Kathy May Fritz (born June 18, 1956) is an American former professional tennis player.[2] She reached three Grand Slam quarterfinals, once at the US Open in 1978 and twice at the French Open in 1977 and 1978. She won seven WTA singles titles during her career, and achieved a career-high ranking of world no. 10 in 1977.
She also competed under the names Kathy May Teacher after her marriage in 1979 to tennis player Brian Teacher, and Kathy May-Paben. Her son Taylor Fritz is also a professional tennis player, and he was the 2015 ITF Junior World Champion.
Early and personal life
May was born and grew up in Beverly Hills, California.[3] She is the great-granddaughter of David May, founder of The May Department Stores Company[3] (now Macy's).
In 1979, she married fellow Californian player Brian Teacher, also a top 10 tennis player and the 1980 Australian Open champion; they subsequently divorced.[4] She married fireman Don Paben in 1981, and subsequently divorced.[5][6] She later married Guy Fritz, her third husband, with whom she had three children, including Taylor Fritz.[7][8]
Tennis career
She reached three Grand Slam quarterfinals, once at the US Open in 1978 and twice at the French Open in 1977 and 1978. She won seven |WTA singles titles during her career, and achieved a career-high ranking of world no. 10 in 1977.
She was coached by Tony Trabert.[9]
WTA Tour finals
Singles: 7 (7–0)
| Winner - Legend |
|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) |
| WTA Tour Championships (0–0) |
| Virginia Slims, Avon, Other (7–0) |
|
| Titles by Surface |
|---|
| Hard (3–0) |
| Grass (1–0) |
| Clay (3–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
|
| Outcome |
No. |
Date |
Tournament |
Surface |
Opponent |
Score |
|---|
| Winner |
1. |
September 17, 1973 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
 Lea Antonoplis |
5–7, 6–1, 6–2 |
| Winner |
2. |
April 22, 1974 |
Ojai |
Hard |
Susan Hagey |
2–6, 6–0, 6–1 |
| Winner |
3. |
May 6, 1974 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
Lindsay Morse |
6–4, 7–6 |
| Winner |
4. |
August 19, 1974 |
Haverford |
Grass |
Barbara Jordan |
6–3, 7–5 |
| Winner |
5. |
March 17, 1975 |
Pensacola |
Clay |
.svg.png) Ilana Kloss |
5–7, 6–4, 7–6 |
| Winner |
6. |
January 19, 1976 |
Fort Myers |
Clay |
Ann Kiyomura |
5–7, 6–3, 6–1 |
| Winner |
7. |
September 8, 1976 |
Indianapolis |
Clay |
Brigitte Cuypers |
6–4, 4–6, 6–2 |
Doubles: 7 (4–3)
| Winner - Legend |
|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) |
| WTA Tour Championships (0–0) |
| Virginia Slims, Avon, Other (4–3) |
|
| Titles by Surface |
|---|
| Hard (3–2) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Clay (1–1) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
|
| Outcome |
No. |
Date |
Tournament |
Surface |
Partner |
Opponents |
Score |
|---|
| Winner |
1. |
May 7, 1973 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
Marita Redondo |
Lindsay Morse
Jean Nachand |
6–4, 6–0 |
| Winner |
2. |
September 17, 1973 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
Marita Redondo |
Laurie Tenney
Robin Tenney |
6–3, 7–5 |
| Runner-up |
1. |
May 6, 1974 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
Maricaye Christenson |
Lea Antonoplis
Susan Hagey |
6–3, 6–4 |
| Winner |
3. |
July 8, 1974 |
Raleigh |
Clay |
Rayni Fox |
Lindsay Morse
JoAnne Russell |
5–7, 6–4, 6–2 |
| Winner |
4. |
September 16, 1974 |
Los Angeles |
Hard |
Susan Hagey |
Dodo Cheney
Cynthia-Ann Thomas |
6–2, 6–4 |
| Runner-up |
2. |
August 18, 1975 |
South Orange |
Clay |
Kathleen Harter |
Kristien Shaw
Greer Stevens |
w/o |
| Runner-up |
3. |
November 21, 1978 |
Tokyo |
Hard (i) |
Tracy Austin |
Martina Navratilova
 Betty Stöve |
6–4, 6–7, 3–6 |
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
- A = did not participate in the tournament.
- SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
- Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.