Doris Hart

Doris Hart Biography

Doris Hart (June 20, 1925 - May 29, 2015) was a World No. 1 American tennis player who was active in the 1940s and first half of the 1950s and was ranked No. 1 in 1951. She won a Career Grand Slam in singles and is one of three players to have a "boxed set" of Grand Slam titles"?every possible title (singles, doubles, and mixed doubles) from all four Grand Slam events.

Tennis career

As a child, Hart suffered from osteomyelitis, which resulted in a permanently impaired right leg. She started playing tennis when she was 10 years old, greatly encouraged by her brother Bud.

Hart's first Grand Slam title was in women's doubles at Wimbledon in 1947, when she was still a student at the University of Miami. Her first Grand Slam singles title came at the 1949 Australian Championships. She also won singles titles at the French Championships in 1950 and 1952, Wimbledon in 1951, and the U.S. Championships in 1954 and 1955. In 1951, she beat her long-time doubles partner, Shirley Fry Irvin, in the Wimbledon final. Hart is the first person to complete the career boxed set.

In 1951, Hart won the singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles championships at Wimbledon, playing the finals of all three events on the same day (Saturday 7 July 1951). She also won the "triple crown" at the French Championships in 1952 and the U.S. Championships in 1954.

During her Wightman Cup career from 1946 through 1955, Hart was a perfect 14-0 in singles matches and 8-1 in doubles matches. Hart won 35 Grand Slam titles during her career, tying with Brough for fifth on the all-time list. Six of her titles were in women's singles, 14 in women's doubles, and 15 in mixed doubles. Hart is one of three players, all women, to have a "boxed set" of Grand Slam titles"?every possible title (singles, doubles, and mixed doubles) from all four Grand Slam events. The others are Margaret Court and Martina Navratilova. Hart won nine consecutive Grand Slam women's doubles titles from 1951 through 1953, with her streak of 43 consecutive match wins in Grand Slam women's doubles tournaments finally ending in the 1954 Wimbledon final. Hart was the champion of the last Grand Slam singles tournament she played, the 1955 U.S. Championships. Hart published an autobiography in 1955, Tennis with Hart.

According to John Olliff and Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, Hart was ranked in the world top ten from 1946 through 1955 (no rankings issued from 1940 through 1945), reaching a career high of World No. 1 in those rankings in 1951. Hart was included in the year-end top ten rankings issued by the United States Lawn Tennis Association from 1942 through 1955. She was the top ranked U.S. player in 1954 and 1955.

Hart retired from the tour in 1955 to become a tennis teaching professional. She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1969. She died on May 29, 2015 at her home in Coral Gables, Florida, aged 89.

Grand Slam record

Australian Championships (4)
- Singles champion: 1949
- Singles runner-up: 1950
- Women's Doubles champion: 1950
- Women's Doubles runner-up: 1949
- Mixed Doubles champion (2): 1949, 1950
French Championships (10)
- Singles champion (2): 1950, 1952
- Singles runner-up (3): 1947, 1951, 1953
- Women's Doubles champion (5): 1948, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953
- Women's Doubles runner-up (2): 1946, 1947
- Mixed Doubles champion (3): 1951, 1952, 1953
- Mixed Doubles runner-up: 1948
Wimbledon (10)
- Singles champion: 1951
- Singles runner-up (3): 1947, 1948, 1953
- Women's Doubles champion (4): 1947, 1951, 1952, 1953
- Women's Doubles runner-up (4): 1946, 1948, 1950, 1954
- Mixed Doubles champion (5): 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955
- Mixed Doubles runner-up: 1948
U.S. Championships (11)
- Singles champion (2): 1954, 1955
- Singles runner-up (5): 1946, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953
- Women's Doubles champion (4): 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954
- Women's Doubles runner-up (9): 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1955
- Mixed Doubles champion (5): 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955
- Mixed Doubles runner-up (2): 1945, 1950

Grand Slam finals

Singles (6 titles, 12 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1946	U.S. Championships	Grass	Pauline Betz	9-11, 3-6
Runner-up	1947	Wimbledon	Grass	Margaret Osborne duPont	2-6, 4-6
Runner-up	1947	French Championships	Clay	Pat Canning Todd	3-6, 6-3, 4-6
Runner-up	1948	Wimbledon	Grass	Louise Brough	3-6, 6-8
Winner	1949	Australian Championships	Grass	Nancye Wynne Bolton	6-3, 6-4
Runner-up	1949	U.S. Championships	Grass	Margaret Osborne duPont	3-6, 1-6
Runner-up	1950	Australian Championships	Grass	Louise Brough	4-6, 6-3, 4-6
Winner	1950	French Championships	Clay	Pat Canning Todd	6-4, 4-6, 6-2
Runner-up	1950	U.S. Championships	Grass	Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 3-6
Runner-up	1951	French Championships	Clay	Shirley Fry	3-6, 6-3, 3-6
Winner	1951	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	6-1, 6-0
Winner	1952	French Championships (2)	Clay	Shirley Fry	6-4, 6-4
Runner-up	1952	U.S. Championships	Grass	Maureen Connolly	3-6, 5-7
Runner-up	1953	French Championships	Clay	Maureen Connolly	2-6, 4-6
Runner-up	1953	Wimbledon	Grass	Maureen Connolly	6-8, 5-7
Runner-up	1953	U.S. Championships	Grass	Maureen Connolly	2-6, 4-6
Winner	1954	U.S. Championships	Grass	Louise Brough	6-8, 6-1, 8-6
Winner	1955	U.S. Championships (2)	Grass	Patricia Ward	6-4, 6-2

Doubles (14 titles, 15 runner-ups)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1942	U.S. Championships	Grass	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-2, 5-7, 0-6
Runner-up	1943	U.S. Championships	Grass	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 3-6
Runner-up	1944	U.S. Championships	Grass	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-4, 4-6, 3-6
Runner-up	1945	U.S. Championships	Grass	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	3-6, 3-6
Runner-up	1946	Wimbledon	Grass	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	3-6, 6-2, 3-6
Runner-up	1946	French Championships	Clay	Pauline Betz	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 6-0, 1-6
Runner-up	1947	French Championships	Clay	Patricia Canning Todd	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	5-7, 2-6
Winner	1947	Wimbledon	Grass	Patricia Canning Todd	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	3-6, 6-4, 7-5
Runner-up	1947	U.S. Championships	Grass	Patricia Canning Todd	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	7-5, 3-6, 5-7
Winner	1948	French Championships	Clay	Patricia Canning Todd	Mary Prentiss Shirley Fry	6-4, 6-2
Runner-up	1948	Wimbledon	Grass	Patricia Canning Todd	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	1-6, 1-6
Runner-up	1948	U.S. Championships	Grass	Patricia Canning Todd	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 10-8, 1-6
Runner-up	1949	Australian Championships	Grass	Marie Toomey	Nancye Wynne Bolton Thelma Coyne Long	0-6, 1-6
Runner-up	1949	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 8-10
Winner	1950	Australian Championships	Grass	Louise Brough	Nancye Wynne Bolton Thelma Coyne Long	6-3, 2-6, 6-3
Winner	1950	French Championships	Clay	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	1-6, 7-5, 6-2
Runner-up	1950	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	4-6, 7-5, 1-6
Runner-up	1950	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	2-6, 3-6
Winner	1951	French Championships	Clay	Shirley Fry	Beryl Bartlett Barbara Scofield	10-8, 6-3
Winner	1951	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-2, 13-11
Winner	1951	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Nancy Chaffee Patricia Canning Todd	6-4, 6-2
Winner	1952	French Championships	Clay	Shirley Fry	Hazel Redick-Smith Julia Wipplinger	7-5, 6-1
Winner	1952	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Maureen Connolly	8-6, 6-3
Winner	1952	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Maureen Connolly	10-8, 6-4
Winner	1953	French Championships	Clay	Shirley Fry	Maureen Connolly Julia Sampson	6-4, 6-3
Winner	1953	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	Maureen Connolly Julia Sampson	6-0, 6-0
Winner	1953	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-2, 7-9, 9-7
Runner-up	1954	Wimbledon	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-4, 7-9, 1-6
Winner	1954	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	6-4, 6-4
Runner-up	1955	U.S. Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Louise Brough Margaret Osborne duPont	3-6, 6-1, 3-6

Grand Slam tournament timelines

Singles

Tournament	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946¹	1947¹	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	Career SR
Australian Championships	A	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	A	A	A	W	F	A	A	A	A	A	1 / 2
French Championships	NH	R	R	R	R	A	QF	F	SF	A	W	F	W	F	A	A	2 / 7
Wimbledon	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	QF	F	F	A	SF	W	QF	F	SF	SF	1 / 9
U.S. Championships	2R	1R	QF	SF	QF	SF	F	SF	QF	F	F	SF	F	F	W	W	2 / 16
SR	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	1 / 2	1 / 4	1 / 3	1 / 3	0 / 3	1 / 2	1 / 2	6 / 34

Doubles

Tournament	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946¹	1947¹	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956- 1967	1968	1969	Career SR
Australian Championships	NH	NH	NH	NH	A	A	A	F	W	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	1 / 2
French Championships	R	R	R	A	F	F	W	A	W	W	W	W	A	A	A	A	A	5 / 7
Wimbledon	NH	NH	NH	NH	F	W	F	A	F	W	W	W	F	2R	A	2R	A	4 / 10
U.S. Championships	F	F	F	F	SF	F	F	F	F	W	W	W	W	F	A	A	1R	4 / 15
SR	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 3	1 / 3	1 / 3	0 / 2	2 / 4	3 / 3	3 / 3	3 / 3	1 / 2	0 / 2	0 / 0	0 / 1	0 / 1	14 / 34

Mixed doubles

Tournament	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946¹	1947¹	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956-1968	1969	Career SR
Australian Championships	A	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	A	A	A	W	W	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	2 / 2
French Championships	NH	R	R	R	R	A	2R	?	F	A	?	W	W	W	A	A	A	A	3 / ?
Wimbledon	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	NH	4R	SF	F	A	SF	W	W	W	W	W	A	A	5 / 9
U.S. Championships	?	?	?	1R	QF	F	QF	1R	SF	QF	F	W	W	W	W	W	A	QF	5 / ?
SR	0 / ?	0 / ?	0 / ?	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / 1	0 / ?	1 / ?	0 / ?	1 / 2	1 / ?	3 / 3	3 / 3	3 / 3	2 / 2	2 / 2	0 / 0	0 / 1	15 / ?

R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
¹In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.