Francis Hunter

Frank Hunter
Francis Hunter (left) with Daniel Prenn, 1929.
Full name Francis Townsend Hunter
Country (sports)  United States
Born (1894-06-28)June 28, 1894
New York, NY, U.S.
Died December 2, 1981(1981-12-02) (aged 87)
Palm Beach, FL, U.S.
Turned pro 1931 (amateur tour from 1915)
Retired 1944
Plays Right-handed (1-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF 1961 (member page)
Singles
Career record 480-152 (75.9%) [1]
Career titles 24 [1]
Highest ranking No. 4 (1929, A. Wallis Myers)[2]
Grand Slam Singles results
French Open QF (1929)
Wimbledon F (1923)
US Open F (1928, 1929)
Professional majors
US Pro F (1933)
Doubles
Career record no value
Grand Slam Doubles results
Wimbledon W (1924, 1927)
US Open W (1927)
Other doubles tournaments
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
French Open F (1928, 1929)
Wimbledon W (1927, 1929)
Medal record
Olympic Games – Tennis
1924 Paris Doubles

Francis "Frank" Townsend Hunter (June 28, 1894 – December 2, 1981) was an American tennis player who won an Olympic gold medal.

Early and personal life

Hunter graduated from Cornell University in 1916, where he was also a member of the Quill and Dagger society.

Hunter was the second husband of the actress Lisette Verea in 1954.[3]

Tennis career

Hunter was a singles finalist at Wimbledon in 1923 (where he beat Gordon Lowe before losing to Bill Johnston).[4]

Hunter won a gold medal at the 1924 Paris Olympics, in the men's doubles event with partner Vincent Richards.

He reached the U. S. championships singles final in 1928 (where he beat Jack Crawford and George Lott before losing to Henri Cochet in five sets).[5]

German Daniel Prenn (left) and Hunter (right), in a Davis Cup match in Berlin in 1929.

He reached his third Grand Slam singles final at the U. S. championships in 1929 (where he beat R. Norris Williams before losing in five sets to Bill Tilden).[6] He was ranked World No. 4 in 1929 by A. Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and World No. 5 in another Myers list in September the same year.[2][7]

Hunter turned professional in mid January 1931 joining Bill Tilden.[8] He reached the final of the U. S. Pro championships in 1933 (losing to Vincent Richards).[9] As well as playing on the pro tour, Hunter was also a promoter, including promoting the first Perry-Vines tour in 1937 with S. Howard Voshell.[10]

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 3 runners-up

Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Runner-up1923WimbledonGrassUnited States Bill Johnston0–6, 3–6, 1–6[11]
Runner-up1928U.S. National ChampionshipsGrassFrance Henri Cochet6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 5–7, 3–6[12]
Runner-up1929U.S. National ChampionshipsGrassUnited States Bill Tilden6–3, 3–6, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6[12]

Doubles: 3 titles

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Winner1924WimbledonGrassUnited States Vincent RichardsUnited States Watson Washburn
United States R. Norris Williams		6−3, 3−6, 8−10, 8−6, 6−3[13]
Winner1927WimbledonGrassUnited States Bill TildenFrance Jacques Brugnon
France Henri Cochet		1–6, 4–6, 8–6, 6–3, 6–4[13]
Winner1927U.S. National ChampionshipsGrassUnited States Bill TildenUnited States R. Norris Williams
United States Bill Johnston		10–8, 6–3, 6–3[14]

Mixed doubles: 4 (2 titles, 2 runners-up)

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Winner1927WimbledonGrassUnited States Elizabeth RyanUnited Kingdom Kathleen McKane Godfree
United Kingdom Leslie Godfree		8–6, 6–0[15]
Runner-up1928French ChampionshipsClayUnited States Helen WillsUnited Kingdom Eileen Bennett
France Henri Cochet		6–3, 3–6, 3–6
Runner-up1929French ChampionshipsClayUnited States Helen WillsUnited Kingdom Eileen Bennett
France Henri Cochet		3–6, 2–6
Winner1929WimbledonGrassUnited States Helen WillsUnited Kingdom Joan Fry
United Kingdom Ian Collins		6–1, 6–4[15]

References

  1. 1 2 "Frank Hunter: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 Béla Kehrling, ed. (October 10, 1929). "Wallis Meyers a világ legjobb tenniszezőiröl" [Wallis Myers about the best players in the world] (pdf). Tennisz és Golf (in Hungarian). Budapest, Hungary: Bethlen Gábor irod. és Nyomdai Rt. I (11): 262–263. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Mrs. Lisette Ruegg Wed to F. T. Hunter" New York Times (June 22, 1954): 23.
  4. ↑ "Wimbledon 1923". www.tennis.co.nf.
  5. ↑ "U. S. Open 1928". www.tennis.co.nf.
  6. ↑ "U. S. Open 1929". www.tennis.co.nf.
  7. ↑ "Tilden Ranks Fourth in London Telegraph Rankings", The Toledo News-Bee, September 19, 1929.
  8. ↑ "History of the Pro Tennis Wars, Chapter 3: Tilden's Year of Triumph: 1931". Tennis Server. 3 March 2002.
  9. ↑ "U.S. Pro Championships". www.tennis.co.nf.
  10. ↑ "13 Nov 1937 - Howard Voshell Dead". Trove.
  11. ↑ "Wimbledon Rolls of Honour / Gentlemen's Singles". Wimbledon official tournament website. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
  12. 1 2 "U.S. Open Past Champions / Men's Singles". U.S. Open official website. Archived from the original on February 22, 2009. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
  13. 1 2 "Wimbledon Rolls of Honour / Gentlemen's Doubles". Wimbledon official tournament website. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
  14. ↑ "U.S. Open Past Champions / Men's Doubles". U.S. Open official website. Archived from the original on October 25, 2007. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
  15. 1 2 "Wimbledon Rolls of Honour / Mixed Doubles". Wimbledon official tournament website. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
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