Zenda Liess

Liess competed as a junior in Florida, where she attended Spruce Creek High School.[1] She won back to back Orange Bowl titles for the 16s and Under in 1973 and 1974.[2]

As a 16-year old she was a quarter-finalist at the 1976 US Open, one of few occasions the tournament had been played on clay, a surface Liess was strong on.[3]

In 1977 she won the state championships while at Spruce Creek, then upon graduating played on the professional circuit for three years.[3]

She made the US Open third round in both 1977 and 1978, but could not repeat her earlier success.

On the WTA Tour her best performance was a semi-final appearance at the 1978 Rothmans Canadian Open.[4]

Liess ran a hotdog stand with first husband Byron on Daytona Beach for 10 years.[3]

With a master's degree in accounting from the University of Florida, Liess eventually settled in Greensboro, North Carolina, where she still lives.[3]

Only working as an accountant for a short period of time, she instead became a pilot with Atlantic Southeast Airlines. In 1998 she became a designated pilot examiner. Her second husband, Pat, was once her flight instructor.[3]