James Dwight
Dwight (before 1903) | |
Country (sports) | United States |
---|---|
Born | July 14, 1852 Paris, France |
Died | July 13, 1917(1917-07-13) (aged 64) Mattapoisett, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Turned pro | 1876 (amateur tour) |
Retired | 1913 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Int. Tennis HoF | 1955 (member page) |
Singles | |
Career record | 87–30 (74.3%) [1] |
Career titles | 12 [1] |
Grand Slam singles results | |
Wimbledon | SF (1885) |
US Open | F (1883) |
Doubles | |
Grand Slam doubles results | |
Wimbledon | SF (1884, 1885) |
US Open | W (1882, 1883, 1884, 1886, 1887) |
James Dwight (July 14, 1852, France – July 13, 1917[2]) was an American tennis player who was known as the "Founding Father of American Tennis".[3]
Biography
Dwight won the first recorded tournament in the U.S. (and probably in the world, before the first Wimbledon Championships) played in August 1876 on the property of his uncle, William Appleton, at Nahant, Massachusetts. After graduating from Harvard in 1874, he traveled in Europe, saw the new sport of lawn tennis being played, and brought the necessary equipment home. Then he persuaded his uncle to mark out a court on his smooth front lawn so he could play a game with his cousin Fred Sears.
That first attempt was disappointing. Dwight later wrote "we voted the whole thing a fraud and put it away." About a month later, they tried again as a way of passing time on a rainy day. This time, tennis seemed much more interesting, even though they were wearing rubber boots and raincoats. The 1876 tournament was a neighborhood affair: "it was played on handicap on a round robin basis. There were two players on scratch, James Dwight and Fred D Sears Jr., each of whom played against 11 other players until a final between them. Rackets scoring was used...Dwight beat Sears 12–15 15–7 15–13.[4] By then, Dwight and Sears had taught the game to a number of people, including Richard Dudley "Dick" Sears, another cousin, who went on to win the first seven national singles championships.
Dwight was one of the founders of the U.S. National Lawn Tennis Association in 1881, and he served as its president for 21 years. He never won the singles championship, but he reached the tournament final in 1883 losing to Richard Sears, with whom he did team to take five national doubles titles, from 1882 through 1884 and from 1886 through 1887. In a rare transatlantic trip in those days, James Dwight entered the 1884 and 1885 Wimbledon tournaments, reaching the semifinals in 1885 (losing to Herbert Lawford).[5]
His other career tournaments singles wins include the Longwood Bowl in Boston (1884), the Brighton Lawn Tennis Club Tournament (1885), Brincliffe Lawn Tennis Club Open Tournament (1885) held at Sheffield in England, the Warwickshire Championships (1885, 1887), the Northern Championships (1885), the Brookfield Isle of Wight Open (1884-1885), and the West of England Championships (1886).
He was inducted to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1955.[6]
Grand Slam finals
Singles (1 runner-up)
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1883 | U.S. National Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | 2–6, 0–6, 7–9 |
Doubles (5 titles)
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1882 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | Crawford Nightingale G M Smith | 6–2, 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 1883 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | Alexander Van Rensselaer Arthur Newbold | 6–0, 6–2, 6–2 |
Win | 1884 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | Alexander Van Rensselaer W.V.R. Berry | 6–4, 6–1, 8–10, 6–4 |
Win | 1886 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | Howard Taylor Godfrey Brinley | 6–3, 6–0, 6–2 |
Win | 1887 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Richard Sears | Howard Taylor Henry Slocum | 6–4, 3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–3 |
See also
Notes
- ^ a b "Player – James Dwight". www.tennisarchives.com. Idzznew BV. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ Harvard Alumni Bulletin, Volume 20, 1917 (retrieved 13 April 2015).
- ^ Warren F. Kimball (2017). The United States Tennis Association : Raising the Game. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-0803296930.
By 1886 Dwight was already considered the 'father of American lawn tennis.'
- ^ The Guinness book of Tennis Facts & Feats, 1983 edition, page 11, by Lance Tingay
- ^ Collins, Bud (2016). The Bud Collins History of Tennis (3rd ed.). New York: New Chapter Press. p. 441. ISBN 978-1-937559-38-0.
- ^ Grasso, John (2011-09-16). Historical Dictionary of Tennis. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810872370.
External links
- James Dwight at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
- Works by James Dwight at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about James Dwight at Internet Archive
- v
- t
- e
- 1881: Clarence Clark / Frederick Winslow Taylor
- 1882: Richard Sears / James Dwight
- 1883: Richard Sears / James Dwight
- 1884: Richard Sears / James Dwight
- 1885: Richard Sears / Joseph Clark
- 1886: Richard Sears / James Dwight
- 1887: Richard Sears / James Dwight
- 1888: Oliver Campbell / Valentine Hall
- 1889: Henry Slocum / Howard Taylor
- 1890: Valentine Hall / Clarence Hobart
- 1891: Oliver Campbell / Bob Huntington
- 1892: Oliver Campbell / Bob Huntington
- 1893: Clarence Hobart / Fred Hovey
- 1894: Clarence Hobart / Fred Hovey
- 1895: Malcolm Chace / Robert Wrenn
- 1896: Carr Neel / Sam Neel
- 1897: Leo Ware / George Sheldon
- 1898: Leo Ware / George Sheldon
- 1899: Holcombe Ward / Dwight F. Davis
- 1900: Holcombe Ward / Dwight F. Davis
- 1901: Holcombe Ward / Dwight F. Davis
- 1902: Reginald Doherty / Laurence Doherty
- 1903: Reginald Doherty / Laurence Doherty
- 1904: Holcombe Ward / Beals Wright
- 1905: Holcombe Ward / Beals Wright
- 1906: Holcombe Ward / Beals Wright
- 1907: Fred Alexander / Harold Hackett
- 1908: Fred Alexander / Harold Hackett
- 1909: Fred Alexander / Harold Hackett
- 1910: Fred Alexander / Harold Hackett
- 1911: Raymond Little / Gus Touchard
- 1912: Maurice McLoughlin / Tom Bundy
- 1913: Maurice McLoughlin / Tom Bundy
- 1914: Maurice McLoughlin / Tom Bundy
- 1915: Clarence Griffin / Bill Johnston
- 1916: Clarence Griffin / Bill Johnston
- 1917: Fred Alexander / Harold Throckmorton
- 1918: Vincent Richards / Bill Tilden
- 1919: Norman Brookes / Gerald Patterson
- 1920: Clarence Griffin / Bill Johnston
- 1921: Vincent Richards / Bill Tilden
- 1922: Vincent Richards / Bill Tilden
- 1923: Brian Norton / Bill Tilden
- 1924: Howard Kinsey / Robert Kinsey
- 1925: Vincent Richards / R. Norris Williams
- 1926: Vincent Richards / R. Norris Williams
- 1927: Frank Hunter / Bill Tilden
- 1928: George Lott / John F. Hennessey
- 1929: George Lott / John Doeg
- 1930: George Lott / John Doeg
- 1931: Wilmer Allison / John Van Ryn
- 1932: Ellsworth Vines / Keith Gledhill
- 1933: George Lott / Lester Stoefen
- 1934: George Lott / Lester Stoefen
- 1935: Wilmer Allison / John Van Ryn
- 1936: Don Budge / Gene Mako
- 1937: Gottfried von Cramm / Henner Henkel
- 1938: Don Budge / Gene Mako
- 1939: John Bromwich / Adrian Quist
- 1940: Jack Kramer / Ted Schroeder
- 1941: Jack Kramer / Ted Schroeder
- 1942: Gardnar Mulloy / Bill Talbert
- 1943: Jack Kramer / Frank Parker
- 1944: Robert Falkenburg / Don McNeill
- 1945: Gardnar Mulloy / Bill Talbert
- 1946: Gardnar Mulloy / Bill Talbert
- 1947: Jack Kramer / Ted Schroeder
- 1948: Gardnar Mulloy / Bill Talbert
- 1949: John Bromwich / Bill Sidwell
- 1950: John Bromwich / Frank Sedgman
- 1951: Ken McGregor / Frank Sedgman
- 1952: Mervyn Rose / Vic Seixas
- 1953: Rex Hartwig / Mervyn Rose
- 1954: Vic Seixas / Tony Trabert
- 1955: Kosei Kamo / Atsushi Miyagi
- 1956: Lew Hoad / Ken Rosewall
- 1957: Ashley Cooper / Neale Fraser
- 1958: Alex Olmedo / Ham Richardson
- 1959: Roy Emerson / Neale Fraser
- 1960: Roy Emerson / Neale Fraser
- 1961: Chuck McKinley / Dennis Ralston
- 1962: Rafael Osuna / Antonio Palafox
- 1963: Chuck McKinley / Dennis Ralston
- 1964: Chuck McKinley / Dennis Ralston
- 1965: Roy Emerson / Fred Stolle
- 1966: Roy Emerson / Fred Stolle
- 1967: John Newcombe / Tony Roche
- 1968: Bob Lutz / Stan Smith
- 1969: Ken Rosewall / Fred Stolle
- 1970: Pierre Barthès / Nikola Pilić
- 1971: John Newcombe / Roger Taylor
- 1972: Cliff Drysdale / Roger Taylor
- 1973: Owen Davidson / John Newcombe
- 1974: Bob Lutz / Stan Smith
- 1975: Jimmy Connors / Ilie Năstase
- 1976: Tom Okker / Marty Riessen
- 1977: Bob Hewitt / Frew McMillan
- 1978: Bob Lutz / Stan Smith
- 1979: Peter Fleming / John McEnroe
- 1980: Bob Lutz / Stan Smith
- 1981: Peter Fleming / John McEnroe
- 1982: Kevin Curren / Steve Denton
- 1983: Peter Fleming / John McEnroe
- 1984: John Fitzgerald / Tomáš Šmíd
- 1985: Ken Flach / Robert Seguso
- 1986: Andrés Gómez / Slobodan Živojinović
- 1987: Stefan Edberg / Anders Järryd
- 1988: Sergio Casal / Emilio Sánchez
- 1989: John McEnroe / Mark Woodforde
- 1990: Pieter Aldrich / Danie Visser
- 1991: John Fitzgerald / Anders Järryd
- 1992: Jim Grabb / Richey Reneberg
- 1993: Ken Flach / Rick Leach
- 1994: Jacco Eltingh / Paul Haarhuis
- 1995: Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde
- 1996: Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde
- 1997: Yevgeny Kafelnikov / Daniel Vacek
- 1998: Sandon Stolle / Cyril Suk
- 1999: Sébastien Lareau / Alex O'Brien
- 2000: Lleyton Hewitt / Max Mirnyi
- 2001: Wayne Black / Kevin Ullyett
- 2002: Mahesh Bhupathi / Max Mirnyi
- 2003: Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge
- 2004: Mark Knowles / Daniel Nestor
- 2005: Mike Bryan / Bob Bryan
- 2006: Martin Damm / Leander Paes
- 2007: Simon Aspelin / Julian Knowle
- 2008: Mike Bryan / Bob Bryan
- 2009: Lukáš Dlouhý / Leander Paes
- 2010: Mike Bryan / Bob Bryan
- 2011: Jürgen Melzer / Philipp Petzschner
- 2012: Mike Bryan / Bob Bryan
- 2013: Leander Paes / Radek Štěpánek
- 2014: Mike Bryan / Bob Bryan
- 2015: Pierre-Hugues Herbert / Nicolas Mahut
- 2016: Jamie Murray / Bruno Soares
- 2017: Jean-Julien Rojer / Horia Tecău
- 2018: Mike Bryan / Jack Sock
- 2019: Juan Sebastián Cabal / Robert Farah
- 2020: Mate Pavić / Bruno Soares
- 2021: Rajeev Ram / Joe Salisbury
- 2022: Rajeev Ram / Joe Salisbury
- 2023: Rajeev Ram / Joe Salisbury