Elizabeth Ryan

Elizabeth Ryan

Full name	Elizabeth Montague Ryan
Country (sports)	United States
Born	(1892-02-05)February 5, 1892 Anaheim, CA, USA
Died	July 6, 1979(1979-07-06) (aged 87) Wimbledon, England
Int. Tennis HoF	1972 (member page)
Singles
Highest ranking	No. 3 (1927)
Grand Slam Singles results
French Open	QF (1926, 1930, 1931)
Wimbledon	F (1921, 1930)
US Open	F (1926)
Doubles
Grand Slam Doubles results
French Open	W (1930, 1932, 1933, 1934)
Wimbledon	W (1914, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1930, 1933, 1934)
US Open	W (1926)
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
French Open	F (1934)
Wimbledon	W (1919, 1921, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1930, 1932)
US Open	W (1926, 1933)

Elizabeth Montague Ryan (February 5, 1892 – July 6, 1979) was an American tennis player who was born in Anaheim, California but lived most of her life in the United Kingdom. Ryan won 26 Grand Slam titles. Nineteen of those titles were in women's doubles and mixed doubles at Wimbledon, an all-time record for those two events. Twelve of her Wimbledon titles were in women's doubles and seven were in mixed doubles. Ryan also won four women's doubles titles at the French Championships, as well as one women's doubles title and two mixed doubles titles at the U.S. Championships.

Career

Although she reached the Wimbledon singles finals twice, Ryan never won the title. Eight of her losses at Wimbledon were to players generally considered to be among the best ever. Ryan had to play Dorothea Lambert Chambers in the all-comers final of 1920; Suzanne Lenglen in the 1919 semifinals (losing 6–4, 7–5), 1921 final, 1922 quarterfinals, 1924 quarterfinals (losing 6–2, 6–8, 6–4), and 1925 second round; and Helen Wills Moody in the 1928 semifinals and 1930 final.

In the 1926 singles final at the U.S. Championships, the 34-year-old Ryan led 42-year-old Molla Bjurstedt Mallory 4–6, 6–4, 4–0 and had a match point at 7–6 in the third set before losing the final three games of the match.^[1]

Ryan and her longtime partner Lenglen never lost a women's doubles match at Wimbledon, going 31–0.^[1] Only Billie Jean King (224 match wins) and Martina Navratilova won more matches at Wimbledon than Ryan (190 match wins): 47–15 in singles, 73–4 in women's doubles, and 70–9 in mixed doubles.^[1]

The longtime tennis writer Ted Tinling has credited Ryan with inventing the volleying style later perfected by players such as Sarah Palfrey Cooke, Alice Marble, Louise Brough Clapp, Margaret Osborne duPont, Doris Hart, Darlene Hard, Margaret Court, Navratilova, and King. "Before World War I, women's tennis consisted primary of slogging duels from the baseline. There were a few volleying pioneers, notably ... Hazel [Hotchkiss] Wightman and Ethel [Thomson] Larcombe, but volleying as a fundamental, aggressive technique was first injected into the women's game by ... Ryan."^[2] However, Tinling also said about Ryan, "Elizabeth wasn't fast enough for singles. Too heavy."^[3]

According to Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, Ryan was ranked in the world top ten from 1921 (when the rankings began) through 1928 and again in 1930, reaching a career high of World No. 3 in those rankings in 1927.^[4] Ryan was ranked second behind Mallory in the year-end rankings issued by the United States Lawn Tennis Association for 1925 and 1926.^[5]

Ryan died on July 6, 1979, at age 87, on the grounds of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon, following the ladies singes final and the day before King broke her record number of Wimbledon wins by winning her 20th title.^[6][7][8] When tennis writer and television commentator Bud Collins tried to arrange for Ryan and King to film an interview together at Wimbledon in 1979, Ryan refused.^[3] King said, "I always liked seeing Miss Ryan at Wimbledon, and I'd try to be friendly, but she didn't seem to want it. For me, it wasn't personal. Sure, I wanted the record, but I wasn't trying to steal a possession of hers."^[9] King also said, "[T]here is no doubt in my mind that she just didn't want to be alive to see her record broken. She was [87], she had held it for a long, long time and she wanted it for herself. But records are there to be broken."^[10]

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 3 runners-ups

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1921	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	2–6, 0–6
Runner-up	1926	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Molla Bjurstedt Mallory	6–4, 4–6, 7–9
Runner-up	1930	Wimbledon	Grass	Helen Wills Moody	2–6, 2–6

Doubles: 21 (17 titles, 4 runners-up)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1914	Wimbledon	Grass	Agnes Morton	Edith Hannam Ethel Larcombe	6–1, 6–3
Winner	1919	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	Dorthea Lambert Chambers Ethel Larcombe	4–6, 7–5, 6–3
Winner	1920	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	Dorthea Lambert Chambers Ethel Larcombe	6–4, 6–0
Winner	1921	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	Winifred Beamish Irene Peacock	6–1, 6–2
Winner	1922	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	Kitty McKane Margaret McKane Stocks	6–0, 6–4
Winner	1923	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	Joan Austin Evelyn Colyer	6–3, 6–1
Winner	1925	Wimbledon	Grass	Suzanne Lenglen	A.V. Bridge Mary McIlquham	6–2, 6–2
Runner-up	1925	U.S. National Championships	Grass	May Sutton Bundy	Mary Browne Helen Wills	4–6, 3–6
Winner	1926	Wimbledon	Grass	Mary Browne	Evelyn Colyer Kitty McKane Godfree	6–1, 6–1
Winner	1926	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Eleanor Goss	Mary Browne Charlotte Chapin	3–6, 6–4, 12–10
Winner	1927	Wimbledon	Grass	Helen Wills	Bobbie Heine Irene Peacock	6–3, 6–2
Winner	1930	French Championships	Clay	Helen Wills Moody	Simone Barbier Simonne Mathieu	6–3, 6–1
Winner	1930	Wimbledon	Grass	Helen Wills Moody	Edith Cross Sarah Palfrey	6–2, 9–7
Runner-up	1931	French Championships	Clay	Cilly Aussem	Eileen Bennett Whittingstall Betty Nuthall	7–9, 2–6
Winner	1932	French Championships	Clay	Helen Wills Moody	Eileen Bennett Whittingstall Betty Nuthall	6–1, 6–3
Runner-up	1932	Wimbledon	Grass	Helen Jacobs	Doris Metaxa Josane Sigart	4–6, 3–6
Winner	1933	French Championships	Clay	Simonne Mathieu	Sylvie Jung Henrotin Colette Rosambert	6–1, 6–3
Winner	1933	Wimbledon	Grass	Simonne Mathieu	Freda James Billie Yorke	6–2, 9–11, 6–4
Runner-up	1933	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Helen Wills Moody	Freda James Betty Nuthall	default
Winner	1934	French Championships	Clay	Simonne Mathieu	Helen Jacobs Sarah Palfrey	3–6, 6–4, 6–2
Winner	1934	Wimbledon	Grass	Simonne Mathieu	Dorothy Andrus Sylvie Jung Henrotin	6–3, 6–3

Mixed Doubles: 14 (9 titles, 5 runners-up)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1919	Wimbledon	Grass	Randolph Lycett	Dorothea Chambers Albertem Prebble	6-0, 6-0
Runner-up	1920	Wimbledon	Grass	Randolph Lycett	Suzanne Lenglen Gerald Patterson	5–7, 3–6
Winner	1921	Wimbledon	Grass	Randolph Lycett	Phyllis Howkins Max Woosnam	6–3, 6–1
Runner-up	1922	Wimbledon	Grass	Randolph Lycett	Suzanne Lenglen Pat O'Hara Wood	4–6, 3–6
Winner	1923	Wimbledon	Grass	Randolph Lycett	Dorothy Shepherd Barron Lewis Deane	6–4, 7–5
Runner-up	1925	Wimbledon	Grass	Umberto de Morpurgo	Suzanne Lenglen Jean Borotra	3–6, 3–6
Winner	1926	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Jean Borotra	Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman René Lacoste	6–4, 7–5
Winner	1927	Wimbledon	Grass	Frank Hunter	Kathleen McKane Godfree Leslie Godfree	8–6, 6–0
Winner	1928	Wimbledon	Grass	Patrick Spence	Daphne Akhurst Jack Crawford	7–5, 6–4
Winner	1930	Wimbledon	Grass	Jack Crawford	Hilde Krahwinkel Daniel Prenn	6–1, 6–3
Winner	1932	Wimbledon	Grass	Enrique Maier	Josane Sigart Harry Hopman	7–5, 6–2
Winner	1933	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Ellsworth Vines	Sarah Palfrey George Lott	11–9, 6–1
Runner-up	1934	French Championships	Clay	Adrian Quist	Colette Rosambert Jean Borotra	2–6, 4–6
Runner-up	1934	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Lester Stoefen	Helen Jacobs George Lott	6–4, 11–13, 2–6

Grand Slam tournament timelines

See also

• Performance timelines for all female tennis players who reached at least one Grand Slam or Olympic singles final

Notes

References

External links

• Elizabeth Ryan at the International Tennis Hall of Fame