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{{for|other radio stations that have held the WBBO call sign|WBBO (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox Tennis player
{{Infobox radio station
|playername= Jimmy Connors
| name = WBBO
|country = {{USA}}
| logo = B985newlogo2010.png
|residence= [[East St. Louis, Illinois|East St. Louis]], [[Illinois]]
| logo_size = 200px
|datebirth= [[2 September]], [[1952]]
| city = [[Ocean Acres, New Jersey]]
|placebirth= [[East St. Louis, Illinois|East St. Louis]], [[Illinois]]
| area = [[Ocean County, New Jersey|Ocean]], [[Burlington County, New Jersey|Burlington]] County, New Jersey
|height= 177 cm (5 ft 10 in)
| branding = B98.5
|weight= 70 kg (155 lb)
| frequency = 98.5 [[MHz]]
|debut=[[1970]]
| airdate = March 10, [[1993 in radio|1993]]
|turnedpro= [[1972]], international debut in 1970
| format = [[Contemporary Hit Radio|Top 40 (CHR)]]
|retired= [[1996]]
| erp = 3,400 [[watt]]s
|plays= Left; Two-handed backhand
| haat = 136 meters
|careerprizemoney= $8,641,040
| class = A
|singlesrecord= 1222 - 269
| facility_id = 59495
|singlestitles= 120 including 105 listed by the ATP
| coordinates = {{coord|39|42|56|N|74|17|32|W}}
|highestsinglesranking= 1 ([[29 July]], [[1974]])
| callsign_meaning =
|AustralianOpenresult= '''W''' (1974)
| former_callsigns = WQNJ (1990–1997)<br>WBBO (1997–July 5, 2006)<br>WKOE ( July 5,-24 2006)<br>WKMK ( July 24, 2006– September 15, 2010)<br>WHTG-FM (September 15,–December 8, 2010)<ref>http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=59495&Callsign=WBBO FCC Call Sign History</ref>
|FrenchOpenresult= SF (1979-80, 1984-85)
| affiliations =
|Wimbledonresult= '''W''' (1974, 1982)
| owner = [[Press Communications]], LLC
|USOpenresult= '''W''' (1974, 1976, 1978, 1982–1983)
| licensee =
|doublesrecord= 173 - 78
| sister_stations = [[WHTG (AM)|WHTG]], [[WKMK|WKMK/WTHJ]], [[WWZY|WWZY/WBHX]]
|doublestitles= 15
| webcast = {{listenlive|https://www.b985radio.com}}
|highestdoublesranking= 370 ([[1 March]], [[1993]])
| website = [https://www.b985radio.com/ b985radio.com]
|updated= July 25, 2006
| licensing_authority= [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]]
}}
}}


'''WBBO''' (98.5 [[FM broadcasting|FM]], "B98-5") is a [[radio station]] broadcasting a [[Contemporary Hit Radio]] format. Licensed to [[Ocean Acres, New Jersey]], it serves [[Ocean County, New Jersey|Ocean]] & [[Burlington County, New Jersey|Burlington]] counties in New Jersey. It first Sign-on On March 10, 1993. [[1993 in radio|1993]] under the [[callsign (radio)|call sign]] '''WQNJ''', but more recently operated under WKMK. The station is currently owned by Press Communications.<ref>http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?call=WKMK FCC FM Query</ref>
== DOGHOUSE WHAAAAAAAAAAAT ==
'''James Scott ("Jimmy") Connors''' (born [[September 2]], [[1952]] in [[East St. Louis, Illinois]]) is a former [[United States|American]] [[tennis]] champion who was the [[List of ATP number 1 ranked players|world number one]] player for 160 consecutive weeks from July [[1974]] to August [[1977]]. He was also the World No. 1 player an additional 8 times during his career. He won eight [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] singles titles and two Grand Slam doubles titles. He is often considered to be one of the top male tennis players of all time. Currently, he is coaching American tennis player [[Andy Roddick]].


==Career==
==Coverage Area==
98.5's signal blankets [[Ocean County, New Jersey|Ocean]] and [[Burlington County, New Jersey|Burlington]] in New Jersey as well as the New Jersey suburbs of [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]]. The station can be heard from [[Atlantic City, New Jersey|Atlantic City]] to the South, [[Belmar, New Jersey|Belmar]] to the North, and [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]] to the West.


The WBBO antenna is co-located with [[WVBH (FM)|WVBH]] and [[W265CS]] on a tower located near the intersection of [[New Jersey Route 72|Route 72]] and the [[Garden State Parkway]] in [[Manahawkin, New Jersey|Manahawkin]].
In [[1970]], Connors played his first international matches and recorded his first significant victory in the first round of the Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles, defeating [[Roy Emerson]].


==Early history==
In [[1971]], Connors won the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] singles title while attending the [[University of California, Los Angeles]]. He also won his first international tournament in [[Jacksonville, Florida]] as an amateur. He turned professional in [[1972]] and won the Jacksonville tournament again.
98.5 was granted the '''WQNJ''' calls on February 7, 1990. Even before this station hit the air, it had extensive coverage in the local newspapers, because it was to be the first commercial station to hit the air in Ocean County since WJRZ signed on in 1976. FM 98.5 was originally owned by Seaira, Inc., a local company that was headed by Pat Parson, a former WCBS/880 news anchor from 1970 to 1990 and a former alumnus of WERA in [[Plainfield, New Jersey|Planfield]].


Parson originally planned 98.5 to be a live and local Smooth Jazz station, using the slogan "Cloud Nine," with an original sign-on date of Spring 1991. However, that sign-on date changed many times, due mostly because of antenna clearances that had to be taken care of prior to signing on. In late 1992, with Seaira not having enough financial backing to sign on themselves with a local format, 98.5 entered into an agreement with D&K Broadcasting (the owners of WJLK at the time.)
Connors's competitiveness on court quickly made him stand out. He refused to accept that he was beaten and gave everything on every point of every game, no matter how apparently hopeless the cause. He also was not averse to playing to the crowd (he once remarked that "I want to bring the crowd into the match: in short, turn it into a football game") or abusing his opponent or the umpire&mdash;anything he could think of to give himself an edge. His brash behaviour both on and off court earned him a reputation as the brat of the tennis world. He acquired the nickname of the "Brash Basher of [[Belleville, Illinois|Belleville]]" (after the [[St. Louis, Missouri|St Louis]] suburb where he grew up). His high-profile romance with fellow teen tennis prodigy [[Chris Evert]] in the early years of his career also helped to keep him in the headlines.


On February 11, 1993, WQNJ began on-air testing and on March 10, 1993, officially signed on with a simulcast of 94.3 WJLK. It was pretty much a 100% simulcast, with the exception of local commercial cut-ins and on weekday mornings at 6, 7, 8 and 9 o’clock, Pat Parson would do a 5-minute newscast.
Connors also acquired a reputation as a [[wiktionary:maverick|maverick]] in 1972 when he refused to join the newly formed [[Association of Tennis Professionals]] (ATP), the union that was embraced by most male professional players. He avoided the mainstream of professional tennis to play in, and dominate, a series of smaller tournaments organized by [[Bill Riordan]], his manager and a promoter.
This basic format lasted until 1996 when it was announced that Nassau Broadcasting had purchased the station (and others in the Jersey Shore area.)


==B98.5==
In [[1974]], Connors and Riordan began filing lawsuits, eventually amounting to U.S. $10 million, against the ATP and its president [[Arthur Ashe]] for allegedly restricting Connors' freedom in the game. It started when Connors was banned from the [[French Open]] in 1974 after he had signed a contract to play [[World Team Tennis]] (WTT) for [[Baltimore]]. The ATP and the [[French Tennis Federation]] opposed WTT because it conflicted with the French Open; therefore, all entries to the French Open from WTT players were refused.
[[File:Wbbologo.jpg|thumb|left|The original B98.5 logo]]
Pat Parson's newscasts were soon discontinued. The simulcast continued with WJLK until Memorial Day weekend in 1997 when Nassau launched "B-98.5 – The Jersey Shore's Hit Music Station."
The first song played on "B-98.5" was the [[Spice Girls]] "Wannabe".
On July 11, 1997, the calls were changed to WBBO.


In 2001, Nassau sold WBBO (along with [[WOBM-FM]] and WJLK) to Millennium Radio Group. in march of 2002 WCHR 105.7 simulcast was on the air but on April 15, 2002 105.7 WCHR ends it Simulcast and WCHR changes it format to Classic Rock. In April 2003, it was announced that Millennium was selling WBBO to Press Communications, who ironically enough, was the original applicant for 98.5 in the late 1980s. In August 2004, Press officially took over WBBO.
The French Open was the only Grand Slam tournament that Connors did not win in 1974. He won the [[Australian Open]], defeating [[Phil Dent]] in four sets in the final. Connors then beat [[Ken Rosewall]] in straight sets in the finals of both [[Wimbledon Championships|Wimbledon]] and the [[US Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]]. Therefore, his exclusion from the French Open possibly prevented him from becoming the first male player since [[Rod Laver]] to win all four Grand Slam singles titles in one year. Though he reached the semifinals on four occasions, Connors never won the French Open.


===Alumni===
Connors reached the World No. 1 ranking in July 1974 and held it for 160 straight weeks. Over the course of his career, he held the World No. 1 ranking for a total of 268 weeks.
Original Staff * Neil Sullivan, Program Director 1997–1999 * Fox Feltman (aka. Alan Fox), Assistant Program Director/Music Director, Afternoons 1997–1999 * Jessica Taylor, Midday host, 1999 * Andy Chase, Promotions and Swing jock 1997–2003, morning host 2003–2004 * Mike and Diane, Mornings 1998–1999 * JC, then Scotty Valentino Nights 1997–1999 * Ed Bishop, Imaging Director * General Manager Don Dalesio 1997–2002; 2016–2019


==G Rock Radio==
In [[1975]], Connors was the runner-up in the three Grand Slam singles tournaments he had won the year before. The 1975 Wimbledon final was a duel between lawsuit opponents, as Connors lost to Ashe in what most consider to have been a great upset. Shortly thereafter, Connors dropped the lawsuits and parted with Riordan.
On February 18, 2005, 98.5 started simulcasting sister station WHTG-FM "G-106.3" from [[Eatontown, New Jersey|Eatontown]] and became [[GRock Radio]]. On July 5, 2006, 98.5 changed calls to WKOE as part of a switch with new move-in 106.5 in Bass River Township. WKOE was formerly located at 106.3 in [[Ocean City, New Jersey|Ocean City]] On July 24, 2006 at midnight, the simulcast on 98.5 ceased.


==Real Jersey Kountry K98.5==
That year, Connors won two highly touted "Challenge Matches," both arranged by Riordan and televised nationally by CBS Sports from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The first match, in February, was against [[Rod Laver]], fourteen years Connors' senior at age 36. Connors won that match, billed as a U.S. $100,000 winner-take-all, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. In April, Connors played the man who had beaten him in the Australian Open final, John Newcombe, in a match billed as a U.S. $250,000 winner-take-all. Connors won the match in four sets.
[[Image:k985logo.jpg|200px|thumb|WKMK logo from 2006 to 2009]]
Later on July 24, 2006, after "stunting" with playing The Eagles "New Kid In Town" over and over for 12 hours, 98.5 debuted as "K-98.5: Real Jersey Kountry" and new call letters of WKOE, were assigned at 10&nbsp;a.m. that day (switching from WBBO which had been re-instated). The WKOE call letters were quickly replaced with WKMK to avoid a legal situation after it was noted that using WKOE on a country formatted station violated a usage agreement that Press Broadcasting signed regarding the WKOE calls.
The first song played was Alan Jackson's "Gone Country." Past staffers of K98.5 include Jim Radler, Leeann Taylor and Brian Moore.


==Ocean County's Country Thunder 98.5==
In [[1976]], Connors met [[Björn Borg]], the new Wimbledon champion, in the final of the U.S. Open, which was now being played on clay. Connors saved four set points in a third-set tiebreak to beat the Swede 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(9), 6-4. Connors finished 1976 as the top ranked player for the third consecutive year.
[[File:WKMK logo.png|thumb|200px|WKMK logo from February 16, 2009 until September 12, 2010]]
On February 16, 2009, "K98.5" under the direction of longtime Country Music PD Captain Jack Aponte, switched its name to "Thunder 98.5". Along with the name change, Captain Jack changed the station's format to an edgier "Rockin Country" sound, playing some classic southern rock along with country music; similar southern rock/country "hybrid" formats were used unsuccessfully on various U.S. country outlets in the 1990s, most even used the same "Thunder Country" moniker also.


==B 98.5 returns==
In early [[1977]], Connors won his first [[World Championship Tennis]] (WCT) Finals, the championship tournament of the WCT tour.
The station swapped its "Thunder" country format with co-owned WHTG and WBBO on September 15, 2010 at 3:00&nbsp;p.m.<ref name="app">{{cite web|url=http://www.app.com/article/20100908/BUSINESS/100908074/Monmouth-radio-station-106-3-FM-changes-to-country-music|publisher=app.com|title=Monmouth radio station 106.3 FM changes to country music," Asbury Park Press, September 8, 2010 |access-date=2017-03-12}}</ref> At that time, the station resumed its former identity of "B 98.5", and at that time also swapped call signals, assuming the WHTG-FM identity long associated with 106.3 FM in Eatontown, which became WKMK at that time. some of the staff were a carry-over from [[WKMK#Hit 106|Hit 106]]. In the weeks leading up to the station change, commercials continuously announced "Hit 106 is moving down the dial". On December 8, 2010, 98.5 Went back to The WBBO Calls.


Despite his success, Connors remained an independent character. At Wimbledon in 1977, he refused to participate in a parade of former champions to celebrate the tournament's centenary and was booed when he played in the final the following day. He lost in five sets to Borg, who a month later was able briefly to interrupt Connors' long hold on the #1 ranking. Connors then lost in the final of the U.S. Open to [[Guillermo Vilas]].


==Airstaff==
Having irritated sponsors and tennis officials by shunning the end-of-year [[Tennis Masters Cup|Masters]] championships for the previous three years, Connors entered the competition for the first time in January 1978. In the round-robin portion of the tournament, which had just moved to [[New York City]], Connors lost a celebrated late-night match to Vilas 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 but took the title by defeating Borg in the final 6-4, 1-6, 6-4.
The current lineup (as of October 30, 2024) is as follows


'''[https://instagram.com/b985morningshow B98.5 Morning Show] (6–10 am):''' TJ Mateo & [https://lenoreluca.com Lenore (Lenny) Luca]
Borg beat Connors comfortably in the [[1978]] Wimbledon final, but Connors defeated the Swede 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 in the final of the 1978 U.S. Open, which was held for the first time at the [[Flushing Meadows]] venue. By winning the first Grand Slam tournament ever held on hard courts, Connors became the first male tennis player to have won Grand Slam singles titles on three different surfaces: grass (1974), clay (1976), and hard court (1978).


'''Middays (10 am – 2pm):''' Liv Rescigno
Connors lost his stranglehold on the #1 ranking to Borg in early [[1979]]. He returned to the French Open in May, losing in a semifinal. He also lost in the semifinals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, repeating those results in [[1980]] and [[1981]]. His best win during these years was in 1980, when he took his second WCT Finals by defeating the defending champion, [[John McEnroe]].


'''Afternoon (2–6 pm)''': Rashaud Thomas
In [[1982]] at age 30, Connors was back in the Wimbledon singles final, where he faced McEnroe, who by then was established firmly as the world's top player. Connors recovered from being three points away from defeat in a fourth set tiebreak to win the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4 and claim his second Wimbledon title, eight years after his first.


'''Nights (6 pm-midnight):''' E
Connors then defeated another of the next generation of tennis stars, [[Ivan Lendl]], in the U.S. Open final and soon regained the #1 ranking. He beat Lendl again in the [[1983]] U.S. Open final.


'''Program Director/Music Director:''' Rashaud Thomas
Connors' last Grand Slam final came at Wimbledon in [[1984]], where he again faced McEnroe. This time, McEnroe won easily 6-1, 6-1, 6-2. Though beaten, Connors' competitive fire was certainly not dampened. Asked afterwards if he now admitted his rival was the better player, he simply replied, "Never."


==References==
A low point in Connors' career occurred on [[February 21]], [[1986]], when he was defaulted in the fifth set of a semifinal match against Lendl at the Lipton International Players Championships in Boca Raton, Florida after being angered by the officiating. He paid a U.S. $20,000 fine and accepted a 10-week suspension from the professional tour, starting March 30. He was forced to miss the French Open, marking the first time that any player had missed a Grand Slam tournament due to suspension. He subsequently lost in the first round at Wimbledon and the third round at the U.S. Open, a tournament where he had made at least the semifinals for twelve consecutive years.
{{Reflist}}

Connors gradually transformed himself into a respected elder of the tennis world in the later years of his career. He continued to compete forcefully against much younger men until he was well into his 41st year.

In the fourth round of the [[1987]] Wimbledon, Connors defeated [[Mikael Pernfors]], ten years his junior, 1-6, 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-2 after having fallen behind 1-6, 1-6, 1-4 and again 0-3 in the fourth set.

In [[July 1988]], Connors ended a four-year title drought by winning the Sovran Bank Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C. It was the 106th title of his career. Connors had played in 56 tournaments and 12 finals since his previous victory in the Tokyo Indoors against Lendl in October 1984.

At the [[1989]] U.S. Open, Connors defeated the third seed, [[Stefan Edberg]], in straight sets in the fourth round and pushed sixth-seeded [[Andre Agassi]] to five sets in a quarterfinal.

The defining moment of Connors' later career came in [[1991]]. His career had seemed to be at an end in [[1990]], when he played only three tournament matches (and lost all three), dropping to No. 936 in the world rankings. But after surgery on his deteriorating left wrist, he came back to play 14 tournaments in 1991. An ailing back forced him to retire from a five-set match in the third round of the French Open against [[Michael Chang]], the 1989 champion. But Connors made an improbable run to the U.S. Open semifinals at the age of 39. On his birthday, he defeated 24-year-old [[Aaron Krickstein]] 3-6, 7-6(8), 1-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) in 4 hours and 41 minutes, coming back from a 2-5 deficit in the final set. Connors was then defeated in a semifinal by the reigning French Open champion, [[Jim Courier]].

During his career, Connors won a record 109 men's singles titles. He also won 15 doubles titles (including the men's doubles titles at Wimbledon in [[1973]] and the U.S. Open in 1975).

In his 1979 autobiography, [[Jack Kramer (tennis player)|Jack Kramer]], the long-time tennis promoter and great player himself, ranks Connors as one of the 21 best players of all time.<ref> Kramer considered the best player ever to have been either [[Don Budge]] (for consistent play) or [[Ellsworth Vines]] (at the height of his game). The next four best were, chronologically, [[Bill Tilden]], [[Fred Perry]], [[Bobby Riggs]], and [[Pancho Gonzales]]. After these six came the "second echelon" of [[Rod Laver]], [[Lew Hoad]], [[Ken Rosewall]], [[Gottfried von Cramm]], [[Ted Schroeder]], [[Jack Crawford (tennis player)|Jack Crawford]], [[Pancho Segura]], [[Frank Sedgman]], [[Tony Trabert]], [[John Newcombe]], [[Arthur Ashe]], [[Stan Smith]], [[Björn Borg]], and [[Jimmy Connors]]. He felt unable to rank [[Henri Cochet]] and [[René Lacoste]] accurately but felt they were among the very best.</ref> Connors was inducted into the [[International Tennis Hall of Fame]] in [[Newport, Rhode Island]] in [[1998]] and has his own star on the [[St. Louis Walk of Fame]].

On July 24, 2006, at the start of the Countrywide Classic tournament in [[Los Angeles]], American tennis player [[Andy Roddick]] formally announced his partnership with Connors as his coach.

==Personal life==

Connors and [[Chris Evert]] had planned to marry in October 1974, but it was called off.

In 1980, Connors married model [[Patti McGuire]]. They have two children and live in the [[Santa Barbara, California]] area.

In the spring of 2006, Connors had successful hip replacement surgery at [[Cedars-Sinai Medical Center]] in Los Angeles. [http://www.jimmysnewhip.com/JimmyConnors/JimmysHip.asp]

On [[January 8]], [[2007]], the mother and longtime coach of Connors died at the age of 82. [http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2007/01/14/ap/sports/tennis/d8mi6nv01.txt]

==Notes==
<references/>

==Grand Slam singles finals==
===Wins (8)===
{|
|-
|width="50"|'''Year
|width="175"|'''Championship
|width="175"|'''Opponent in Final
|width="150"|'''Score in Final
|-bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
|[[1974]] || [[Australian Open]] || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Phil Dent]] || 7-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
|1974 || [[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]] || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Ken Rosewall]] || 6-1, 6-1, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
|1974 || [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]] || {{flagicon|AUS}} Ken Rosewall || 6-1, 6-0, 6-1
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
|[[1976]] || U.S. Open <small>(2) || {{flagicon|SWE}} [[Björn Borg]] || 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
|[[1978]] || U.S. Open <small>(3) || {{flagicon|SWE}} Björn Borg || 6-4, 6-2, 6-2
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
|[[1982]] || Wimbledon <small>(2) || {{flagicon|USA}} [[John McEnroe]] || 3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
|1982 || U.S. Open <small>(4) || {{flagicon|TCH}} [[Ivan Lendl]] || 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
|[[1983]] || U.S. Open <small>(5) || {{flagicon|TCH}} Ivan Lendl || 6-3, 6-7, 7-5, 6-0
|}

===Runner-ups (7)===
{|
|-
|width="50"|'''Year
|width="175"|'''Championship
|width="175"|'''Opponent in Final
|width="150"|'''Score in Final
|-bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| [[1975]] || [[Australian Open]] || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[John Newcombe]] || 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
| 1975 || [[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]] || {{flagicon|USA}} [[Arthur Ashe]] || 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
| 1975 || [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]] || {{flagicon|ESP}} [[Manuel Orantes]] || 6-4, 6-3, 6-3
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
| [[1977]] || Wimbledon <small>(2) || {{flagicon|SWE}} [[Björn Borg]] || 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4
|-bgcolor="#FFFFCC"
| 1977 || U.S. Open <small>(2) || {{flagicon|ARG}} [[Guillermo Vilas]] || 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-0
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
| [[1978]] || Wimbledon <small>(3) || {{flagicon|SWE}} Björn Borg || 6-2, 6-2, 6-3
|-bgcolor="#CCFFCC"
| [[1984]] || Wimbledon <small>(4) || {{flagicon|USA}} [[John McEnroe]] || 6-1, 6-1, 6-2
|}

==Grand Slam results==

*[[Australian Open]]
**'''Singles champion: 1974'''
**Singles runner-up: 1975

*[[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]]
**'''Singles champion: 1974, 1982'''
**Singles runner-up: 1975, 1977, 1978, 1984
**'''Men's Doubles champion: 1973'''

*[[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]]
**'''Singles champion: 1974, 1976, 1978, 1982, 1983'''
**Singles runner-up: 1975, 1977
**'''Men's Doubles champion: 1975'''

==Singles record==

*'''1222-269''' (record of ATP events Singles wins) #1 most all-time in ATP Wins

==Career singles titles (120) and runner-ups (54)==

=== Singles titles listed by the Association of Tennis Professionals (105) ===

*[[1972]]: Queens, Columbus, [[Cincinnati Masters|Cincinnati]], Albany, Jacksonville* (5)
*[[1973]]: Baltimore, Roanoke, Salt Lake City, Salisbury, Hampton, Paramus, Boston, Columbus, Los Angeles, Quebec, Johannesburg (11)
*[[1974]]: [[Australian Open]], Roanoke, Little Rock, Birmingham, Salisbury, Hampton, Salt Lake City, Tempe, [[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]], Indianapolis, [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]], Los Angeles, London, Johannesburg (14)
*[[1975]]: Bahamas, Birmingham, Salisbury, Boca Raton, Hampton, Denver World Championship Tennis (WCT), North Conway, Bermuda, Maui (9)
*[[1976]]: Birmingham, Philadelphia WCT, Hampton, Palm Springs, Denver WCT, Las Vegas, Washington, North Conway, Indianapolis, '''U.S. Open''', Cologne, Wembley (12)
*[[1977]]: Birmingham WCT, St. Louis WCT, Las Vegas, Dallas WCT, Maui, Sydney Indoor, [[Tennis Masters Cup|Masters]] (7)
*[[1978]]: Philadelphia WCT, Denver, Memphis, [[ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament|Rotterdam WCT]], Birmingham, Washington, Indianapolis, Stowe, '''U.S. Open''', Sydney Indoor (10)
*[[1979]]: Birmingham, Philadelphia, Memphis, Tulsa, Indianapolis, Stowe, Hong Kong (7)
*[[1980]]: Birmingham, Philadelphia, Dallas WCT, North Conway, Republic Of China, Tokyo Indoor (6)
*[[1981]]: La Quinta, Brussels, Rotterdam, Wembley (4)
*[[1982]]: Monterrey, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Queens, '''Wimbledon''', Columbus, '''U.S. Open''' (7)
*[[1983]]: Memphis, Las Vegas, Queens, '''U.S. Open''' (4)
*[[1984]]: Memphis, La Quinta, Boca West, Los Angeles, Tokyo Indoor (5)
*[[1988]]: Washington, Toulouse (2)
*[[1989]]: Toulouse, Tel Aviv (2)

''*Note: The [[Association of Tennis Professionals]] website wrongly dates the 1972 Jacksonville tournament as having occurred in 1973.''

=== Other singles titles, including invitational tournament titles (15) ===

Here are Connors's tournament titles that are not included in the statistics on the [[Association of Tennis Professionals]] website. The website has some omissions for tournaments held since 1971.

*[[1971]]: Jacksonville
*[[1972]]: Roanoke, Nottingham (4-man tournament), Ocean City
*[[1974]]: Manchester (minor tournament equal to challenger level on the current ATP tour)
*[[1977]]: Las Vegas World Championship Tennis (WCT)
*[[1978]]: Beckenham, Gunze Open Tokyo
*[[1979]]: Puerto Rico WCT, Asuncion (invitational tournament), Buenos Aires (invitational tournament)
*[[1981]]: Tokyo Suntory Cup (invitational tournament)
*[[1982]]: Chicago Challenge of Champions (invitational tournament), Montreal (invitational tournament)
*[[1983]]: Tokyo Suntory Cup (invitational tournament)

===Singles runner-ups (49 listed by the Association of Tennis Professionals plus 5 others) ===

*[[1971]]: Columbus, Los Angeles
*[[1972]]: Baltimore, Indianapolis, Washington
*[[1973]]: Bretton Woods, Omaha
*[[1974]]: Omaha, South Orange
*[[1975]]: [[Australian Open]], London, New York, Stockholm, [[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]], [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]]
*[[1976]]: La Costa, Salisbury
*[[1977]]: Indianapolis, Pepsi Grand Slam, Philadelphia World Championship Tennis (WCT), Toronto Indoor WCT, '''Wimbledon''', '''U.S. Open'''
*[[1978]]: Pepsi Grand Slam, '''Wimbledon'''
*[[1979]]: Las Vegas, Pepsi Grand Slam, Tokyo Indoor
*[[1980]]: Memphis, San Jose
*[[1981]]: [[Hamburg Masters|Hamburg]]
*[[1982]]: Milan, Philadelphia, Rotterdam, San Francisco
*[[1983]]: Wembley
*[[1984]]: Dallas WCT, '''Wimbledon'''
*[[1985]]: Chicago, Fort Myers
*[[1986]]: [[Cincinnati Masters|Cincinnati]], Fort Myers, London/Queen's Club, San Francisco
*[[1987]]: London/Queen's Club, Memphis, Orlando
*[[1988]]: [[Miami Masters|Key Biscayne]], Milan

=== Sources ===

The following are the sources for the information that is not on the [[Association of Tennis Professionals]] website:

* Michel Sutter, ''Vainqueurs Winners 1946-2003'', Paris, [[2003]]. Sutter has attempted to list all tournaments meeting his criteria for selection beginning with [[1946]] and ending in the fall of [[1991]]. For each tournament, he has indicated the city, the date of the final, the winner, the runner-up, and the score of the final. A tournament is included in his list if: (1) the draw for the tournament included at least eight players (with a few exceptions, such as the Pepsi Grand Slam tournaments in the second half of the 1970s); and (2) the level of the tournaments was at least equal to the present day challenger tournaments. Sutter's book is probably the most exhaustive source of tennis tournament information since [[World War II]], even though some professional tournaments held before the start of the [[open era]] are missing. Later, Sutter issued a second edition of his book, with only the players, their wins, and years for the 1946 through [[April 27]], [[2003]], period.

* John Barrett, editor, ''World of Tennis Yearbooks'', London, from [[1976]] through [[1983]].

==See also==

*[[Tennis, male players statistics]]
*[[World number one male tennis player rankings]]


==External links==
==External links==
*{{FM station data|59495|WBBO}}
*{{ATP|id=C044}}
*[http://www.tennisfame.com/famer.aspx?pgID=867&hof_id=18 International Tennis Hall of Fame profile]
*[http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/about/history/jimmy_connors.html Official Wimbledon website profile]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/2966926.stm BBC profile]


{{start box}}
{{succession box |
| before = [[John Newcombe]]<br>Björn Borg<br>Björn Borg<br>[[John McEnroe]]<br>John McEnroe<br>John McEnroe<br>John McEnroe<br>Ivan Lendl<br>John McEnroe
| after = [[Björn Borg]]<br>Björn Borg<br>Björn Borg<br>John McEnroe<br>John McEnroe<br>John McEnroe<br>[[Ivan Lendl]]<br>John McEnroe<br>John McEnroe
| title = [[List of ATP number 1 ranked players|World No. 1]]
| years = July 29, 1974 - August 22, 1977<br>August 30, 1977 - April 8, 1979<br>May 21, 1979 - July 8, 1979<br>September 13, 1982 - October 31, 1982<br>November 8, 1982 - November 14, 1982<br>January 31, 1983 - February 6, 1983<br>February 14, 1983 - February 27, 1983<br>May 16, 1983 - June 5, 1983<br>June 13, 1983 - July 3, 1983
|}}
{{succession box |
| before = John McEnroe
| after = John McEnroe
| title = [[International Tennis Federation#Men.27s_singles|ITF World Champion]]
| years = 1982
|}}
{{end box}}

{{Tennis World Number Ones (men)}}
{{Australian Open men's singles champions}}
{{Wimbledon men's singles champions}}
{{US Open men's singles champions}}
{{Tennis men grand slam two and over}}


{{Monmouth-Ocean Radio}}
[[Category:American tennis players|Connors, Jimmy]]
{{Contemporary Hit Radio Stations in New Jersey}}
[[Category:Tennis Hall of Fame members|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:Australian Open champions|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:Wimbledon champions|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:US Open champions|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:UCLA Bruins athletics|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:Sports in St. Louis|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:People from St. Clair County, Illinois|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:Irish-American sportspeople|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:1952 births|Connors, Jimmy]]
[[Category:Living people|Connors, Jimmy]]


[[Category:Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States]]
[[ar:جيمي كونرز]]
[[Category:Radio stations in New Jersey|BBO]]
[[bn:জিমি কনর্স]]
[[Category:Radio stations established in 1993]]
[[bg:Джими Конърс]]
[[Category:1993 establishments in New Jersey]]
[[ca:Jimmy Connors]]
[[cs:Jimmy Connors]]
[[de:Jimmy Connors]]
[[es:Jimmy Connors]]
[[fr:Jimmy Connors]]
[[io:Jimmy Connors]]
[[it:Jimmy Connors]]
[[nl:Jimmy Connors]]
[[ja:ジミー・コナーズ]]
[[no:Jimmy Connors]]
[[pl:Jimmy Connors]]
[[pt:Jimmy Connors]]
[[ru:Коннорс, Джеймс Скотт]]
[[sk:Jimmy Connors]]
[[fi:Jimmy Connors]]
[[sv:Jimmy Connors]]
[[zh:吉米·康诺尔斯]]

Latest revision as of 11:32, 30 October 2024

For other radio stations that have held the WBBO call sign, see WBBO (disambiguation).
WBBO
Broadcast areaOcean, Burlington County, New Jersey
Frequency98.5 MHz
BrandingB98.5
Programming
FormatTop 40 (CHR)
Ownership
OwnerPress Communications, LLC
WHTG, WKMK/WTHJ, WWZY/WBHX
History
First air date
March 10, 1993
Former call signs
WQNJ (1990–1997)
WBBO (1997–July 5, 2006)
WKOE ( July 5,-24 2006)
WKMK ( July 24, 2006– September 15, 2010)
WHTG-FM (September 15,–December 8, 2010)[1]
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID59495
ClassA
ERP3,400 watts
HAAT136 meters
Transmitter coordinates
39°42′56″N 74°17′32″W / 39.71556°N 74.29222°W / 39.71556; -74.29222
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websiteb985radio.com

WBBO (98.5 FM, "B98-5") is a radio station broadcasting a Contemporary Hit Radio format. Licensed to Ocean Acres, New Jersey, it serves Ocean & Burlington counties in New Jersey. It first Sign-on On March 10, 1993. 1993 under the call sign WQNJ, but more recently operated under WKMK. The station is currently owned by Press Communications.[3]

Coverage Area

[edit]

98.5's signal blankets Ocean and Burlington in New Jersey as well as the New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia. The station can be heard from Atlantic City to the South, Belmar to the North, and Philadelphia to the West.

The WBBO antenna is co-located with WVBH and W265CS on a tower located near the intersection of Route 72 and the Garden State Parkway in Manahawkin.

Early history

[edit]

98.5 was granted the WQNJ calls on February 7, 1990. Even before this station hit the air, it had extensive coverage in the local newspapers, because it was to be the first commercial station to hit the air in Ocean County since WJRZ signed on in 1976. FM 98.5 was originally owned by Seaira, Inc., a local company that was headed by Pat Parson, a former WCBS/880 news anchor from 1970 to 1990 and a former alumnus of WERA in Planfield.

Parson originally planned 98.5 to be a live and local Smooth Jazz station, using the slogan "Cloud Nine," with an original sign-on date of Spring 1991. However, that sign-on date changed many times, due mostly because of antenna clearances that had to be taken care of prior to signing on. In late 1992, with Seaira not having enough financial backing to sign on themselves with a local format, 98.5 entered into an agreement with D&K Broadcasting (the owners of WJLK at the time.)

On February 11, 1993, WQNJ began on-air testing and on March 10, 1993, officially signed on with a simulcast of 94.3 WJLK. It was pretty much a 100% simulcast, with the exception of local commercial cut-ins and on weekday mornings at 6, 7, 8 and 9 o’clock, Pat Parson would do a 5-minute newscast. This basic format lasted until 1996 when it was announced that Nassau Broadcasting had purchased the station (and others in the Jersey Shore area.)

B98.5

[edit]
The original B98.5 logo

Pat Parson's newscasts were soon discontinued. The simulcast continued with WJLK until Memorial Day weekend in 1997 when Nassau launched "B-98.5 – The Jersey Shore's Hit Music Station." The first song played on "B-98.5" was the Spice Girls "Wannabe". On July 11, 1997, the calls were changed to WBBO.

In 2001, Nassau sold WBBO (along with WOBM-FM and WJLK) to Millennium Radio Group. in march of 2002 WCHR 105.7 simulcast was on the air but on April 15, 2002 105.7 WCHR ends it Simulcast and WCHR changes it format to Classic Rock. In April 2003, it was announced that Millennium was selling WBBO to Press Communications, who ironically enough, was the original applicant for 98.5 in the late 1980s. In August 2004, Press officially took over WBBO.

Alumni

[edit]

Original Staff * Neil Sullivan, Program Director 1997–1999 * Fox Feltman (aka. Alan Fox), Assistant Program Director/Music Director, Afternoons 1997–1999 * Jessica Taylor, Midday host, 1999 * Andy Chase, Promotions and Swing jock 1997–2003, morning host 2003–2004 * Mike and Diane, Mornings 1998–1999 * JC, then Scotty Valentino Nights 1997–1999 * Ed Bishop, Imaging Director * General Manager Don Dalesio 1997–2002; 2016–2019

G Rock Radio

[edit]

On February 18, 2005, 98.5 started simulcasting sister station WHTG-FM "G-106.3" from Eatontown and became GRock Radio. On July 5, 2006, 98.5 changed calls to WKOE as part of a switch with new move-in 106.5 in Bass River Township. WKOE was formerly located at 106.3 in Ocean City On July 24, 2006 at midnight, the simulcast on 98.5 ceased.

Real Jersey Kountry K98.5

[edit]
WKMK logo from 2006 to 2009

Later on July 24, 2006, after "stunting" with playing The Eagles "New Kid In Town" over and over for 12 hours, 98.5 debuted as "K-98.5: Real Jersey Kountry" and new call letters of WKOE, were assigned at 10 a.m. that day (switching from WBBO which had been re-instated). The WKOE call letters were quickly replaced with WKMK to avoid a legal situation after it was noted that using WKOE on a country formatted station violated a usage agreement that Press Broadcasting signed regarding the WKOE calls. The first song played was Alan Jackson's "Gone Country." Past staffers of K98.5 include Jim Radler, Leeann Taylor and Brian Moore.

Ocean County's Country Thunder 98.5

[edit]
WKMK logo from February 16, 2009 until September 12, 2010

On February 16, 2009, "K98.5" under the direction of longtime Country Music PD Captain Jack Aponte, switched its name to "Thunder 98.5". Along with the name change, Captain Jack changed the station's format to an edgier "Rockin Country" sound, playing some classic southern rock along with country music; similar southern rock/country "hybrid" formats were used unsuccessfully on various U.S. country outlets in the 1990s, most even used the same "Thunder Country" moniker also.

B 98.5 returns

[edit]

The station swapped its "Thunder" country format with co-owned WHTG and WBBO on September 15, 2010 at 3:00 p.m.[4] At that time, the station resumed its former identity of "B 98.5", and at that time also swapped call signals, assuming the WHTG-FM identity long associated with 106.3 FM in Eatontown, which became WKMK at that time. some of the staff were a carry-over from Hit 106. In the weeks leading up to the station change, commercials continuously announced "Hit 106 is moving down the dial". On December 8, 2010, 98.5 Went back to The WBBO Calls.


Airstaff

[edit]

The current lineup (as of October 30, 2024) is as follows

B98.5 Morning Show (6–10 am): TJ Mateo & Lenore (Lenny) Luca

Middays (10 am – 2pm): Liv Rescigno

Afternoon (2–6 pm): Rashaud Thomas

Nights (6 pm-midnight): E

Program Director/Music Director: Rashaud Thomas

References

[edit]
  1. ^ http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=59495&Callsign=WBBO FCC Call Sign History
  2. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WBBO". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ^ http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?call=WKMK FCC FM Query
  4. ^ "Monmouth radio station 106.3 FM changes to country music," Asbury Park Press, September 8, 2010". app.com. Retrieved 2017-03-12.
[edit]
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