2-C</ref> and Chris Evert in the final. King lost only nine points in the 6–0 bageling of Evert in the first set of their final.<ref>{{cite news |author=Jares, Joe |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1973/07/16/a-bloomin-winner/ |title=A Bloomin' Winner |publisher=[[Sports Illustrated]] |date=July 16, 1973 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090625151702/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1087561/index.htm |archive-date=June 25, 2009 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

King also completed the [[Triple Crown (tennis)|Triple Crown]] at Wimbledon (winning the singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles titles in the same year), thus becoming the first, and only, player to do so at Wimbledon in the Open Era. In none of the preceding tournaments, however, did King play Court. Their rivalry resumed in the final of the Virginia Slims of [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] tournament, where Court won for the third time in four matches against King in 1973. (This was the last ever singles match between those players, with Court winning 21 and King 13 of their 34 matches.) Three weeks later at the [[1973 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]], King retired from her fourth-round match with Julie Heldman while ill<ref>{{cite book |author1=Starr, Cynthia |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/144 144] |isbn=0-07-034625-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/144 }}</ref> and suffering from the oppressive heat and humidity. When Heldman complained to the match umpire that King was taking too long between games, King reportedly told Heldman, "If you want the match that badly, you can have it!"<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hollander |first1=Zander |last2=Collins |first2=Bud |author-link1=Zander Hollander |title=Bud Collins' Modern Encyclopedia of Tennis |publisher=Visible Ink Press |location=Detroit, Michigan |year=1994 |page=[https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll/page/196 196] |isbn=0-8103-9443-X |url=https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll/page/196 }}</ref> The Battle of the Sexes match against Bobby Riggs was held in the middle of the Virginia Slims of Houston tournament. King won her first and second round matches three days before playing Riggs, defeated Riggs, won her quarterfinal match the day after the Riggs match, and then lost the following day to Casals in the semifinals 7–6, 6–1. According to King, "I had nothing left to give."<ref>{{cite book |author1=Starr, Cynthia |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women's Tennis |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/145 145] |isbn=0-07-034625-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/wehavecomelongwa00king/page/145 }}
</ref> To end the year, King won tournaments in Phoenix, Hawaii, and Tokyo and was the runner-up in [[Baltimore]].

=====Battle of the Sexes=====
{{Main|Battle of the Sexes (tennis)}}
[[File:Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs 1973.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs in 1973]]
In 1973, King defeated [[Bobby Riggs]] in an exhibition match, winning $100,000 ($707,000 in 2024 terms<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1973?amount=1|title=$1 in 1973 → 2024 &#124; Inflation Calculator|website=www.in2013dollars.com}}</ref>).

Riggs had been a top men's player in the 1930s and 1940s in both the amateur and professional ranks. He won the Wimbledon men's singles title in 1939, and was considered the World No. 1 male tennis player for 1941, 1946, and 1947. He then became a self-described tennis "hustler" who played in promotional challenge matches. Claiming that the women's game was so inferior to the men's game that even a 55-year-old like himself could beat the current top female players, he challenged and defeated [[Margaret Court]] 6–2, 6–1. King, who previously had rejected challenges from Riggs, then accepted a lucrative financial offer to play him for $100,000 in a winner-takes-all match. King had previously believed there was nothing in it for her tour if she accepted Riggs challenge, but the defeat of Court changed that. ""everything changed when he beat Margaret, one of the best, perhaps the most physically imposing female players that tennis had ever seen. Now we had something to prove. It wasn't just about my pride or reputation. I imagined that our tour could be threatened or might disappear, Title IX could be damaged , and so many causes that we were still working for-- starting with equal prize money and equitable treatment-- would falter."<ref>{{Cite web |title=All In: An Autobiography |url=https://www.everand.com/book/769298589/All-In-An-Autobiography |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=Everand |language=en}}</ref>

Dubbed "the Battle of the Sexes", the Riggs–King match took place at the [[Houston Astrodome]] in Texas on September 20, 1973. The match garnered huge publicity. In front of 30,492 spectators and a television audience estimated at 50 million people (U.S.), and 90&nbsp;million in 37 countries, 29-year-old King beat the 55-year-old Riggs 6–4, 6–3, 6–3. The match is considered a significant event in developing greater recognition and respect for women's tennis. as King said to author and photographer [[Lynn Gilbert]] in her book ''Particular Passions: Talks with Women who Have Shaped Our Times'', "I thought it would set us back 50 years if I didn't win that match. It would ruin the women's tour and affect all women's self-esteem,"<ref name="ESPN-BillieJean">{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00016060.html|title=Billie Jean Won for All Women|last=Schwartz|first=Larry|access-date=February 15, 2007|archive-date=November 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118033008/https://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016060.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and that "to beat a 55-year-old guy was no thrill for me. The thrill was exposing a lot of new people to tennis."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gilbert |first=Lynn |title=Particular Passions: Billie Jean King |url=http://particularpassions.com/Excerpts.htm |series=Women of Wisdom Series |edition=1st |date=December 10, 2012 |publisher=[[Lynn Gilbert Inc.]] |location=New York |isbn=978-0517545942 }}{{Dead link|date=July 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

====1974====
King won five of the first seven tournaments she contested in 1974. She won the Virginia Slims of San Francisco, defeating Nancy Richey Gunter in the semi-finals and Chris Evert in the final. The following week in [[Indian Wells, California]], King again defeated Gunter in the semi-finals but lost to Evert in the final. King then won tournaments in [[Fairfax, Virginia]] and Detroit before losing a semi-final match to Virginia Wade in Chicago. King won both tournaments she played in March, defeating Gunter in the [[Akron, Ohio]] final and Evert at the [[US Indoors|U.S. Indoor Championships]] final. [[Olga Morozova]] then upset King in her next two tournaments, at Philadelphia in the final and at [[1974 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] in a quarterfinal 7–5, 6–2. Afterward, King did not play a tour match until the [[1974 US Open – Women's singles|US Open]], where she won her fourth singles title and third in the last four years. She defeated Rosemary Casals in a straight sets quarterfinal, avenged in the semi-finals her previous year's loss to Julie Heldman, and narrowly defeated Evonne Goolagong in the final. King did not reach a tournament final during the remainder of the year, losing to Heldman in an [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]] semi-final, Wade in a Phoenix semi-final, and Goolagong in a semi-final of the tour-ending [[WTA Tour Championships|Virginia Slims Championships]] in Los Angeles.

====1975====
In 1975, King played singles only half the year, as she retired (temporarily, as it turned out) from tournament singles competition immediately after winning her sixth [[1975 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] singles title.

She began the year in San Francisco, defeating Françoise Dürr and Virginia Wade before losing to Chris Evert in the final. The following week, King won the [[Sarasota, Florida]] tournament, defeating Evert in the final 6–3, 6–2. Evert said immediately after the final, which was her thirteenth career match with King, "I think that's the best that Billie Jean has ever played. I hit some great shots but they just kept coming back at me."<ref>"Billie Jean Dumps Evert at Sarasota", ''Daily Times-News'', [[Burlington, North Carolina]], January 20, 1975, page 5B</ref> Looking back at that match, King said, "I probably played so well because I had to, for the money. Out of frustration comes creativity. Right?"<ref name="Mrs. Billie Jean King!" /> Two months later, Wade defeated King in the semi-finals of the Philadelphia tournament. At the [[Austin, Texas]], tournament in April, King defeated Evonne Goolagong 6–1, 6–3 before losing to Evert in the final. As King was serving for the match at 6–5 in the third set, a disputed line call went in Evert's favor. King said after the match that she was cheated out of the match and that she had never been angrier about a match.<ref>"Cool Chris Edges Angry Billie Jean", ''Star-News'', [[Pasadena, California]], April 21, 1975, page B-2</ref>

King played only one of the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments, defeating Olga Morozova in the [[The Hastings Direct International Championships|Eastbourne]] semi-finals before losing to Wade in the final. Seeded third at Wimbledon, King defeated seventh seeded Morozova in the quarterfinals (6–3, 6–3) and then top seeded Evert in the semi-finals (2–6, 6–2, 6–3) after being down 3–0 (40–15) in the final set.<ref name="Deford, Frank; King, Billie Jean 1982 95">{{cite book |author1=Deford, Frank |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean |publisher=Viking |location=New York, N.Y. |year=1982 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/95 95] |isbn=0-670-47843-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/95 }}</ref> Evert blamed her semifinal defeat on a loss of concentration when she saw [[Jimmy Connors]], her former fiancé, escorting [[Susan George (actress)|Susan George]] into Centre Court. King, however, believes that the match turned around because King planned for and totally prepared for Wimbledon that year and told herself when she was on the verge of defeat, "Hey, Billie Jean, this is ridiculous. You paid the price. For once, you looked ahead. You're supposed to win. Get your bahoola in gear."<ref name="Deford, Frank; King, Billie Jean 1982 95" /> King then defeated fourth seeded Goolagong Cawley in the second most lopsided women's final ever at Wimbledon (6–0, 6–1). King called her performance a "near perfect match" and said to the news media, "I'm never coming back."<ref>{{cite book |author=Lannin, Joanne |title=Billie Jean King: Tennis Trailblazer |publisher=Lerner Publications Co |location=Minneapolis |year=1999 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/99 99] |isbn=0-8225-4959-X |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/99 }}</ref>

===The later years: 1976–1990===

====1976====
Except for five Federation Cup singles matches that she won in straight sets in August, King played only in doubles and mixed doubles events from January through September. She partnered [[Phil Dent]] to the mixed doubles title at the US Open. She lost to [[Dianne Fromholtz Balestrat]] in both of the singles tournaments she played the remainder of the year. Looking back, King said, "I wasted 1976. After watching Chris Evert and Evonne [Goolagong] Cawley play the final at [[1976 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] I asked myself what I was doing. So, despite my age and the operations, the Old Lady came back...."<ref>{{cite book |author1=Brace, Reginald |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Play Better Tennis: With Billie Jean King and Reginald Brace |publisher=Octopus |year=1981 |page=16 |isbn= 0-7064-1223-0 }}</ref> King had knee surgery for the third time on November 9,<ref>"Billie Jean Undergoes Knee Surgery", ''Tyrone (Pennsylvania) Daily Herald'', November 10, 1976, page 12</ref> this time on her right knee,<ref>"King Will Resume Singles Competition", ''The Pocono Record'', Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, January 20, 1977, page 14</ref> and did not play the remainder of the year.

====1977====
King spent the first three months of the year rehabilitating her right knee after surgery in November 1976.<ref>"King to Command McFarlin Spotlight", ''San Antonio Light'', March 21, 1977, page 1-B</ref>

In March 1977, King requested that the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) exercise its right to grant a wild card entry to King for the eight-player Virginia Slims Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Margaret Court, who finished in sixth place on the Virginia Slims points list, had left the tour due to her fourth pregnancy and thus failed to qualify for the tournament because she did not play enough Virginia Slims tournaments leading up to the championships. This left a spot open in the draw, which the WTA filled with [[Mima Jaušovec]]. King then decided to play the Lionel Cup tournament in [[San Antonio]], Texas, which the WTA harshly criticized because tournament officials there had allowed [[Renée Richards]], a [[Transgender people in sports|transgender athlete]], to enter.<ref>"Billie Jean King returns to tennis action", ''The Independent Record'', Helena, Montana, March 23, 1977, page 10.</ref> Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, and [[Betty Stöve]] (president of the WTA) criticized King's decision because of Richards's unresolved and highly controversial status on the women's tennis tour. Evert said she was disappointed with King and that until Richards's status was resolved, "all of the women should stick together." Navratilova said, "Billie Jean is a bad girl pouting. She made a bad decision. She's mad because she could not get what she wanted." Stöve said that if King had wanted the competition, "[T]here are plenty of men around here she could've played with. She didn't have to choose a 'disputed' tournament."<ref>"Gals Continue to Snap at King", ''San Antonio Light'', March 25, 1977, page 4-E</ref> The draw in San Antonio called for King to play Richards in the semi-finals had form held; however, Richards lost in the quarterfinals. King eventually won the tournament.

At the clay court Family Circle Cup in late March, King played for the last time her long-time rival Nancy Richey Gunter in the first round. King won 0–6, 7–6, 6–2. She defeated another clay court specialist, [[Virginia Ruzici]], in the second round before winning only one game from Evert in the final.

At [[1977 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]] in the third round, King played Maria Bueno for the last time, with King winning 6–2, 7–5. In the quarterfinals, Evert defeated King for the first time at a Grand Slam singles tournament and for the first time on grass 6–1, 6–2 in just 46 minutes. Evert said it was the best match she had ever played on grass up to that point in her career,<ref>"Evert Thrashes Former Queen, King With 6–1, 6–2 Win at Wimbledon", ''Galveston (Texas) News'', June 28, 1977, page B1</ref> and King said, "No excuses. Let's forget knees, ankles, toes, everything else. She just played beautiful tennis. I don't think many players would've beaten her today."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1946&dat=19770628&id=XJguAAAAIBAJ&pg=1064,2757618 | title=Evert Demolishes Billie Jean | newspaper=The Gazette | location=Montreal, Quebec, Canada | date=June 28, 1977 | access-date=August 26, 2017 | page=18}}</ref> King also said after the match, "Maybe I can be happy being number eight instead of number one. At this stage, just playing, that's winning enough for me."<ref>{{cite book | author=Lannon, Joanne | title=Billie Jean King: Tennis Trailblazer | publisher=Lerner Publications Company | location=Minneapolis | year=1999 | page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/101 101] | isbn=0-8225-4959-X | url=https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/101 }}</ref> But when asked about retirement, King said, "Retire? Quit tournament tennis? You gotta be kidding. It just means I've got a lot more work. I've got to make myself match tough ... mentally as well as physically. I gotta go out and kill myself for the next six months. It's a long, arduous process. I will suffer. But I will be back."<ref>"Tennis' Joe Frazier", ''Idaho State Journal'', Pocatello, Idaho, June 28, 1977, page A6</ref> There was a small historic note at Wimbledon 1977 in that it was the first time ever that King competed at the championships that she did not reach a final. From her debut in 1961 until 1976, she had played in the final of one of the three championship events for women every year. Perhaps there was irony in this in that as the Wimbledon champion with the most titles in its history, the event was celebrating its centenary in the year King failed to make a final for the first time. The only other years she competed at the championship and did not feature in a final were 1980 and 1982. In her entire Wimbledon career of 22 competitions, King never failed to be a semi-finalist in at least one event every year.<ref>Barrett, John. Wimbledon: The Official History. Vision Sports Publishing, 2014 (revised edition). {{ISBN|978-1-909534-23-0}}</ref>

Evert repeated her Wimbledon quarterfinal victory over King at the clay court [[1977 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]], winning 6–2, 6–0. This loss prompted King to say, "I better get it together by October or November or that's it. I'll have to make some big decisions. I'm not 20-years-old and I can't just go out and change my game. It's only the last four weeks I haven't been in [knee] pain. [But if] I keep using that as a copout, I shouldn't play."<ref>"Comeback Soon Over for King?", ''News Tribune'', Fort Pierce, Florida, September 8, 1977, page 10</ref>

The remainder of the year, King's win–loss record was 31–3, losing to only Evert, Dianne Fromholtz Balestrat, and [[Michelle Tyler]]. King won five of the eight tournaments she entered plus both of her Wightman Cup matches. She defeated Navratilova all four times they played, including three times in three consecutive weeks, and beat Wimbledon champion Virginia Wade twice. Beginning September 26, King played seven consecutive weeks. She lost to Tyler in the second round in [[Palm Harbor, Florida]], and Fromholtz Balestrat in the semi-finals in [[Atlanta]]. She then won three hard court tournaments in three consecutive weeks. She defeated Navratilova and [[Wendy Turnbull]] to win in Phoenix, losing only four points to Turnbull in the third set of the final.<ref>"King Wins 1st Major Tourney in 2 Years", ''Raleigh Register'', Beckley, West Virginia, October 17, 1977, page 8</ref> The next week, she defeated Navratilova, Fromholtz Balestrat, and Wimbledon runner-up Stöve to win in [[São Paulo, Brazil|São Paulo]]. The third week, she defeated Ruzici, Stöve, and [[Janet Newberry]] Wright to win in San Juan. In November, Evert snapped King's 18-match winning streak in the final of the Colgate Series Championships in [[Mission Hills, Los Angeles|Mission Hills, California]]. King then won her Wightman Cup matches, defeated Navratilova to win the tournament in Japan, and beat Wade to win the Bremar Cup in London. King said, "I have never had a run like this, even in the years when I was Wimbledon champion. At 34, I feel fitter than when I was 24."<ref>"King, Wade London Finalists", ''Star-News'', Pasadena, California, December 11, 1977, page D-7</ref>

====1978====
[[File:Billie Jean King ©Lynn Gilbert 1978.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|King in 1978 photographed by [[Lynn Gilbert]] (1978)]]

King played ten singles tournaments during the first half of 1978, limiting herself to doubles after Wimbledon.

To start the year, King was the runner-up in Houston and [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]] (losing to Martina Navratilova in both) and in Philadelphia (losing to Chris Evert). At the Virginia Slims Championships, King lost her first round robin match to Virginia Wade and defaulted her two remaining round robin matches because of a leg injury sustained during the first match.

At [[1978 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King played with a painful heel spur in her left foot and lost to Evert in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year 6–3, 3–6, 6–2. The match was on-serve in the third set with King serving at 2–3 (40–0) before Evert won five consecutive points to break serve. King won a total of only two points during the last two games. King said after the match, "I don't think my mobility is very good and that's what I need to beat her. Physically, she [Evert] tears your guts apart unless you can stay with her. I'm really disappointed. I really wanted to play well. I just couldn't cut it because of my heel."<ref>"Evert Enters Grudge Match With Wade", ''Galveston (Texas) Daily News'', July 5, 1978, page 1-B</ref> King and her partner [[Ray Ruffels]] lost in the final of mixed doubles in straight sets.

King teamed with Navratilova to win the women's doubles title at the US Open, King's fourth women's doubles title at that tournament and fourteenth Grand Slam women's doubles title overall. To end the year, King was undefeated in five doubles matches (four with Evert and one with Rosemary Casals) as the U.S. won the Federation Cup in Melbourne, Australia. She also teamed with [[Tracy Austin]] in the [[1978 Wightman Cup]] against Great Britain, beating [[Anne Hobbs]] & [[Sue Mappin]] in the best of seven rubbers, despite the US losing the Cup 3–4. During the Federation Cup competition, King hinted at retirement from future major singles competitions and said that she was "sick and tired of continued surgery" in trying to get fit enough for those events.<ref>"U.S. wins Federation Cup opener", ''European Stars and Stripes'', November 29, 1978, page 28</ref> Nevertheless, King had foot surgery on December 22 in an attempt to regain mobility for a return to the tennis tour.<ref>"Surgery for King", ''Valley Independent'', Monessen, Pennsylvania, December 22, 1978, page 9</ref>

====1979====
During the first half of 1979, King played only one event – doubles in the Federation Cup tie against Spain – because of major surgery to her left foot during December 1978.

King returned to singles competition at the Wimbledon warm-up tournament in [[Chichester Tennis Tournament|Chichester]]. She defeated the reigning Wimbledon champion, Martina Navratilova, in a 48-minute quarterfinal 6–1, 6–2<ref>"Sports Shorts", ''The Capital'', Annapolis, Maryland, June 16, 1979, page 25</ref> before losing to Evonne Goolagong Cawley in the semi-finals 1–6, 6–4, 10–8. Seeded seventh at [[1979 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King defeated [[Hana Mandlíková]] in the fourth round before losing the last six games<ref>{{Cite news|last=Radosta| first=John S.|author-link=John S. Radosta | title=Tracy Austin Ousts Mrs. King, 6–4, 6–7, 6–2 | newspaper=The New York Times | date=July 3, 1979}}</ref> of the quarterfinal match with fourth-seeded [[Tracy Austin]] 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–2. King partnered with Navratilova at Wimbledon to win King's 20th and final Wimbledon title, breaking [[Elizabeth Ryan]]'s longstanding record of 19 Wimbledon titles just one day after Ryan collapsed and died at Wimbledon.<ref>"Ryan dies at Wimbledon", ''The News'', Frederick, Maryland, July 7, 1979, page D-2</ref>

At the [[1979 U.S. Open – Women's singles|US Open]], the ninth-seeded King reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set, where she upset the fourth-seeded Virginia Wade 6–3, 7–6(4). Next up was a semi-final match with the four-time defending champion and top-seeded Chris Evert; however, with King hampered by a neck injury sustained during a bear hug with a friend the day before the match, Evert won 6–1, 6–0, including the last eleven games and 48 of the last 63 points.<ref name = "Amdur-19790908">{{Cite news| last=Amdur| first=Neil| title=Injured Mrs. King Is Routed By Mrs. Lloyd in Semi-finals|newspaper=The New York Times|date=September 8, 1979}}</ref> This was Evert's eighth consecutive win over King, with Evert during those matches losing only one set and 31 games and winning four 6–0 sets.<ref name = "Amdur-19790908" /> Evert said after the match, "Psychologically, I feel very confident when I ... play her."<ref name = "Amdur-19790908" />

The following week in Tokyo, King won her first singles title in almost two years, defeating Goolagong Cawley in the final. In November in Stockholm, King defeated Betty Stöve in the final after Stöve lost her concentration while serving for the match at 5–4 in the third set.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Brace, Reginald |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Play Better Tennis: With Billie Jean King and Reginald Brace | publisher=Octopus |year=1981 |page=46 |isbn= 0-7064-1223-0}}</ref> Three weeks later in Brighton, King lost a semi-final match with Navratilova 7–5, 0–6, 7–6(3) after King led 6–5 in the third set.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Navratilova-Lloyd Final|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 25, 1979}}</ref> She ended the year with a quarterfinal loss in Melbourne (not the Australian Open), a second round loss in Sydney, and a three-set semi-final loss to Austin in Tokyo.

====1980–1981====
King won the tournament in Houston that began in February, snapping Martina Navratilova's 28-match winning streak in the straight-sets final.<ref name=advance>Martina and Billie advance", ''Daily Press'', Escanaba, Michigan, March 20, 1980, page 3-B</ref>

At the winter series-ending Avon Championships in March, King defeated Virginia Wade in her first round robin match 6–1, 6–3. After Wade held serve at love to open the match, King won nine consecutive games and lost only nine points during those games.<ref name=advance/> King then lost her second round robin match to Navratilova and defeated Wendy Turnbull in an elimination round match, before losing to Tracy Austin in the semi-finals

King played the 1980 French Open, her first time since she won the event in 1972 and completed a career singles Grand Slam.<ref>{{Cite book |last=King |first=Billie Jean |url=http://archive.org/details/autobiographyofb0000king |title=The autobiography of Billie Jean King |date=1982 |publisher=London; New York : Granada |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-246-11792-2}}</ref>{{Citation needed|date=September 2017}} She was seeded second but lost in the quarterfinals to fifth-seeded [[Dianne Fromholtz]] Balestrat of Australia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wtatennis.com/SEWTATour-Archive/Archive/Draws/1980/903.pdf|title=WTA Tournament Archives|website=WTA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424043911/http://www.wtatennis.com/SEWTATour-Archive/Archive/Draws/1980/903.pdf|archive-date=April 24, 2016|access-date=September 23, 2017}}</ref>

At [[1980 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], King defeated [[Pam Shriver]] in a two-hour, forty minute fourth round match after King saved a match point in the second set and recovered from a 4–2 (40–0) deficit in the third set with Shriver serving.<ref>"This Is a Wimbly to Remember for Veteran King", ''Abilene (Texas) Reporter-News'', July 1, 1980, page 1-C</ref> In a quarterfinal that took two days to complete, King lost to two-time defending champion and top-seeded Navratilova 7–6, 1–6, 10–8. The beginning of the match was delayed until late afternoon because of rain. Because she wore glasses, King agreed to start the match then on condition that tournament officials immediately suspend the match if the rain resumed. During the first set, drizzle began to fall; however, the chair umpire refused to suspend the match. King led in the tiebreaker 5–1 before Navratilova came back to win the set, whereupon the umpire then agreed to the suspension. When the match resumed the next day, King won 20 of the first 23 points to take a 5–0 lead in the second set and lost a total of seven points while winning the set in just 17 minutes. In the third set, Navratilova broke serve to take a 2–0 lead before King broke back twice and eventually served for the match at 6–5. King then hit four volley errors, enabling Navratilova to break serve at love and even the match. King saved three match points while serving at 6–7 and three more match points while serving at 7–8. During the change-over between games at 8–9, King's glasses broke for the first time in her career. She had a spare pair, but they did not feel the same. King saved two match points before Navratilova broke serve to win the match. King said, "I think that may be the single match in my career that I could have won if I hadn't had bad eyes."<ref>{{cite book |author1=Deford, Frank |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean |publisher=Viking |location=New York, N.Y. |year=1982 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/82 82] |isbn=0-670-47843-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/82 }}</ref><ref>"Navratilova downs veteran King", ''Daily Intelligencer'', Doylestown, Pennsylvania, July 2, 1980, page 21</ref><ref>"Martina Edges King; Borg, Connors Win", ''Syracuse (New York) Herald-Journal'', July 2, 1980, page C-1</ref>

King teamed with Navratilova to win King's 39th and final Grand Slam title at the US Open. Navratilova then decided she wanted a new doubles partner and started playing with Shriver but refused to discuss the change directly with King. She finally confronted Navratilova during the spring of 1981, reportedly saying to her, "Tell me I'm too old ... but tell me something." Navratilova refused to talk about it.<ref>{{cite book |author=Lannin, Joanne |title=Billie Jean King: Tennis Trailblazer |publisher=Lerner Publications Co |location=Minneapolis |year=1999 |page=[https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/103 103] |isbn=0-8225-4959-X |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejeankingte00lann/page/103 }}</ref>

King had minor knee surgery on November 14 in San Francisco to remove adhesions and cartilage.<ref>"Surgery for King", ''Valley Independent'', Monessen, Pennsylvania, November 15, 1980, page 6</ref>

====1982–1983====
In 1982, King began a comeback, winning the Wimbledon warm-up tournament the [[1982 Edgbaston Cup]] in Birmingham, her first singles title in more than two years. King was 38 years old and the twelfth-seed at [[1982 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]]. In her third round match with [[Tanya Harford]] of South Africa, King was down 7–5, 5–4 (40–0) before Harford's apparent winner was deemed 'not up' by the umpire, something the South African protested vehemently. King then saved the next two match points<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925571-2,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209080405/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925571-2,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 9, 2008 |title=Wimbledon Under the Weather |magazine=Time |date=July 12, 1982 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref> to win the second set 7–6(2) and then the third set 6–3. King said in her post-match press conference, "I can't recall the previous time I have been so close to defeat and won. When I was down 4–5 and love–40, I told myself, 'You have been here 21 years, so use that experience and hang on.{{' "}}<ref>Associated Press, June 27, 1982</ref> In the fourth round, King upset sixth-seeded Australian Wendy Turnbull in straight sets. King then upset third-seeded Tracy Austin in the quarterfinals 3–6, 6–4, 6–2 to become the oldest female semi-finalist at Wimbledon since [[Dorothea Lambert Chambers|Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers]] in 1920. This was King's first career victory over Austin after five defeats and reversed the result of their 1979 Wimbledon quarterfinal. King said in her post-match press conference, "Today, I looked at the scoreboard when I was 2–0 in the third set and the '2' seemed to be getting bigger and bigger. In 1979, when I was up 2–0 at the same stage, I was tired and didn't have anything left. But today I felt so much better and was great mentally."<ref>Associated Press, July 1, 1982</ref> Two days later in the semi-finals, which was King's 250th career match at Wimbledon in singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles,<ref>Knight-Ridder Wire, July 3, 1982</ref> the second-seeded Chris Evert defeated King on her fifth match point 7–6(4), 2–6, 6–3. King was down a set and 2–1 in the second set before winning five consecutive games to even the match.<ref>Associated Press, July 3, 1982</ref> King explained that she actually lost the match in the first set by failing to convert break points at 15–40 in the second and fourth games.<ref>''Dallas Morning News'', "Lloyd spoils King's hopes", July 3, 1982, pages 1B, 9B</ref><ref>''Dallas Times Herald'', "Evert stops King rally in Wimbledon replay", July 3, 1982, page B-7</ref> Having started the year in retirement, King finished 1982 ranked 14 in the world.

In 1983, she reached the semi-finals in her final appearance at [[1983 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|Wimbledon]], losing to [[Andrea Jaeger]] 6–1, 6–1 after beating [[Kathy Jordan]] in the quarterfinals, seventh-seeded Wendy Turnbull in the fourth round, and Rosemary Casals, her longtime doubles partner, in the third round. Jaeger claims that she was highly motivated to defeat King because King had defeated Turnbull, a favorite of Jaeger's, and because King refused a towel from an attendant just before her match with Jaeger, explaining, "I'm not going to sweat in this match."

King became the oldest WTA player to win a singles tournament when she won the [[1983 Edgbaston Cup|Edgbaston Cup]] grass court tournament in Birmingham at 39 years, 7 months and 23 days after a straight-sets victory in the final against [[Alycia Moulton]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Billie Jean King retained the $90,000 Edgbaston Women's Tennis...|url=http://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/06/12/Billie-Jean-King-retained-the-90000-Edgbaston-Womens-Tennis/5479424238400/|work=UPI|date=June 12, 1983|archive-date=August 21, 2018|access-date=January 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821031724/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/06/12/Billie-Jean-King-retained-the-90000-Edgbaston-Womens-Tennis/5479424238400/|url-status=live}}</ref> Her tally of 20 Wimbledon titles remained when partnered with [[Steve Denton]] and the no.1 seeds in the [[1983 Wimbledon Championships – Mixed doubles|mixed doubles]], they lost 6–7(5–7), 7–6(7–5), 7–5 to [[John Lloyd (tennis)|John Lloyd]] & [[Wendy Turnbull]] in the final, King being the only player to drop her service in the final game. At her final appearance at the [[1983 US Open (tennis)|US Open]] later in 1983, King didn't play singles, but partnered [[Sharon Walsh]] in the [[1983 US Open – Women's doubles|women's doubles]], reaching the semi-finals and [[Trey Waltke]] in the [[1983 US Open – Mixed doubles|mixed doubles]], losing in the second round. The final official singles match of King's career was a second round loss to [[Catherine Tanvier]] at the [[1983 Australian Open – Women's singles|1983 Australian Open]].

====1984 to present====
King played doubles sporadically from 1984 through 1990. She and [[Vijay Amritraj]] were seeded sixth for the [[1984 Wimbledon Championships – Mixed doubles|Wimbledon mixed doubles 1984]], but they withdrew before the tournament began. She retired from competitive play in doubles in March 1990. In her last competitive doubles match, King and her partner, [[Jennifer Capriati]], lost a second round match to [[Brenda Schultz-McCarthy]] and [[Andrea Temesvári]] 6–3, 6–2 at the Virginia Slims of Florida tournament.

King became the captain of the United States Fed Cup team and coach of its women's Olympic tennis squad. She guided the U.S. to the Fed Cup championship in 1996 and helped [[Lindsay Davenport]], [[Gigi Fernández]], and [[Mary Joe Fernández]] capture Olympic gold medals.

In 2002, King dismissed Capriati from the Fed Cup team, saying Capriati had violated rules that forbade bringing along and practicing with personal coaches.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-apr-27-sp-capriati27-story.html|title=King Dismisses Capriati From Fed Cup|last=Dillman|first=Lisa|date=April 27, 2002|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=October 15, 2017|issn=0458-3035}}</ref> Opinion was sharply divided, with many supporting King's decision but many feeling the punishment was too harsh, especially in hindsight when [[Monica Seles]] and [[Lisa Raymond]] were defeated by lower-ranked Austrians [[Barbara Schett]] and [[Barbara Schwartz (tennis)|Barbara Schwartz]]. The following year, [[Zina Garrison]] succeeded King as Fed Cup captain.

===Activism within the tennis profession===

==== Player compensation ====
Before the start of the [[Tennis Open Era|open era]] in 1968, King earned US$100 a week as a playground instructor and student at [[California State University, Los Angeles]] when not playing in major tennis tournaments.<ref name="ESPN-BillieJean" />

In 1967, King criticized the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) in a series of press conferences, denouncing what she called the USLTA's practice of "shamateurism", where top players were paid under the table to guarantee their entry into tournaments. King argued that this was corrupt and kept the game highly elitist. King quickly became a significant force in the opening of tennis to professionalism. King said this about the amateur game:

{{blockquote|In America, tennis players are not people. If you are in tennis, you are a cross between a panhandler and a visiting in-law. You're not respected, you're tolerated. In England, you're respected as an artist. In Europe, you're a person of importance. [[Manuel Santana]] gets decorated by [[Francisco Franco|Franco]]. The [[Queen Elizabeth II|Queen]] leads the applause. How many times have I been presented at the [[White House]]? You work all your life to win Wimbledon and Forest Hills and all the people say is, "That's nice. Now what are you going to do with your life?" They don't ask [[Mickey Mantle]] that. Stop 12 people on the street and ask them who [[Roy Emerson]] is and they're stuck for an answer, but they know the third-string right guard for the [[Los Angeles Rams|Rams]]. I'd like to see tennis get out of its "sissy" image and see some guy yell, "Hit it, ya bum" and see it be a game you don't have to have a [[lorgnette]] or a sash across your tuxedo to get in to watch.<ref>"Huck Finn of Tennis: That's Billie Jean", ''Oakland Tribune'', September 26, 1967, page 38</ref>}}

==== Push for female equality ====
When the open era began, King campaigned for equal prize money in the men's and women's games. In 1971, her husband, [[Larry King (tennis)|Larry King]] created the idea to form a nine player women's group with the financial backing of ''World Tennis'' magazine founder [[Gladys Heldman]] and the sponsorship of Virginia Slims chairman [[Joe Cullman]]. King became the first woman athlete to earn over US$100,000 in prize money;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.billiejeanking.com/fact.aspx |title=BJK Firsts and Facts |publisher=Billiejeanking.com |date=August 12, 2009 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100324004643/http://www.billiejeanking.com/fact.aspx |archive-date=March 24, 2010 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> however, inequalities continued. King won the US Open in 1972 but received US$15,000 less than the men's champion [[Ilie Năstase]]. She stated that she would not play the next year if the prize money was not equal. In 1973, the US Open became the first major tournament to offer equal prize money for men and women.

King led player efforts to support the first professional women's tennis tour in the 1970s called the Virginia Slims, founded by Gladys Heldman and funded by [[Joseph Cullman]] of [[Philip Morris USA|Philip Morris]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.budcollinstennis.com/buds-notes/notes-gladysh03.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513165717/http://www.budcollinstennis.com/buds-notes/notes-gladysh03.html|url-status=dead|title=Bud Collins on Gladys Heldman|archive-date=May 13, 2008}}</ref> Once the tour took flight, King worked tirelessly to promote it even though many of the other top players were not supportive. "For three years we had two tours and because of their governments [Martina] Navratilova and Olga Morozova had to play the other tour. Chris [Evert], Margaret [Court], Virginia [Wade], they let us do the pioneering work and they weren't very nice to us. If you go back and look at the old quotes; they played for the love of the game, we played for the money. When we got backing and money, we were all playing together – I wonder why? I tried not to get upset with them. Forgiveness is important. Our job was to have one voice and win them over."<ref name = "TimesOnline-20071209">Walsh, David (December 9, 2007) [https://web.archive.org/web/20110414055233/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/tennis/article3021888.ece The Big Interview: Billie Jean King]. ''Sunday Times''.</ref>

In 1973, King became the first president of the women's players union – the Women's Tennis Association. In 1974, she, with husband Larry King and [[Jim Jorgensen]], founded ''[[womenSports]]'' magazine and started the Women's Sports Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/cgi-bin/iowa/about/article.html?record=86|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013152332/http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/cgi-bin/iowa/about/article.html?record=86|url-status=dead|title=Billie Jean King: Founder, Leader, Legend|archive-date=October 13, 2007}}</ref> Also in 1974, [[World TeamTennis]] began, founded by Larry King, Dennis Murphy, Frank Barman and Jordan Kaiser.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wtt.com/page.aspx?article_id=64 |title=Billie Jean King co-founder |publisher=Wtt.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721042537/http://www.wtt.com/page.aspx?article_id=64 |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> She became league commissioner in 1982 and major owner in 1984.

King is a member of the Board of Honorary Trustees for the [[Sports Museum of America]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thesportsmuseum.com/about_board.html |title=Board of Honorary Trustees |publisher=Thesportsmuseum.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717032433/http://www.thesportsmuseum.com/about_board.html |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> which opened in 2008. The museum is the home of the Billie Jean King International Women's Sports Center, a comprehensive women's sports hall of fame and exhibit.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.thesportsmuseum.com/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507141236/http://www.thesportsmuseum.com/experience_bjk.html|url-status=dead|title=thesportsmuseum.com|archive-date=May 7, 2013|website=www.thesportsmuseum.com}}</ref>

=== Other activities ===
King's husband Larry co-founded [[World Team Tennis]] in 1973 with Dennis Murphy, Jordan Kaiser, and Fred Barman and WTT began in 1974.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-jun-30-sp-dwyre30-story.html|title=Billie Jean King is still making team work|last=Dwyre|first=Bill|date=June 30, 2009|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=September 23, 2017|issn=0458-3035}}</ref> The couple used their savings to put on a team tennis event at the Oakland Coliseum.<ref name=":2" /> King remained involved with World Team Tennis for decades, eventually sharing ownership with her ex-husband, her life partner [[Ilana Kloss]] and USTA.<ref name=":2" /> In 2017, King sold her majority ownership stake of the league to [[Mark Ein]] and [[Fred Luddy]]. WTT was based on her philosophy for gender equality and it had been running continuously for over 40 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/other-sports/billie-jean-king-sells-majority-ownership-mylan-world-team-tennis|title=Billie Jean King sells majority ownership of Mylan World Team Tennis|website=RSN|date=March 13, 2017 }}</ref>

In 1999, King was elected to serve on the board of directors of [[Altria|Philip Morris Incorporated]], garnering some criticism from anti-tobacco groups.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cleanlungs.com/education/features/king.html|title=Billie Jean King Elected To Philip Morris Board|publisher=Cleanlungs.com|access-date=July 4, 2011|date=1999}}</ref> She no longer serves in that capacity.

{{as of|2012}} King was involved in the [[Women's Sports Foundation]] and the [[Elton John AIDS Foundation]].<ref name="ABILITY magazine">{{cite news|url=http://www.abilitymagazine.com/billie-jean-king.html|title=Billie Jean King Still Got Game|newspaper=ABILITY magazine|access-date=October 22, 2012}}</ref> She also served on the President's Council for Fitness, Sports and Nutrition as a way to encourage young people to stay active.<ref name="ABILITY magazine" />

In 2008, King published the book ''Pressure is a Privilege: Lessons I've Learned from Life and the Battle of the Sexes''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93937984|title=Billie Jean King Remembers 'Battle of the Sexes'|date=August 25, 2008|work=NPR|access-date=October 15, 2017}}</ref>

In December 2013, US President Barack Obama appointed King and openly gay ice hockey player [[Caitlin Cahow]] to represent the United States at the [[2014 Winter Olympics]] in [[Sochi]], Russia. This has been interpreted as a signal on gay rights, in the context of [[concerns and controversies at the 2014 Winter Olympics]] regarding [[LGBT rights in Russia]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/236283091.html|title=Obama picks gay athletes for delegation to Sochi Olympics, sending signal on gay rights|author=Pells, Eddie |date=December 17, 2013|agency=Associated Press|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219031640/http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/236283091.html|archive-date=December 19, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref> King was forced to drop out of the delegation due to her mother's ill health. Betty Moffitt, King's mother, died on February 7, 2014, the day of the [[2014 Winter Olympics opening ceremony]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/02/07/tennis-great-billie-jean-kings-mother-dies-in-arizona/|title=Tennis Great Billie Jean King's Mother Dies in Arizona|website=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=February 7, 2014|access-date=February 8, 2014}}</ref>

Billie Jean was selected to deliver the [[Northwestern University]] commencement address on June 16, 2017, in [[Evanston, Illinois]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2017/february/equality-advocate-and-sports-icon-to-address-class-of-2017/?linkId=34456207|title=Equality advocate and sports icon to address Class of 2017 – Northwestern Now|website=news.northwestern.edu}}</ref>

She attended the [[75th Golden Globe Awards]] in 2018 as a guest of [[Emma Stone]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Yam |first=Kimberly |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/8-activists-who-went-to-the-golden-globes_us_5a539f75e4b003133ecacab1 |title=Here's What You Should Know About The 8 Activists Who Went to the Golden Globes &#124; HuffPost |date=January 8, 2018 |work=Huffington Post |access-date=January 11, 2018 |archive-date=January 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110111638/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/8-activists-who-went-to-the-golden-globes_us_5a539f75e4b003133ecacab1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

King and Kloss became minority owners of the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] baseball team in September 2018, and the [[Women's National Basketball Association|WNBA]]'s [[Los Angeles Sparks]] basketball team.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/dodgers-welcome-billie-jean-king-ilana-kloss/c-295526684|title=Addition of King, Kloss sends 'strong message'|first=Ken|last=Gurnick|work=MLB.com|date=September 21, 2018|access-date=October 31, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com:443/Daily/Issues/2018/09/21/Franchises/Dodgers.aspx|title=Dodgers, WNBA Sparks Adding Billie Jean King As Minority Owner|website=www.sportsbusinessdaily.com|date=September 21, 2018 }}</ref> In October 2020, they became part of the ownership group of [[Angel City FC]], a Los Angeles–based team set to start play in the [[National Women's Soccer League]] in 2022.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/article/angel-city-confirms-name-as-angel-city-football-club-and-officially-joins-national-womens-soccer-league |title=Angel City Confirms Name as Angel City Football Club and Officially Joins National Women's Soccer League |publisher=National Women's Soccer League |date=October 21, 2020 |access-date=October 21, 2020 |archive-date=October 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026083002/https://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/article/angel-city-confirms-name-as-angel-city-football-club-and-officially-joins-national-womens-soccer-league |url-status=dead }}</ref>

King is also an investor in [[Just Women's Sports]], an American media platform dedicated to women's sports.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-06-09 |title=Billionaire Joe Tsai, Billie Jean King Back Just Women's Sports |language=en |work=Bloomberg.com |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-09/billionaire-joe-tsai-billie-jean-king-back-just-women-s-sports |access-date=2023-10-13}}</ref>

On June 29, 2023, the Mark Walter Group and BJK Enterprises purchased the intellectual property and other key elements of the [[Premier Hockey Federation]] (PHF), a professional women's hockey league in the United States and Canada.<ref name="salvian20230630">{{cite news |last1=Salvian |first1=Hailey |title=What we know about the PHF shutdown, and more on the new pro women's hockey league |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4655207/2023/06/30/premier-hockey-federation-why-mark-walter/ |access-date=2023-06-30 |work=[[The Athletic]] |date=2023-06-30 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Headed by [[Mark Walter]] and King, respectively, both businesses had entered a partnership with the [[Professional Women's Hockey Players Association]] (PWHPA) in May 2022, with the intent to create a new professional women's ice hockey league in North America.<ref name="salvian20220524">{{cite news |last1=Salvian |first1=Hailey |title=PWHPA, Billie Jean King considering new league: Source |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/3490779/2022/05/24/pwhpa-billie-jean-king-enterprises-exploring-starting-womens-hockey-league-source/ |access-date=2023-06-30 |work=[[The Athletic]] |date=2022-05-24 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> The buyout changed the landscape in North American women's professional hockey, as it resulted in a single league with stakeholders from both the PHF and PWHPA. The new league began on January 1, 2024, with the first game played between New York and Toronto in Toronto.<ref name="phf-sale-espn">{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/37937093/premier-hockey-federation-sale-unite-women-hockey |title=Sources: Premier Hockey Federation sale could unite women's hockey |author=ESPN News Services |date=June 29, 2023 |publisher=[[ESPN]] |access-date=June 30, 2023 |archive-date=June 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630015545/https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/37937093/premier-hockey-federation-sale-unite-women-hockey |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="phf-sale-phf">{{cite press release |url=https://www.premierhockeyfederation.com/news/new-women-s-pro-hockey-league-to-launch-in-2024 |title=New Women's Pro Hockey League to Launch in 2024 |last=Krotz |first=Paul |date=June 30, 2023 |website=PremierHockeyFederation.com |publisher=[[Premier Hockey Federation]] |access-date=June 30, 2023 |quote=Initiative, led by Mark and Kimbra Walter, Billie Jean King has PWHPA and PHF support}}</ref>

Also in 2023, King competed in [[The Masked Singer (American season 10)|season ten]] of ''[[The Masked Singer (American TV series)|The Masked Singer]]'' as "Royal Hen". She was the first of Group B to be eliminated on "A Celebration of [[Elton John]]".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://ew.com/tv/the-masked-singer-royal-hen-revealed-billie-jean-king/|title=Masked Singer reveals Royal Hen as tennis legend and iconic activist with sweet Elton John connection|first=Lauren|last=Huff|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|date=October 18, 2023|access-date=October 20, 2023}}</ref>

==Awards, honors, and tributes==
===Tributes from other players===
[[File:Billie Jean King by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|Billie Jean King speaking at an event in [[Des Moines, Iowa]]]]

[[Margaret Court]], who won more Grand Slam titles than anyone, has said that King was "the greatest competitor I've ever known".<ref name="Who Is the Greatest Female Player Ever?">{{Cite web|url=http://www.insidetennis.com/0405_bestfemale.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228115125/http://www.insidetennis.com/0405_bestfemale.html|url-status=dead|title=Who Is the Greatest Female Player Ever?|archive-date=December 28, 2008}}</ref>

[[Chris Evert]], winner of 18 Grand Slam singles titles, has said, "She's the wisest human being that I've ever met and has vision people can only dream about. Billie Jean King is my mentor and has given me advice about my tennis and my boyfriends. On dealing with my parents and even how to raise children. And she doesn't have any."<ref name=":5">{{cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/sports/other_sports/tennis/articles/2006/12/03/no_royalty_like_king | title=No royalty like King | work=The Boston Globe |date=December 3, 2006 | access-date=July 4, 2011 | first=Stan | last=Grossfeld}}</ref>

In 1979, several top players were asked who they would pick to help them recover from a hypothetical deficit of 1–5 (15–40) in the third set of a match on Wimbledon's [[Centre Court]]. Martina Navratilova, [[Rosemary Casals]], and [[Françoise Dürr]] all picked King. Navratilova said, "I would have to pick Billie Jean at her best. Consistently, Chris [Evert] is hardest to beat but for one big occasion, one big match, one crucial point, yes, it would have to be Billie Jean." Casals said, "No matter how far down you got her, you never could be sure of beating her."<ref>Billie Jean King toughest in tight spot: Durr says", ''Daily Leader'', Pontiac, Illinois, March 22, 1979, page 13</ref>

===Awards and honors===
* King was the [[Associated Press]] Female Athlete of the Year in 1967.<ref>"Billie Jean King Named 'Woman Athlete of the Year{{' "}}, ''Daily Capital News'', Jefferson City, Missouri, January 13, 1968, page 6</ref>
* In 1972, King became the first female athlete ever to be named ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' [[Sportsman of the Year]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/magazine/specials/sportsman/2006/12/04/wade.sportsman/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061205215838/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/magazine/specials/sportsman/2006/12/04/wade.sportsman/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 5, 2006 |title=''Sports Illustrated'' honors Wade |magazine=Sports Illustrated |access-date=July 4, 2011 |date=December 4, 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thedynamicpath.com/pages/personalities/sports/billie-jean-king.php |title=Billie Jean King |publisher=The Dynamic Path |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref>
* In 1975, ''[[Seventeen (American magazine)|Seventeen]]'' magazine found that King was the most admired woman in the world from a poll of its readers. [[Golda Meir]], who had been Israel's prime minister until the previous year, finished second.<ref name="ESPN-BillieJean" /> In a May 19, 1975, ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' article about King, [[Frank Deford]] noted that she had become something of a sex symbol.<ref name="Mrs. Billie Jean King!" />
* King was inducted into the [[International Tennis Hall of Fame]] in 1987.<ref name="ITHF biography" />
* ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' magazine in 1990 named her one of the "100 Most Important Americans of the 20th Century".<ref name="ESPN-BillieJean" />
* King was the recipient of the 1999 [[Arthur Ashe Courage Award]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/espy2004/s/04asheaward.html |title=Weah selected for Arthur Ashe Courage Award |publisher=ESPN |access-date=July 4, 2011 |archive-date=April 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170421233813/http://www.espn.com/espy2004/s/04asheaward.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In 1999 King was inducted into the [[Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.glhalloffame.org/index.pl?page=inductees&todo=year |title=Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017032241/http://www.glhalloffame.org/index.pl?page=inductees&todo=year |archive-date=October 17, 2015 }}</ref>
* In 2000, King received an award from [[Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation|GLAAD]], an organization devoted to reducing discrimination against gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people, for "furthering the visibility and inclusion of the community in her work".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.glaad.org/press|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209020450/http://www.glaad.org/media/archive_detail.php?id=99|url-status=dead|title=GLAAD's Resources for Press|date=September 12, 2011|archive-date=December 9, 2008|website=GLAAD}}</ref>
* In 2003, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) presented her with its highest accolade, the [[Philippe Chatrier Award]], for her contributions to tennis both on and off the court.
* In 2006, the Women's Sports Foundation began to sponsor the [[Billie Awards]], which are named after and hosted by King.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5UIgAAAAIBAJ&pg=3229,6074838 |newspaper=Sarasota Herald-Tribune |date=April 15, 2006 |first=Melissa |last=Murphy |title=Documentary focuses on tennis great Billie Jean King }}</ref>
[[File:Grandpa Marty Shoot Jul-10-06 260A.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|The USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park was rededicated as the [[USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center]]]]
* On August 28, 2006, the [[USTA National Tennis Center]] in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park was rededicated as the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.usta.com/nationaltenniscenternews/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=14189&itype=941&icategoryid=0|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080314232644/http://www.usta.com/nationaltenniscenternews/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=14189&itype=941&icategoryid=0|url-status=dead|title=History of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center|archive-date=March 14, 2008}}</ref> [[John McEnroe]], [[Venus Williams]], Jimmy Connors, and Chris Evert were among the speakers during the rededication ceremony.
* In 2006, California Governor [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] and his wife [[Maria Shriver]] inducted King into the [[California Hall of Fame]] located at [[The California Museum for History, Women, and the Arts]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.ocregister.com/2006/08/01/state-unveils-hall-of-fame/|title=State unveils Hall of Fame|date=August 1, 2017|work=Orange County Register|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.californiamuseum.org/inductees|title=Inductees – California Museum|website=www.californiamuseum.org|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref>
* On November 20, 2007, King was presented with the 2007 Sunday Times Sports Women of the Year Lifetime Achievement award for her contribution to sport both on and off the court.<ref name="TimesOnline-20071209" />
* She was honored by the Office of the [[Manhattan Borough President]] in March 2008 and was included in a map of [[Women's Rights Historic Sites|historical sites]] related or dedicated to important women.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mbpo.org/free_details.asp?ID=234 |title=Scott Stringer – Manhattan Borough President |publisher=Mbpo.org |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718113101/http://www.mbpo.org/free_details.asp?ID=234 |archive-date=July 18, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
* On August 12, 2009, President [[Barack Obama]] awarded King the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] for her work advocating for the rights of women and the [[LGBT|lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender]] community.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/13/us/politics/13obama.html|title=Obama Gives Medal of Freedom to 16 Luminaries|last=Gay|first=Sheryl|date=August 12, 2009|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 4, 2011|archive-date=December 1, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20231201214918/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/13/us/politics/13obama.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>[https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the_press_office/President-Obama-Names-Medal-of-Freedom-Recipients/ "President Obama Names Medal of Freedom Recipients"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091215034234/http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/President-Obama-Names-Medal-of-Freedom-Recipients/ |date=December 15, 2009 }}, White House Office of the Press Secretary, July 30, 2009</ref> This made her the first female athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/house/3041027/billie-jean-king-congressional-gold-medal-indomitable-champion-equality/|title=Tennis legend Billie Jean King up for Congressional Gold Medal: 'Indomitable champion for equality' - Washington Examiner|first=Heather|last=Hamilton|date=June 13, 2024}}</ref>
* She was inducted into the [[Southern California Tennis Hall of Fame]] on August 5, 2011.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.usta.com/en/home/about-usta/usta-awards/southerncalifornia/hall-of-fame-southern-california.html|title=Hall Of Fame Southern California|access-date=October 15, 2017|archive-date=October 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016014640/https://www.usta.com/en/home/about-usta/usta-awards/southerncalifornia/hall-of-fame-southern-california.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* On August 2, 2013, King was among the first class of inductees into the [[National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.out.com/entertainment/popnography/2013/06/18/national-gay-lesbian-sports-hall-fame-chicago |title=National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame's Inaugural Class Announced &#124; Out Magazine |publisher=Out.com |date=June 18, 2013 |access-date=December 4, 2013 |archive-date=November 1, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101101640/http://www.out.com/entertainment/popnography/2013/06/18/national-gay-lesbian-sports-hall-fame-chicago |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In 2014, she was named one of ESPNW's Impact 25.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-commentary/impact25/slideshow/12020053/18/billie-jean-king-71-2014-us-olympic-delegate-sochi|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141216171701/http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-commentary/impact25/slideshow/12020053/18/billie-jean-king-71-2014-us-olympic-delegate-sochi|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 16, 2014|title=2014 espnW Impact 25}}</ref>
* King was shown in ''Marie Claire'' magazine's "The 8 Greatest Moments for Women in Sports".<ref>{{cite web |last=Friedman |first=Megan |url=http://www.marieclaire.com/culture/g2761/female-athletes-history/?thumbnails |title=Historic Moments in Female Sports – Athletic Women |date=March 17, 2015 |publisher=Marieclaire.com |access-date=April 16, 2015 |archive-date=December 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231216114715/http://www.marieclaire.com/culture/g2761/female-athletes-history/?thumbnails |url-status=live }}</ref>
* King received the [[BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award]] on December 16, 2018. It was presented to by long-time friend and fellow tennis player and broadcaster [[Sue Barker]], making King only the second American (after [[Michael Phelps]]) and the first American woman to win the award.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sports Personality of the Year: Billie Jean King given lifetime achievement award |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/sports-personality/46551058 |publisher=[[BBC Sport]] |date=December 16, 2018}}</ref>
* [[Cal State LA]]'s more than {{convert|11|acre|ha}} athletic facility is named the Billie Jean King Sports Complex. The sports complex—which was approved by the [[California State University]] Board of Trustees on September 21—features the [[Eagle's Nest Arena]], the University Stadium, Jesse Owens Track and Field, Reeder Field (baseball), the swimming pool, and tennis and basketball courts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/ppa/spotlight/archive/2010/BJKSportsComplex.php|title=Billie Jean King Sports Complex – Spotlight|date=November 2, 2013|website=calstatela.edu}}</ref>
* On September 21, 2019, her hometown of Long Beach, California held a grand opening of the Long Beach Public Library's new main library, named after King. The Billie Jean King Main Library is located in Downtown Long Beach, and has exhibited King's Presidential Medal of Freedom.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Staff Report |date=2025-01-29 |title=City of Long Beach to host series of workshops for parents of young children |url=https://sigtrib.com/long-beach-workshops-parents-young-children-development/ |access-date=2025-01-29 |website=Signal Tribune |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-31 |title=From Long Beach tennis courts to Pasadena Rose Parade: Billie Jean King's path to grand marshal |url=https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2024/12/31/from-long-beach-tennis-courts-to-pasadena-rose-parade-billie-jean-kings-path-to-grand-marshal/ |access-date=2025-01-29 |website=Pasadena Star News |language=en-US}}</ref>
* The Fed Cup, the premier international team competition in women's tennis, was renamed the [[Billie Jean King Cup]] in September 2020 in her honor.
* Three-time [[World Series]] champion ([[2020 World Series|2020]], [[2024 World Series|2024]], and [[2025 World Series|2025]]) as part owner of the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tennis.com/baseline/articles/dodgers-part-owner-bjk-celebrates-world-series-win|title=Dodgers part-owner BJK celebrates World Series win|website=Tennis.com}}</ref>
* In 2021, King received the [[Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award]], in recognition of her excellence on the tennis court as well as her life's work in pursuit of gender and racial equality.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPT-3LZTtQA|title=2021 Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award Winner - Billie Jean King|website=Laureus official youtube|date=October 11, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.laureus.com/news/laureus-unites-thought-leaders-in-womens-sport-to-mark-international-day-of-the-girl|title=Laureus Unites Thought Leaders In Women's Sport to Mark International Day of the Girl|website=Laureus|date=October 11, 2021}}</ref>
*In June 2022, King was awarded the French [[Legion of Honour]] by President [[Emmanuel Macron]], on the 50th anniversary of her French Open victory.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20220603-billie-jean-king-awarded-france-s-legion-of-honour|title=Billie Jean King awarded France's Legion of Honour|date=June 3, 2022|website=France 24}}</ref>
[[File:Billie Jean King star (Hollywood Walk of Fame stars).jpg|thumb|Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
* In 2024, King received the Golden Plate Award of the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]], presented by [[Christiane Amanpour]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#sports|website=achievement.org|publisher=American Academy of Achievement|access-date=October 3, 2024|archive-date=June 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200608012051/https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#sports|url-status=live}}</ref>
* King received a [[Congressional Gold Medal]] in September 2024 for her "courageous and groundbreaking leadership in advancing equal rights for women in athletics, education, and society."<ref>{{Cite web |title=S.2861 - Billie Jean King Congressional Gold Medal Act |url=https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/2861 |access-date=2024-09-27 |website=Congress.gov|date=September 26, 2024 }}</ref>
* In 2025, King became the first woman to receive a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] in the category of sports entertainment.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tennis.com/baseline/articles/billie-jean-king-to-receive-hollywood-walk-of-fame-star-first-female-athlete|title=Billie Jean King to receive Hollywood Walk of Fame star|website=Tennis.com}}</ref><ref>https://www.olympics.com/en/news/billie-jean-king-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame-first-female</ref>

[[File:President Obama Honors Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients.webm|thumb|upright=.7|Video of the ceremony in 2009 in which the then United States president Barack Obama awarded Billie Jean King with the  [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]].]]

==Playing style and personality==
[[file:Billie Jean King, 2016 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|upright=.7|Billie Jean King in 2016]]
King was an aggressive, hard-hitting net-rusher with excellent speed;<ref name = "ESPN-BillieJean" /> [[Chris Evert]], however, said about King, "Her weakness is her impatience."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,907800-2,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070503044822/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,907800-2,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 3, 2007 |title=Chris Evert: Miss Cool on the Court |magazine=Time |date=August 27, 1973 |access-date=July 4, 2011}}</ref>

Concerning her motivations in life and tennis, King said,

{{blockquote|I'm a perfectionist much more than I'm a super competitor, and there's a big difference there.... I've been painted as a person who only competes. ... But most of all, I get off on hitting a shot correctly. ... Any woman who wants to achieve anything has to be aggressive and tough, but the press never sees us as multidimensional. They don't see the emotions, the downs....<ref>"Billie Jean King a perfectionist", ''New Mexican'', Santa Fe, New Mexico, June 1, 1980, page C-7</ref>}}

In a 1984 interview, just after she had turned 40, King said,

{{blockquote|Sometimes when I'm watching someone like Martina [Navratilova], I remember how nice it was to be No. 1. Believe me, it's the best time in your life. Don't let anyone ever tell you different. ... My only regret is that I had to do too much ''off'' the court. Deep down, I wonder how good I really could have been if I [had] concentrated just on tennis.<ref>"The Challenge of Her Life – Billie Jean at 40", ''[[Parade (magazine)|Parade]]'' magazine, ''Syracuse Herald Journal'', January 8, 1984, page 7</ref>}}

[[Julie Heldman]], who frequently played King but never felt close to her, said about King's personality,

{{blockquote|One of the reasons I've never gotten close to Billie Jean is that I've never felt strong enough to survive against that overwhelming personality of hers. She talks about me being the smart one. Let me tell you, Billie Jean's the smartest one, the cleverest one you'll ever see. She was the one who was able to channel everything into winning, into being the most consummate tennis player.<ref name="Mrs. Billie Jean King!">{{cite news |author=Deford, Frank |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1975/05/19/mrs-billie-jean-king/ |title=Mrs. Billie Jean King! |publisher=[[Sports Illustrated]] |date=May 19, 1975 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209032646/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1089860/4/index.htm |archive-date=December 9, 2008 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>}}

[[Kristien Shaw]], another frequent opponent of King, said,

{{blockquote|For a time, I think I was as close to Billie Jean as anyone ever was. But as soon as I got to the point where I could read her too well, she tried to dissociate the relationship. She doesn't want to risk appearing weak in front of anybody. She told me once that if you want to be the best, you must never let anyone, anyone, know what you really feel. You see, she told me, they can't hurt you if they don't know.<ref name="Mrs. Billie Jean King!" />}}

Concerning the qualities of a champion tennis player, King said,

{{blockquote|The difference between me at my peak and me in the last few years of my career is that when I was the champion I had the ultimate in confidence. When I decided, under pressure ... that I had to go with my very weakest shot – forehand down the line – I was positive that I could pull it off ... when it mattered the most. Even more than that; going into a match, I knew it was my weakest shot, and I knew in a tight spot my opponent was going to dare me to hit it, and I knew I could hit it those two or three or four times in a match when I absolutely had to. ... The cliché is to say that ... champions play the big points better. Yes, but that's only the half of it. The champions play their weaknesses better....<ref>{{cite book |author1=Deford, Frank |author2=King, Billie Jean |title=Billie Jean |publisher=Viking |location=New York City |year=1982 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/96 96–7] |isbn=0-670-47843-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/billiejean00king/page/96 }}</ref>}}

== In popular culture ==
* King's friend [[Elton John]] wrote the song "[[Philadelphia Freedom (song)|Philadelphia Freedom]]" for King. The song was released New Year's Day 1975 and became a US number one hit.<ref name="ITHF biography" />
* [[Charles M. Schulz]], creator of the ''[[Peanuts]]'' comic strip, was an admirer and close friend;<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.biography.com/news/peanuts-charles-schulz-facts|title=10 Facts About Charles Schulz, the Creator of the 'Peanuts' Gang|last=Kanzenberg|first=Corry|date=November 5, 2015|work=Biography.com|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref> Schulz referred to King several times in ''Peanuts'' and used the comic strip to support the women's sports movement after becoming friends with King.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.si.com/peppermint-patty-peanuts-charles-schulz-female-athletes|title=How Peppermint Patty became an advocate for female athletes|last=Kay|first=Stanley|date=August 19, 2016|work=SI.com|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref>
* Actress [[Holly Hunter]] portrayed King in the 2001 ABC television film ''[[When Billie Beat Bobby]]''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2001/tv/reviews/when-billie-beat-bobby-1200467883/|title=When Billie Beat Bobby|last=Oxman|first=Steven|date=April 11, 2001|work=Variety|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref> King played a judge on ''[[Law & Order]]'' in 2007,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0996071/fullcredits|title=Law & Order – Fallout – Full Cast & Crew|website=IMDb|access-date=February 5, 2018}}</ref> and appeared as herself on ''[[The Odd Couple (1970 TV series)|The Odd Couple]]'' in 1973, ''[[The L Word]]'' in 2006, ''[[Ugly Betty]]'' in May 2009, ''[[Fresh Off The Boat]]'' in 2016, and ''[[The Bold Type]]'' in 2020.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/billie-jean-king/credits/223399/|title=Billie Jean King|website=TV Guide|access-date=October 13, 2017}}</ref> 
* King's name appears in the lyrics of the [[Le Tigre]] song "[[Hot Topic (song)|Hot Topic]]."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://slate.com/culture/2019/10/hot-topic-lyrics-le-tigre-who-is.html|title=57 Champions of Queer Feminism, All Name-Dropped in One Impossibly Catchy Song|first=Tammy|last=Oler|date=October 31, 2019|website=Slate Magazine|access-date=December 8, 2020|archive-date=November 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129211533/https://slate.com/culture/2019/10/hot-topic-lyrics-le-tigre-who-is.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* Actress [[Emma Stone]] portrayed King in the 2017 biographical film [[Battle of the Sexes (2017 film)|''Battle of the Sexes'']].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/battle-of-the-sexes-emma-stone-billie-jean-king-1202561572/|title=Emma Stone Imagines a World Where 'Everyone Is Absolutely Equal' at 'Battle of the Sexes' Premiere|last=Sage|first=Alyssa|date=September 17, 2017|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=September 22, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Dargis|first1=Manohla|title=Review: Advantage, Bobby, but Game, Set, Match, Billie Jean in 'Battle of the Sexes'|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/movies/review-battle-of-the-sexes-billie-jean-king-bobby-riggs.html|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=September 21, 2017|access-date=19 February 2020|archive-date=April 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407124412/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/movies/review-battle-of-the-sexes-billie-jean-king-bobby-riggs.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* The [[Ted Tinling]] designed dress King wore for the ''Battle of the Sexes'' match is part of a [[Smithsonian Institution|Smithsonian Museum]] collection.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/how-billie-jean-king-picked-her-outfit-for-the-battle-of-the-sexes-match-89938552/|title=How Billie Jean King Picked Her Outfit for the Battle of the Sexes Match|last=Leibowitz|first=Ed|date=September 2003|work=Smithsonian|access-date=October 9, 2017}}</ref>
* In 2023, King competed in the [[The Masked Singer (American TV series) season 10|tenth season]] of ''[[The Masked Singer (American TV series)|The Masked Singer]]'' as "Royal Hen". She sang "[[Philadelphia Freedom (song)|Philadelphia Freedom]]" and "[[Don't Go Breaking My Heart]]" in an episode that was a tribute to [[Elton John]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/the-masked-singer-season-10-episode-5-recap-billie-jean-king-royal-hen-1235761328/ | title=The Masked Singer reveals identity of the Royal Hen | date=October 19, 2023 | publisher=Variety magazine | accessdate=19 October 2023}}</ref>
* In July 2025, the [[Chicago Shakespeare Theater]] mounted the world premiere of a biographical play by [[Lauren Gunderson]], ''Billie Jean''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-07-25 |title=Review: 'Billie Jean' at Chicago Shakes is a straightforward account of a champion's story |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/25/review-billie-jean-chicago-shakespeare/ |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-09 |title=Billie Jean |url=https://www.chicagoshakes.com/productions/2526-billie-jean/ |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=Chicago Shakespeare Theater |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Billie Jean and [[Larry King (tennis)|Larry King]] were engaged in autumn of 1964 and married in Long Beach, California, on September 17, 1965.<ref name="Higdon, Hal, Plays Tennis Like a Man" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Billie Jean King of Her Family|newspaper=[[Press-Telegram|Long Beach Press-Telegram]]|publisher=[[Digital First Media]]|location=Long Beach, California|date=November 23, 1965|page=C-4}}</ref> Billie Jean credited Larry with introducing her to [[feminism]] and for pushing her to pursue tennis as a career.<ref name=":4" /> Billie Jean later said she "was totally in love with Larry" when they married.<ref name="TimesOnline-20071209" />

By 1968, King realized that she was attracted to women.<ref name="NYTimes-20060426">{{cite news |first=Alessandra |last=Stanley |date=April 26, 2006 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/26/arts/television/26stan.html |title=The Legacy of Billie Jean King, an Athlete Who Demanded Equal Play |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=February 1, 2014 |archive-date=June 23, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150623194019/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/26/arts/television/26stan.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1971, she began an affair with her secretary, Marilyn Barnett (born Marilyn Kathryn McRae on January 28, 1948). Barnett had been living rent-free in the Kings' Malibu house. In 1979, the Kings asked Barnett to leave their house, but she did not want to. Refusing to leave the house, Barnett threatened to leak records and receipts that she had kept over the years. These receipts included letters from Billie Jean to Marilyn, credit card receipts, and paid bills. After a suicide attempt where she jumped off the balcony of the house leaving her a [[Paraplegia|paraplegic]], Barnett sued the Kings in a May 1981 [[palimony]] lawsuit for half their income and the Malibu house where she had been staying. Billie Jean acknowledged the relationship between her and Marilyn shortly afterward, making Billie Jean the first prominent female professional athlete to [[coming out|come out]].<ref name="Ware, S. 2015">Ware, S. (2015). ''Game, set, match: Billie Jean King and the revolution in women's sports''. Chapel Hill: The University Of North Carolina Press.</ref> Feeling she could not admit to the extent of the relationship, Billie Jean publicly called it a fling and a mistake. The lawsuit caused Billie Jean to lose an estimated $2&nbsp;million in endorsements and forced her to prolong her tennis career to pay attorneys.<ref name=":5" />

In December 1981, a court order stipulated that Barnett leave the house and that her threats to publish private correspondence between her and King in exchange for money came close to extortion. Barnett's palimony suit was thrown out of court in November 1982.<ref>{{cite news|title=Billie Jean King wins palimony case |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/11/19/Billie-Jean-King-wins-palimony-case/4584406530000/|date=November 11, 1982|work=UPI}}</ref>  But in a bizarre twist of fate, a few months later in March 1983, the house that had been contested was destroyed during a [[Act of God|series of freak storms]] that lashed the southern California coastline.<ref>{{cite web|title=An angry storm Wednesday smashed historic piers |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/03/02/An-angry-storm-Wednesday-smashed-historic-piers-and-expensive/4291415429200/|date=March 2, 1983|work=UPI}}</ref>

Also in 1971, King had an abortion that was made public in a [[Ms. (magazine)|''Ms.'']] magazine article.<ref name = "NYTimes-20060426"/> Larry had revealed Billie Jean's abortion without consulting her.<ref name = "NYTimes-20060426"/>

Concerning the personal cost of concealing her sexuality for so many years, Billie Jean said:

{{blockquote|I wanted to tell the truth but my parents were homophobic and I was in the closet. As well as that, I had people tell me that if I talked about what I was going through, it would be the end of the women's tour. I couldn't get a closet deep enough. One of my big goals was always to be honest with my parents and I couldn't be for a long time. I tried to bring up the subject but felt I couldn't. My mother would say, "We're not talking about things like that", and I was pretty easily stopped because I was reluctant anyway. I ended up with an eating disorder that came from trying to numb myself from my feelings. I needed to surrender far sooner than I did. At the age of 51, I was finally able to talk about it properly with my parents and no longer did I have to measure my words with them. That was a turning point for me as it meant I didn't have regrets anymore.<ref name = "TimesOnline-20071209" />}}

Billie Jean and Larry remained married through the palimony suit fallout.<ref name=":4" /> Their marriage ended in 1987 after Billie Jean fell in love with her doubles partner, [[Ilana Kloss]].<ref name=":4" /> Billie Jean and Larry nevertheless remained close, and she is the godmother of Larry's son from his subsequent marriage.<ref name=":4" />

On October 18, 2018, King and Kloss were married by former New York City Mayor [[David Dinkins]] in a secret ceremony.<ref>{{Cite book|last=King|first=Billie Jean|title=All In|publisher=Knopf|year=2021|isbn=978-1-101-94733-3|pages=412–413}}</ref> King and her wife Kloss have residences in New York City and Chicago.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.imgspeakers.com/_images/speakers/KingBillieJean.pdf |title=Billie Jean King, Mother of Modern Sports |publisher=Imgspeakers.com |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929080549/http://www.imgspeakers.com/_images/speakers/KingBillieJean.pdf |archive-date=September 29, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |agency=[[Associated Press]]|url=http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_445847.html |title=Evert, Navratilova weigh in on tennis legend Billie Jean King |website=Pittsburghlive.com |date=April 23, 2006 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090422145449/http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_445847.html |archive-date=April 22, 2009 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

It was announced in March 2021 that King would be an advisor to First Women's Bank in Chicago.<ref>{{cite web |title=Billie Jean King Joins First Women's Bank (in organization) in Effort to Close the Gender Gap in Access to Capital |url=https://apnews.com/press-release/pr-newswire/business-financial-services-demographics-billie-jean-king-banking-and-credit-d643f11170d19b391bbcb9700dcf1b50 |website=Assosciated Press |date=March 24, 2021 |access-date=25 March 2021}}</ref>

==Grand Slam statistics==
{{Main|Billie Jean King career statistics}}

=== Grand Slam single finals ===
'''18 finals (12 titles, 6 runners-up)'''
{| class="sortable wikitable"
|-
!Result
!Year
!style="width:180px"|Tournament
!style="width:50px"|Surface
!style="width:200px"|Opponent
!style="width:110px" class="unsortable"|Score
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1963 || style="background:#cfc;"|[[Wimbledon Championships|Wimbledon]] || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Margaret Court]] || 3–6, 4–6
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1965 || style="background:#ccf;"|[[US Open (tennis)|U.S. Championships]] || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} Margaret Court || 6–8, 5–7
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1966 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon || Grass || {{flagicon|BRA|1960}} [[Maria Bueno]] || 6–3, 3–6, 6–1
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1967 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon <small>(2)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Ann Jones (tennis)|Ann Haydon-Jones]] || 6–3, 6–4
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1967 || style="background:#ccf;"|U.S. Championships || Grass || {{flagicon|GBR}} Ann Haydon-Jones || 11–9, 6–4
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1968 || style="background:#ffc;"|[[Australian Open|Australian Championships]] || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} Margaret Court || 6–1, 6–2
|-
| align=center colspan=6|'''↓ Open Era ↓'''
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1968 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon <small>(3)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Judy Tegart-Dalton]] || 9–7, 7–5
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1968 || style="background:#ccf;"|US Open || Grass || {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Virginia Wade]] || 4–6, 2–6
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1969 || style="background:#ffc;"|Australian Open || Grass ||{{flagicon|AUS}} Margaret Court || 4–6, 1–6
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1969 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon || Grass ||{{flagicon|GBR}} Ann Haydon-Jones || 6–3, 3–6, 2–6
|- 
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1970 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon || Grass ||{{flagicon|AUS}} Margaret Court || 12–14, 9–11
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1971 || style="background:#ccf;"|US Open <small>(2)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|USA}} [[Rosemary Casals]] || 6–4, 7–6<sup>(5–2)</sup>
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1972 || style="background:#ebc2af;"|French Open || Clay || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Evonne Goolagong Cawley|Evonne Goolagong]] || 6–3, 6–3
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1972 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon <small>(4)</small> ||Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Evonne Goolagong Cawley|Evonne Goolagong]] || 6–3, 6–3
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1972 || style="background:#ccf;"|US Open <small>(3)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Kerry Melville |Kerry Melville Reid]] || 6–3, 7–5
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1973|| style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon <small>(5)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris Evert]] || 6–0, 7–5
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1974|| style="background:#ccf;"|US Open <small>(4)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Evonne Goolagong Cawley|Evonne Goolagong]] || 3–6, 6–3, 7–5
|- 
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win || 1975 || style="background:#cfc;"|Wimbledon <small>(6)</small> || Grass || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Evonne Goolagong Cawley]] || 6–0, 6–1
|}

===Grand Slam tournament timeline===
{{Performance key|short=yes|active=no}}
{|class=wikitable style=text-align:center;font-size:90%
!Tournament!!'59!!'60!!'61!!'62!!'63!!'64!!'65!!'66!!'67!!'68!!'69!!'70!![[1971 Women's Tennis Circuit|'71]]!![[1972 Women's Tennis Circuit|'72]]!![[1973 WTA Tour|'73]]!![[1974 WTA Tour|'74]]!![[1975 WTA Tour|'75]]!![[1976 WTA Tour|'76]]!![[1977 WTA Tour|'77]]!![[1978 WTA Tour|'78]]!![[1979 WTA Tour|'79]]!![[1980 WTA Tour|'80]]!![[1981 WTA Tour|'81]]!![[1982 WTA Tour|'82]]!![[1983 Virginia Slims World Championship Series|'83]]!![[1984 Virginia Slims World Championship Series|'84]]!!{{Tooltip|SR|Strike rate}}!!{{Tooltip|W–L|Win–loss}}
|-
|  style="text-align:left; background:#efefef;"|[[Australian Open]]
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1965 Australian Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
|A
|A
|bgcolor=lime|[[1968 Australian Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1969 Australian Open – Women's singles|F]]
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A/A
|A
|A
|A
|A
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1982 Australian Open – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1983 Australian Open – Women's singles|2R]]
|A
| style="background:#efefef;"|1 / 5
| style="background:#efefef;"|16–4
|-
|  style="text-align:left; background:#efefef;"|[[French Open]]
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1967 French Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1968 French Open – Women's singles|SF]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1969 French Open – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1970 French Open – Women's singles|QF]]
|A
|bgcolor=lime|[[1972 French Open – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
|A
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1980 French Open – Women's singles|QF]]
|A
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1982 French Open – Women's singles|3R]]
|A
|A
| style="background:#efefef;"|1 / 7
| style="background:#efefef;"|21–6
|-
|  style="text-align:left; background:#efefef;"|[[Wimbledon Championships|Wimbledon]]
|A
|A
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1961 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|2R]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1962 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1963 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|F]]
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1964 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1965 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1966 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1967 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1968 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1969 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|F]]
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1970 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|F]]
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1971 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1972 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1973 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1974 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1975 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|A
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1977 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1978 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1979 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1980 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
|A
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1982 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1983 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles|SF]]
|A
| style="background:#efefef;"|6 / 21
| style="background:#efefef;"|95–15
|-
|  style="text-align:left; background:#efefef;"|[[US Open (tennis)|US Open]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1959 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|1R]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1960 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|3R]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1961 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|2R]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1962 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|1R]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1963 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|4R]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1964 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|QF]]
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1965 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|F]]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1966 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|2R]]
|bgcolor=lime|'''[[1967 U.S. National Championships – Women's singles|W]]'''
| style="background:thistle;"|[[1968 US Open – Women's singles|F]]
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1969 US Open – Women's singles|QF]]
|A
|bgcolor=lime|[[1971 US Open – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1972 US Open – Women's singles|'''W''']]
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1973 US Open – Women's singles|3R]]
|bgcolor=lime|[[1974 US Open – Women's singles|'''W''']]
|A
|A
| style="background:#ffebcd;"|[[1977 US Open – Women's singles|QF]]
|A
| style="background:yellow;"|[[1979 US Open – Women's singles|SF]]
|A
|A
| style="background:#afeeee;"|[[1982 US Open – Women's singles|1R]]
|A
|A
| style="background:#efefef;"|4 / 18
| style="background:#efefef;"|58–14
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|  style="text-align:left; "|SR
|0 / 1
|0 / 1
|0 / 2
|0 / 2
|0 / 2
|0 / 2
|0 / 3
|1 / 2
|2 / 3
|2 / 4
|0 / 4
|0 / 2
|1 / 2
|3 / 3
|1 / 2
|1 / 2
|1 / 1
|0 / 0
|0 / 2
|0 / 1
|0 / 2
|0 / 2
|0 / 0
|0 / 4
|0 / 2
|0 / 0
!12 / 51
!190–39
|}

* Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.

== Records ==
* Most singles matches played in a season (1971): 125.
* Most singles matches won in a season (1971): 112.
* Most doubles titles won in a season (1971): 21.
* Most singles and doubles titles won in a season (1971): 38.
* Most singles and doubles matches won in a season (1971): 192.
* Most doubles matches won in a season (1971): 80.
* Oldest singles title winner on the WTA Tour (Birmingham 1983): 39 years, 7 months.
* President of the WTA

== Books ==
* {{Cite book |last1=King |first1=Billie Jean |last2=Brennan |first2=Christine |year=2008 |title=Pressure Is a Privilege: Lessons I've Learned from Life and the Battle of the Sexes |url=https://archive.org/details/pressureisprivil00king |url-access=registration |location=New York |publisher=LifeTime Media |isbn=978-0-9816368-0-1 |oclc=1036819775}}
* {{Cite book |last1=King |first1=Billie Jean |last2=Howard |first2=Johnette |first3=Maryanne |last3=Vollers |author-mask=2 |year=2021 |title=All In: An Autobiography |location=New York |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |isbn=978-1-101-94733-3}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Tennis|Sports}}
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[All-time tennis records – women's singles]]
* [[Billie Jean King Leadership Initiative]]
* [[Homosexuality in sports in the United States]]
* [[List of French Open mixed doubles champions]]
* [[List of French Open women's doubles champions]]
* [[List of French Open women's singles champions]]
* [[List of Grand Slam women's singles champions]]
* [[List of Open Era tennis records]]
* [[List of US Open mixed doubles champions]]
* [[List of US Open women's doubles champions]]
* [[List of US Open women's singles champions]]
* [[List of Wimbledon ladies' doubles champions]]
* [[List of Wimbledon ladies' singles champions]]
* [[List of Wimbledon mixed doubles champions]]
* [[Open Era tennis records – women's singles]]
* [[WTA Tour records]]
{{div col end}}

== Explanatory notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book | author=Fein, Paul |title=You Can Quote Me on That: Greatest Tennis Quips, Insights and Zingers |publisher=Potomac Books |location=Washington, D.C. |year=2005 |isbn=1-57488-925-7 }}
* Jones, Ann, ''A Game of Love'', 1971
* Overman, Steven J. and K. B. Sagert, ''Icons of Women's Sport''. Greenwood Press, 2012, Vol. 1.
* {{cite book |author=Roberts, Selena |title=A Necessary Spectacle: Billie Jean King, Bobby Riggs, and the Tennis Match That Leveled the Game |publisher=Crown |location=New York |year=2005 |isbn=1-4000-5146-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/necessaryspectac00robe }}
* Ware, Susan (2011). ''Game, Set, Match: Billie Jean King and the Revolution in Women's Sports''. University of North Carolina Press. Combines biography and history in a study of the tennis player, liberal feminism, and Title IX.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Billie Jean King}}
* {{Official website|http://www.billiejeanking.com}}
* {{WTA}}
* {{BJK Cup player|new_id=ea47721f-e0f6-4c3b-bca6-3aa0715a5861|id=800173891}}
* {{Tennis Hall of Fame}}
* [http://dlib.nyu.edu/findingaids/html/nyhs/ms3147_billie_jean_king/ Billie Jean King Collection] at the [[New-York Historical Society]]
* {{IMDb name|id=0973361|name=Billie Jean King}}
* {{C-SPAN|84125}}

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{{navboxes top|title=Billie Jean King in the [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam tournaments]]}}
{{Women's tennis players who won two or more Grand Slam singles titles in one calendar year}}
{{Australian Championships women's singles champions}}
{{French Open women's singles champions}}
{{Wimbledon women's singles champions}}
{{US Open women's singles champions}}
{{French Open women's doubles champions}}
{{Wimbledon women's doubles champions}}
{{US Open women's doubles champions}}
{{Australian Championships mixed doubles champions}}
{{French Open mixed doubles champions}}
{{Wimbledon mixed doubles champions}}
{{U.S. National Championships mixed doubles champions}}
{{Tennis Career Grand Slam Champions}}
{{navboxes bottom}}
{{WTA Year-end championships winners doubles}}
{{Women's Sports Foundation}}
{{SI Sportsman of the Year}}
{{Time Persons of the Year 1951–1975}}
{{National Women's Hall of Fame}}
{{Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year navbox}}
{{Arthur Ashe Courage}}
{{Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame}}
{{VH1 Trailblazer Honors}}
{{NCAA Gerald R. Ford Award}}
{{BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award}}
{{International Tennis Hall of Fame members}}
{{Angel City FC}}
{{Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award}}
{{navboxes bottom}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Billie Jean}}
[[Category:Billie Jean King| ]]
[[Category:1943 births]]
[[Category:American female tennis players]]
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[[Category:Methodists from California]]
[[Category:Angel City FC owners]]<!--Current speedy CFR request to move to "Angel City FC owners"-->
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[[Category:Wimbledon champions]] <!-- Open Era -->
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[[Category:21st-century American LGBTQ people]]
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