Bob Davis began playing tennis at the age of 8 during a time of segregation in New York City. Ineligible to compete in USLTA tournaments due to his race, Davis became a lifetime member of the American Tennis Association (ATA). His tennis career’s success started in the 1950s when he won the ATA Junior National title. In the 1960s, he won the ATA Men’s Doubles title with his older brother, Bill Davis. He also played recreationally with Althea Gibson. In the 1970s, Davis leased the largest privately owned tennis club in New York. He managed his family’s tennis academy in the 1980s.

Davis’ career shifted away from solely professional play when he realized his life mission of helping others. Davis co-founded the Ashe/Bollettieri “Cities” Tennis Program (ABC). Becoming known as the Arthur Ashe Safe Passage Foundation in 1990, the program introduced at least 20,000 at-risk children across the nation to tennis. Davis continued helping the youth upon his creation of Black Dynamics, Inc., which provided skilled players of color with scholarships to the IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy. Davis’ connection to the famed coach, Nick Bollettieri, has continued throughout the years. In 2014, Davis co-authored Bollettieri's autobiography, Bollettieri: Changing the Game.

In the 1990s, Davis established the Black Dynamics organization to help talented Black juniors further their athletic development. In 2000, Davis started the Panda Foundation, Inc., which was modeled closely after the Arthur Ashe Safe Passage Foundation. The program has provided more than 500 urban youth with free tennis instruction every year, as well as health services and mentoring.

Davis has continued playing tennis throughout his career. He even won the USTA Mixed Doubles National Championship in 2006. He enjoys coaching, and in 2014, he joined the Jamaican Davis Cup Team’s coaching delegation. Davis is also passionate about preserving Black tennis history. By 2014, he had maintained the Black Tennis History website for over 12 years, including that of the Black Tennis Hall of Fame, where he had been the first executive director since 2008.

Davis has received national praise for his efforts in the tennis community. In 2006, he was inducted into the American Tennis Association's (ATA) New England Tennis Association Hall of Fame. In 2014, he was inducted into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame and the Tampa Bay Tennis Hall of Fame. In 2021, Davis became a Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) ACE Hero.

Sadly, Davis passed away from cancer in January 2025.