Word: semi
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Dates: during 1950-1959
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...damned him "below Judas," he tried three times to kill himself. Two years later, with his obsession relieved but not gone, he banished himself for life to the country. For the next 35 years, at a succession of small houses in the country north of London, he lived in semi-seclusion, an "odd scrambling fellow" in a bright blue coat who pottered amiably about-now mending a bench, now gathering eggs in the hedge-bottoms, now scribbling at a taboret in the greenery...
Bachelor's Degree. There, his dogged fighting qualities, his persistence and determination, and growing control over his hard hitting paid off. He beat Harry Likas and Vic Seixas (a higher ranked player) in the early rounds. In the semi-final and final matches (against Earl Cochell and Ed Moylan), Savitt dropped the first two sets, and was on the verge of defeat. He won both matches. That worked wonders with his game, and with his belief in himself. It was, in a sense, his bachelor's degree in tennis...
...three ensuing months in Australia gave him a fine postgraduate course. In the Australian championship, after beating wily Veteran John Bromwich in the quarterfinals, Savitt faced two-time Champion Sedgman in the semi-final bracket. The match went to five sets, and in the fifth, Sedgman spurted to a 4-2 lead. Savitt, always tense when he's ahead, simply relaxed and began hitting winners, won four straight games and the match. In the final, against rangy Ken McGregor, "I felt that nothing could stop me." McGregor couldn't. Dick won handily...
...layoff brought his game back to its peak. Dick whipped U.S. Champion Larsen (6-1, 6-4, 6-4) in the quarterfinals. But his big test did not come until his semi-final match with dogged Herb Flam, another fighter and a player who relies on agility and retrieving rather than power. In twelve meetings, Savitt had never beaten Flam. When Flam won the first set, 6-1, it looked like the same old story. The second set was a backbreaker, 15-13, and Savitt won it after trailing 1-5. After that it was easy...
...proved to be an odd-looking, straight-stocked, semi-automatic (i.e., one shot for each trigger pull), weighing 8 Ibs. and equipped with an optical sight. On the firing range it seemed fairly impressive: it rattled off 84 rounds per minute, ripped steel helmets at 600 yards and punched through 46 inches of planking at 100 yards. The .280 has a 20-round clip; the .30-cal. U.S. Garand only an 8-round clip. But the .280 has less punch and less range than the heftier Garand or the Russian Tokarev (caliber .299994) rifle-and given the new Garand...