[2] In her early years she was followed around the tour by author Karen Stabiner, who wrote a book called "Courting Fame", an at times critical portrayal of the promising junior, which attracted attention towards a young Spence.

[3] She won the 1983 Orange Bowl competition and was runner-up to Pascale Paradis in the girls' singles at the 1983 French Open.

[4] At the age of 16, as the top-ranked amateur in the country at under-18 level, she made the decision to quit high school in order to prepare herself for a career in professional tennis.

[5] Only a month after she turned professional, aged 17, she won the 1984 Ginny of San Diego, over Betsy Nagelsen in the final.

In 1985 she was a semi-finalist at the Ginny Championships in Florida and made it to the quarter-finals of a further four WTA tournaments, as well as the fourth round of the 1985 French Open.