Barbara Potter

Barbara Potter
Country (sports)	United States
Residence	Harlem, Georgia, USA
Born	October 22, 1961; Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Turned pro	1978
Retired	1989
Plays	Left-handed
Prize money	US$ 1,313,808
Singles
Career record	320–191
Career titles	6
Highest ranking	No. 7 (December 6, 1982)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	QF (1984)
French Open	1R (1985)
Wimbledon	QF (1982, 1983, 1985)
US Open	SF (1981)
Doubles
Career record	200–74
Career titles	19
Highest ranking	No. 3
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	SF (1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988)
Wimbledon	SF (1983, 1984)
US Open	F (1982)
Mixed doubles
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
US Open	F (1982, 1983)

Barbara Potter (born October 22, 1961) is a former tennis player from the United States, who competed professionally on the WTA Tour between 1978 and 1989, winning six singles titles and 19 doubles titles. Her highest singles ranking was No. 7 in December 1982.

Career

Potter started playing tennis when she was eight years old.^[1] After graduating from Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut in 1978 Potter elected to turn professional instead of accepting an offer of admission at Princeton.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] A left-hander, she reached the semifinals at the U.S. Open in 1981^[4] as well as the quarterfinals at the Australian Open in 1984, and Wimbledon in 1982, 1983 and 1985. At the WTA Tour Championships, she reached the semifinals in singles in 1984 and was a runner-up in doubles with Sharon Walsh in 1981.

Potter reached a career high ranking of No. 7 in 1982 and that year won the singles titles at the Avon Championships of Cincinnati and the US Indoor Championships.^[4]^[3] She also played in three Grand Slam doubles finals, the 1982 US Open women's doubles with Sharon Walsh as well as the 1982 and 1983 US Open mixed doubles with Ferdi Taygan.

In 1986, Potter suffered two herniated disks in her back at a tournament in England and was forced off the tour several times. After a grueling exercise and fitness program, she successfully returned to the tour.

She was a member of the 1982 and 1984 U.S. Wightman Cup teams and the 1988 United States Fed Cup team. In 1989, she re-aggravated a persistent back condition at the beginning season when she was involved in an automobile accident. She retired in November 1989 due to deteriorating hip cartilage.

Potter currently resides in Harlem, Georgia.

Major finals

Grand Slam finals

Women's doubles (1 runner–up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1982	US Open	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Kathy Jordan Anne Smith	6–4, 6–4

Mixed doubles (2 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1982	US Open	Hard	Ferdi Taygan	Anne Smith Kevin Curren	6–7^(4–7), 7–6^(7–4), 7–6^(7–5)
Runner-up	1983	US Open	Hard	Ferdi Taygan	Elizabeth Sayers John Fitzgerald	3–6, 6–3, 6–4

Year-End Championships finals

Doubles: (1 runner–up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1981	New York City	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navrátilová Pam Shriver	6–0, 7–6^(8–6)

WTA career finals

Singles: 14 (6–8)

Winner — Legend
Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
WTA Tour Championships (0–0)
Tier I (0–0)
Tier II (0–0)
Tier III (1–0)
Tier IV (0–1)
Tier V (0–1)
Virginia Slims, Avon, Other (5–6)

Titles by Surface
Hard (2–2)
Grass (0–1)
Clay (0–0)
Carpet (4–5)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Winner	1.	January 29, 1979	Toronto	Carpet (i)	Bettina Bunge	6–1, 6–4
Runner-up	1.	January 14, 1980	Las Vegas	Hard (i)	Andrea Jaeger	6–7, 6–4, 1–6
Runner-up	2.	February 23, 1981	Seattle	Carpet (i)	Sylvia Hanika	2–6, 4–6
Winner	2.	January 11, 1982	Cincinnati	Carpet (i)	Bettina Bunge	6–2, 7–6^(7–3)
Runner-up	3.	February 8, 1982	Kansas City	Carpet (i)	Martina Navratilova	2–6, 2–6
Runner-up	4.	September 13, 1982	Tokyo	Carpet (i)	Bettina Bunge	6–7^(4–7), 2–6
Winner	3.	September 27, 1982	Philadelphia	Carpet (i)	Pam Shriver	6–4, 6–2
Runner-up	5.	February 6, 1984	Chicago	Carpet (i)	Pam Shriver	6–7^(4–7), 6–2, 3–6
Winner	4.	August 19, 1985	Monticello	Hard	Helen Kelesi	4–6, 6–3, 6–2
Winner	5.	February 2, 1987	Wichita	Carpet (i)	Larisa Savchenko	7–6^(8–6), 7–6^(7–5)
Runner-up	6.	March 23, 1987	Washington	Carpet (i)	Hana Mandlíková	4–6, 2–6
Runner-up	7.	July 11, 1988	Newport	Grass	Lori McNeil	4–6, 6–4, 3–6
Winner	6.	August 1, 1988	Cincinnati	Hard	Helen Kelesi	6–2, 6–2
Runner-up	8.	February 20, 1989	Wichita	Hard (i)	Amy Frazier	6–4, 4–6, 0–6

Doubles: 41 (19–22)

Winner — Legend
Grand Slam tournaments (0–1)
WTA Tour Championships (0–1)
Tier I (0–0)
Tier II (0–0)
Tier III (0–0)
Tier IV (1–0)
Tier V (0–0)
Virginia Slims, Avon, Other (18–20)

Titles by Surface
Hard (3–5)
Grass (3–0)
Clay (1–1)
Carpet (12–16)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1.	August 21, 1978	Mahwah	Hard	Pam Whytcross	Ilana Kloss Marise Kruger	3–6, 4–6
Winner	1.	January 14, 1980	Las Vegas	Hard (i)	Kay McDaniel	Diane Desfor Barbara Jordan	4–5, 7–6, 6–4
Winner	2.	September 22, 1980	Atlanta	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Kathy Jordan Anne Smith	6–3, 6–1
Winner	3.	December 15, 1980	Tucson	Carpet (i)	Leslie Allen	Mary-Lou Piatek Wendy White	7–6, 6–0
Winner	4.	January 12, 1981	Kansas City	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	6–2, 7–6(4)
Runner-up	2.	January 26, 1981	Chicago	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navrátilová Pam Shriver	3–6, 4–6
Winner	5.	March 16, 1981	Boston	Carpet (Ii)	Sharon Walsh	JoAnne Russell Virginia Ruzici	6–7, 6–4, 6–3
Runner-up	3.	March 25, 1981	Avon Championships	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navrátilová Pam Shriver	0–6, 6–7(6)
Runner-up	4.	May 4, 1981	Tokyo	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Sue Barker Ann Kiyomura	5–7, 2–6
Winner	6.	October 19, 1981	Brighton	Carpet (i)	Anne Smith	Mima Jaušovec Pam Shriver	6–7, 6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	5.	October 26, 1981	Filderstadt	Carpet (i)	Anne Smith	Mima Jaušovec Martina Navrátilová	4–6, 1–6
Winner	7.	November 16, 1981	Perth	Grass	Sharon Walsh	Betsy Nagelsen Candy Reynolds	6–4, 6–2
Winner	8.	February 8, 1982	Kansas City	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Mary-Lou Piatek Anne Smith	4–6, 6–2, 6–2
Winner	9.	February 22, 1982	Oakland	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Kathy Jordan Pam Shriver	6–1, 3–6, 7–6(5)
Runner-up	6.	March 1, 1982	Los Angeles	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Kathy Jordan Anne Smith	3–6, 5–7
Runner-up	7.	April 19, 1982	Amelia Island	Clay	Sharon Walsh	Leslie Allen Mima Jaušovec	1–6, 5–7
Runner-up	8.	August 16, 1982	Montreal	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navratilova Candy Reynolds	4–6, 4–6
Winner	10.	August 23, 1982	Mahwah	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	6–1, 6–4
Runner-up	9.	August 30, 1982	US Open	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	4–6, 4–6
Runner-up	10.	September 27, 1982	Philadelphia	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	6–3, 6–7(5), 4–6
Winner	11.	October 4, 1982	Deerfield Beach	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	7–6(5), 7–6(3)
Runner-up	11.	October 25, 1982	Brighton	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	6–2, 5–7, 4–6
Runner-up	12.	January 10, 1983	Houston	Carpet (i)	Jo Durie	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	4–6, 3–6
Winner	12.	January 30, 1983	Palm Beach Garden	Clay	Sharon Walsh	Kathy Jordan Paula Smith	6–4, 4–6, 6–2
Winner	13.	July 11, 1983	Newport	Grass	Sharon Walsh	Barbara Jordan Elizabeth Sayers	6–3, 6–1
Runner-up	13.	September 19, 1983	Richmond	Carpet (i)	Kathy Jordan	Rosalyn Fairbank Candy Reynolds	7–6(3), 2–6, 1–6
Runner-up	14.	September 26, 1983	Hartford	Carpet (i)	Kathy Jordan	Billie Jean King Sharon Walsh	6–3, 3–6, 4–6
Winner	14.	October 2, 1983	Detroit	Carpet (i)	Kathy Jordan	Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull	6–4, 6–1
Winner	15.	January 2, 1984	Washington	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Leslie Allen Anne White	6–1, 6–7(7), 6–2
Runner-up	15.	January 30, 1984	Houston	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Mima Jaušovec Anne White	4–6, 6–3, 6–7(4)
Runner-up	16.	February 6, 1984	Chicago	Carpet (i)	Pam Shriver	Billie Jean King Sharon Walsh	7–5, 3–6, 3–6
Winner	16.	March 26, 1984	Boston	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Andrea Leand Mary-Lou Piatek	7–6(4), 6–0
Runner-up	17.	September 17, 1984	Fort Lauderdale	Hard	Sharon Walsh	Martina Navratilova Elizabeth Sayers	6–2, 2–6, 3–6
Runner-up	18.	October 22, 1984	Brighton	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Alycia Moulton Paula Smith	7–6, 3–6, 5–7
Winner	17.	March 11, 1985	Dallas	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Marcella Mesker Pascale Paradis	5–7, 6–4, 7–6(4)
Runner-up	19.	May 6, 1985	Sydney	Carpet (i)	Sharon Walsh	Pam Shriver Elizabeth Smylie	5–7, 5–7
Runner-up	20.	October 21, 1985	Brighton	Carpet (i)	Helena Suková	Lori McNeil Catherine Suire	6–4, 6–7(3), 4–6
Runner-up	21.	January 27, 1986	Key Biscayne	Hard	Betsy Nagelsen	Kathy Jordan Elizabeth Smylie	6–7(5), 6–2, 2–6
Winner	18.	March 28, 1986	Nashville	Carpet (i)	Pam Shriver	Kathy Jordan Elizabeth Smylie	6–4, 6–3
Runner-up	22.	February 2, 1987	Wichita	Carpet (i)	Wendy White	Svetlana Parkhomenko Larisa Savchenko	2–6, 4–6
Winner	19.	July 11, 1988	Newport	Grass	Rosalyn Fairbank	Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil	6–4, 6–3

Grand Slam performance timeline

**Key**
W	F	SF	QF	#R	RR	Q#	A	NH

(W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed)

Singles

Tournament	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	Career SR
Australian Open	A	A	A	2R	3R	3R	QF	2R	NH	A	4R	1R	0 / 7
French Open	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	1R	A	A	A	A	0 / 1
Wimbledon	2R	1R	3R	4R	QF	QF	4R	QF	A	2R	4R	A	0 / 10
U.S. Open	2R	3R	3R	SF	2R	2R	4R	2R	A	1R	4R	A	0 / 10
SR	0 / 2	0 / 2	0 / 2	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 0	0 / 2	0 / 3	0 / 1	0 / 28
Year End Ranking	62	47	25	10	8	25	12	17	26	12	10	105

Doubles

Tournament	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	Career SR
Australian Open	A	A	A	QF	SF	SF	SF	SF	NH	A	SF	1R	0 / 7
French Open	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	0 / 0
Wimbledon	2R	2R	1R	QF	2R	SF	SF	QF	A	A	2R	2R	0 / 10
U.S. Open	A	A	A	1R	F	A	QF	QF	A	2R	1R	A	0 / 6
SR	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 0	0 / 1	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 23
Year End Ranking							3	9	25	26	51	356

SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam tournaments won to the number played.

References

1 2 Thomas Rogers (March 25, 1981). "Miss Potter making a bid in title tennis". The New York Times.
↑ Charles Friedman (March 21, 1982). "At 20, tennis star seeks to advance". The New York Times.
1 2 "Barbara Potter is facing the wall of the Charles..." UPI. March 31, 1984.
1 2 3 Sarah Pileggi (March 8, 1982). "Young and old, wise and goofy". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 56 no. 10. pp. 36–39.

External links

Barbara Potter at the Women's Tennis Association
Barbara Potter at the International Tennis Federation
Barbara Potter at the Fed Cup

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[nyt1981-1] 1 2 Thomas Rogers (March 25, 1981). "Miss Potter making a bid in title tennis". The New York Times.

[2] Charles Friedman (March 21, 1982). "At 20, tennis star seeks to advance". The New York Times.

[upi1984-3] 1 2 "Barbara Potter is facing the wall of the Charles..." UPI. March 31, 1984.

[si1982-4] 1 2 3 Sarah Pileggi (March 8, 1982). "Young and old, wise and goofy". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 56 no. 10. pp. 36–39.