Just days into the women’s US Open, players are carving out their tournament signatures, from impressive drop shots down to the perfect failproof hairstyle. After all, a lengthy braid or textured top knot that stays put while hitting 100 mph serves is key—but for those considering which aesthetic to take them from the first backhand to the very last return this season, we suggest borrowing inspiration from the pigtailed champions of the past.
Easily dismissed, the casual coif gave a competitive edge to some of the sport’s biggest names. It first emerged among top tennis players in the late forties, when Rhode Island–native Beverly Baker Fleitz divided her short curls into two even sections and tied each with a bow, allowing her to look calm and carefree while remaining sharply focused on defeating her opponent. Meanwhile, Gussie Moran, the Santa Monica–raised renegade who raised eyebrows by layering lacey shorts under her tennis skirt, chose to fasten her twin hanks of curled hair with yards of looped ribbon as she rose to become one of the era’s top seeded players.
By 1971, when six-time US Open champion Chris Evert made her tournament debut, the Floridian was known to put a braided spin on the classic look. But the players most often associated with the style are Tracy Austin and Andrea Jaeger. Austin, a Palos Verdes–born prodigy who took home the US Open Championship Trophy in 1979 and 1981, embraced her youthful appearance with mirrored voluminous tufts of bronde. Andrea Jaeger paid homage to her sunshine state roots with towheaded stick-straight pigtails that, upon catching the breeze, dramatized each hit like a pair of animated motion lines. Here, five great arguments for the return of the tennis pigtail.
The post #TBT: Where Have All the Pigtails Gone? Remembering Tennis’s Favorite Hair Look appeared first on Vogue.
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