Serena Williams pays tribute to Billie Jean King after winning Family Circle Cup tournament

It’s nice to see Serena Williams, easily the best player of her generation, giving a full effort in a tennis tournament that isn’t one of the sport’s four majors.

She won the Family Circle Cup earlier today over Lucie Safarova 6-0, 6-1.

Williams also was happy to honor the 40th anniversary of the Family Circle tournament and the legacy of women’s tennis. The tournament named its stadium court for tennis great and pioneer Billie Jean King, who was on court during Williams’ trophy ceremony.

King and members of the Original 9 players, who defied the tennis establishment to form the first women’s tour and fight for better prize money, were given a well-deserved salute.

“I want to thank, Billie,” Williams said. “Without her, I don’t know if any of us would be here.”

With her 40th title, Williams moved one away from Kim Clijsters among active players on the career list. Venus Williams leads with 43 championships.

Williams earned $115,000 for the victory, a far cry from the first Family Circle in 1973 — won by Rosie Casals (pictured with King) — that offered a then-unheard of $100,000 in total prize money.

King and eight other players broke away from the tennis establishment in 1970, eventually leading to the Women’s Tennis Association and an era where female athletes could demand equal pay and conditions on the courts. The “Original 9” were reunited for just the second time over the weekend.

“I get all the kudos, but the eight players here did just as much or sometimes more,” King said.

They all signed $1 contracts in 1970 with the publisher of World Tennis Magazine, Gladys Heldman, to begin a series of women’s professional tournaments.

“We had no idea that this little dollar would turn into millions,” Casals said Saturday.

The WTA tour was formed in 1973, and now players travel to countries around the world and benefit from millions in prize money.

King recalled going to Heldman’s home regularly to discuss what would come next.

The group — King, Casals, Nancy Richey, Kerry Melville, Peaches Bartkowicz, Kristy Pigeon, Judy Dalton, Valerie Ziegenfuss and Julie Heldman — stepped out on a limb, King said, by signing the contracts. (They are pictured then, and now!)

King said officials of what is now the USTA called her, asking not to form the women’s tour. There were threats of bans from Grand Slam events.

“It was a very difficult time,” King said. “But we figured it out.”