The Growth of National Women's , 1904-1940

ANGELA LUMPKIN

When Mary Outerbridge brought perfecting of styles of play, affirm- the implements of the new British ing that the baseline game, the lawn sport of tennis to Staten Is- -and- game, as well as land in 1874, little did she realize the all-court game were alternative that in just over a quarter of a approaches to victory. In these and century this sport would attract other ways, this Californian sextet women enthusiasts from coast to greatly enhanced the popularity coast. Prior to this national devel- and stature of tennis nationally. opment, however, Victorian fash- Californians did not just start ion and leisurely styles of play mass production of tennis players prevailed as predominately Eastern at the dawn of the twentieth cen- society women embraced the game. tury. While clubs were formed as These Eastern players preferred a early as the 188O's, the ladies were not-too-vigorous, though nonethe- reluctant to play the sport competi- less competitive approach to ten- tively until the late 189O's when nis, hosting their first national numerous women vigorously championship in 1887. This domi- adopted the game (Yates, 1890). nation by Easterners continued un- Tennis in southern California was til 1899 when the first non-East- dominated in the early years of erner won the national champion- the twentieth century by the four ship. Then between 1904-1940, six Sutton sisters, Ethel, Violet, Flor- California ladies (, Mrs. ence, and May. Capturing between , Mary them eighteen Southern California K. Browne, Mrs. Tennis Championships, frequently Moody, , and Alice the quip emerged that it took a Marble) reigned atop the national Sutton to beat a Sutton. A passion- tennis scene capturing twenty- ate and all-consuming devotion to three national titles in singles. In tennis prodded the Suttons to con- addition to their championship per- struct their own court and to formances, these six led in the teach themselves how to play, even with balls minus covers and with borrowed racquets (Hoffman, About the Author 1953). Angela Lumpkin is an Assistant Pro- May Sutton emerged as the best fessor of Physical Education at the Uni- of the quartet and following her versity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. domination of tennis throughout

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California, she travelled to Phila- ratically bounce from the gravel delphia for the national champion- "court," Miss Hotchkiss learned ships in 1904. Although reports of the game that would start a revolu- the higher standards of play in the tion in women's tennis. Also, prac- East had reached the West coast, ticing solo against the wall of the she did not find the competition Hotchkiss house, she learned to too difficult and brought back with carefully control the ball to pre- her the singles and doubles cham- vent a wild stroke from cracking pionships (Sutton, 1912). one of the bay windows on either May Sutton's vigorous game, in- side of her "bandboard" (Wight- cluding strong , an over- man, personal interview, 1973). head, mannish serve, and great Six months after taking up ten- footwork, first signaled a transition nis, Hotchkiss entered her first in the caliber and style of women's tournament, the Bay Counties tennis (Potter, 1963). Sutton car- Women's Doubles Championship. ried her winning style of play to She and her partner won without England in 1905. By defeating Eng- losing a set as Hotchkiss made his- land's best, Dorothea Douglas, in tory with the revolutionary tactics the singles finals, she became the she employed. first American man or woman champion at Wimbledon. Two Standing a yard and a half from years later she again captured the the net when her partner served, she All-England title at Wimbledon intercepted the majority of her op- giving her vigorous, though pre- ponents' returns and volleyed them for winners. She rushed forward to dominately baseline game three the net during rallies whenever a major singles championships. short return provided an opening, During the 1902 Pacific Coast and stayed there instead of retreating Championships a new disciple em- to the backcourt. She followed in braced tennis. Hazel Hotchkiss fell after her betters serves ... to vol- in love with the sport at her first ley the return. These measures thor- oughly demoralized her opponents, sight of championship tennis, such who had been brought up to think as exhibited by Ethel and May that woman's place was the baseline. Sutton and especially by the dou- The emancipation of woman from the bles play of Sam and Sumner backcourt was definitely under way. Hardy. The Hardy brothers' preci- (Wind, 1952, p. 39) sion in volleying and smashing, their split-second maneuvers which From this somewhat spectacular drew opponents out of position, beginning, she developed into an and their quickness at the net kin- artist in doubles play, although in dled a desire in Hotchkiss to play singles she was somewhat less for- similarly (Wind, 1972). midable. A soft serve and less than The graveled backyard of their overpowering drives left her little home in Berkeley encouraged Hazel choice but to move to the net. Hotchkiss and two of her brothers. When she played her volleying Homer and Marius, to adopt the game against opponents who were Hardy brothers' forte. Playing over not hard and accurate hitters, she a rope strung across the yard, was practically unbeatable. dodging rosebrushes, and trying In 1909 Hotchkiss travelled to to hit the ball before it would er- Philadelphia and swept the singles.

48 The Growth of National Women's Tennis, 1904-1940

doubles, and mixed doubles crowns the forecourt. She also moved with her serve-and-volley game. eagerly to the net for volleying She repeated this the next two duels or anywhere on the court years becoming the first person to for smashes. Browne's game was win a triple-triple. based on sound principles of play Following her marriage in 1912 and the court craft to plan her to Bostonian George Wightman, game. Hawthorne (1917) expressed she semi-retired from tennis for it this way, "There is no woman in seven years to rear a family. Dur- the world with a more comprehen- ing these years and those following sive command of strokes and a she befriended numerous Califor- fuller understanding of court tech- nia players who came to play in the nique" (p. 62). eastern tournaments, thereby help- This shift in tennis power from ing bridge the gap between the the East to the West drew many East and the West. During her speculations about the transition. competitive career spanning twen- One contributor to the expertise ty-nine years, she won a total of these California racquet wielders forty-five national titles, including displayed was the all-the-year- four American singles champion- round practice made possible by ships. In addition to competing, the climate. More importantly, Mrs. Wightman taught tennis to however, practice on hard surfaces numerous potential stars and .as- with its resultant development of sisted with the development of speed and accuracy aided perform- others, such as fellow Californians ances. That is, accuracy of strokes Helen Wills and Helen Jacobs. This while reacting to a faster pace grand lady, born only twelve years of play provided the excellent after the first was hit laboratory setting in which to de- in this country reigned as the velop the game of the day, which "Queen Mother" of national wom- stressed fast hitting, fast moving, en's tennis for over half a century. and fast thinking. So, instead of In 1912,1913, and 1914 Mary K. the hesitation prompted by turf, Browne repeated Hotchkiss' triple- asphalt demanded anticipation and triple sweep in the national singles, quicker movement (Freeman, 1914). doubles, and mixed doubles cham- Helen Wills entered the sport- pionships. Browne had learned her ing scene of the 192O's when as a tennis on the fast, hard California schoolgirl-looking prodigy with courts at the hands of long, braided hair, she competed in and her brother, Nat Browne. Mary her first national tournament in K. Browne displayed a distinct net 1922. While losing in the finals. game which she combined with a Wills gleaned a lesson that she re- brilliant, severe overhead game and applied throughout her long and with the ability to force openings brilliant career—"that simplicity of with cunning changes of pace. technique added to directness of With seemingly no weakness, she attack are far more effective than operated her game most effectively fancy spins and exaggerated from just inside the service court strokes" (Davidson & Jones, 1971, line. From this position, she exe- p. 23). She did not favor the use cuted sharp overhead shots and of brute strength, but for her, low volleys at acute angles across power could be obtained through

49 Quest changes in the of the racket Helen Jacobs played an "all- and at the same time be less de- court" game of tennis combining manding. She relied on anticipa- backcourt drives with volleys and tion, not speed of foot. A reverse overheads at the net. She lacked or a slice adequately replaced any some power and top spin on her need for a kicking, overpowering drives, yet substituted sliced fore- serve as used by men. Even with hands and which be- hard-hitting baseline drives, her came devastating weapons against play was essentially feminine as most of her opponents. Jacobs to women players at all levels of abil- date has remained the only woman ity identified with her style of play champion to win the American sin- (Metzler, 1970). gles title four consecutive years Wills' powerful game of ground- (1932-1935). strokes with seldom any net play Mrs. Hazel Wightman after "dis- proved effective enough to bring covering" and instructing both her seven American singles titles Wills and Jacobs, recommended and eight All-England singles that they play each other to pro- crowns in fifteen years—a record mote tennis in California. This set unmatched by any other woman. the stage for their first match, She also captured four French ti- which the older Wills won easily. tles. Combined, this made Helen Because of the age and experience Wills the "Queen" of women's differences favoring Wills and tennis from 1926-1938. making the matches one-sided, the Contemporary with Helen Wills, exhibitions did not work out, but and ironically from the same home these two champions continued to town, was the "Other Helen." oppose each other occasionally in Helen Jacobs, two years junior to tournament finals. The press at the Helen Wills, followed in the foot- time, and historians since then, steps, and often the shadow, of the have misrepresented their relation- older champion. In her own right, ship as a feud. Mrs. Wightman, though, Jacobs did develop into a who knew both well, emphasized champion with the assistance of the differences in their personali- some good teachers. ties, their ambitions, and their overall attitudes as the reasons that they were not close friends. Those who did the most for me But, she affirmed, they were not during the formative years of my enemies (Wightman, personal in- tennis career were William C. "Pop" Fuller, of the Berkeley Tennis Club. terview, 1973). Jacobs agreed that Mr. Fuller was a retired druggist with their relationship was merely "an a great love and knowledge of the intense competitive tennis situa- game. He also coached Helen Wills tion" (personal correspondence). and other young players of the time. In Jacobs' only defeat of Mrs. Mrs. Hazel Wightman, on visits to Helen Wills Moody in a national her home town, Berkeley, was very helpful to me, as was , singles championship in 1933, the over the years. Mrs. Wightman and older champion defaulted in the I have always been friends, and she third set due to a back injury. The did much to instil (sic) in me the im- aftermath, although distorted by portance of calm concentration on the many, showed no harsh attitudes, court. . . . (personal correspondence) nor reactions, between the two

50 The Growth of National Women's Termis, 1904-1940

champions. Two years later on the before enjoyed by any other woman center court at Wimbledon the re- player in the history of the sport, for match of the century pitted the two she stands supreme in overhead play Helens against one another. Vic- among the immortals of the game. torious, Mrs. Moody achieved vin- (Nason, et al., 1940, p. 309) dication from the repercussions of the 1933 default and forced Jacobs Two limitations prevented Mar- to have to wait until 1936 for her ble from attaining the heights pre- Wimbledon singles crown. dicted by conjecturers during her The two Helens bequeathed early years in national tourna- their champion-status to San Fran- ments. First, she experienced a cisco's who became health problem. A bout with sun- America's singles title holder in stroke and anemia in a 1933 tour- 1936. Encouraged by her brother nament when she played 11 sets Dan, Marble eagerly pursued ten- and 108 games in one day followed nis, mostly on her own without by a disease diagnosed as tubercu- formal lessons. Even after she be- losis appeared to terminate her gan tournament competition, she career. Marble's determination and still lacked knowledge of the ba- courage, however, combined to re- sics of strokes and strategy. At her place an invalid life with four na- first national tournament. Marble tional singles titles within five was advised by fellow Californian years. Secondly, Marble traded in and former champion, Mary K. her amateur status in 1940 for a Browne, to secure a coach to teach professional tour as Mary K. her these basics. Taking Browne's Browne had done in 1926. Marble advice, she secured two coaches, described her decision to accept Harwood White who changed the tour as follows: "I turned pro- her grip and taught her the basics fessional to pay back a number of of the strokes and Eleanor Ten- obligations and because tennis was nant who helped perfect these and over in Europe due to the war" who became her career coach (personal correspondence). Thus, (Marble, 1946). the annals of tennis will never re- Marble was the first woman to cord the heights to which Marble play the so-called "big game," might have attained if she had adopting from men stars such as been healthy and if she had con- Maurice McLaughlin and Ellsworth tinued to have international tourna- Vines the big serve-and-power ment opportunities as an amateur. game. With a kicking action and a Two summarizing observations mighty swing, she exhibited the concerning the six California cham- first power serve used consistently pions who led women's tennis dur- and successfully by a woman. Fol- ing the first forty years of the lowing this attacking serve, she twentieth century have been made moved to the net to intercept any by this writer. During the thirty- returns with vicious overheads and seven years between May Sutton's well-placed volleys. only national singles title in 1904 and Alice Marble's last singles Her first hard-kicking American- crown in 1940, this sextet won the twist serve and the finality of her American championship twenty- smashes give her an advantage never three times. They also won twelve

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Wimbledon crowns. Secondly, a (Painesville Telegraph, June 15, parallel has been drawn between 1934, p. 12). their styles of play, with two peo- Only once in history have Amer- ple representing each of the three ican women vied for gold in Olym- general "games." May Sutton and pic tennis competition. In the 1924 Mrs. Helen Wills Moody predomi- games in Paris, France, Mrs. Hazel nately played a driving, baseline Wightman captured two gold med- game. Mrs. Hazel Hotchkiss als in women's doubles and in Wightman and Alice Marble based mixed doubles, while Helen Wills their game on advancing to the captured the singles gold medal net for volleys, although Marble and teamed with Wightman for added the power serve. Mary K. the doubles win—a complete sweep Browne and Helen Jacobs com- of the gold medals by the American bined with volleys women (Schaap, 1963). and overheads to exhibit more of Lastly, as a combined contribu- an all-court game. These observa- tion to tennis both on and off the tions, hopefully, have reempha- court, Mrs. Hazel Wightman con- sized the leadership in style and ceived the idea of an international caliber of play displayed by those competition. Once the concept crys- West Coast champions. tallized, she recommended an inter- In addition to vying for numer- national team match to the president ous national championships, these of the Lawn Tennis six winners influenced other fac- Association in 1920 and even pur- ets of the sport. May Sutton with chased and donated a cup for the her shorter skirts, fewer petticoats, event. Forgotten until the stadium avoidance of high-collared shirt- at Forest Hills, New York, needed waists, and rolled up sleeves, pio- a distinguished opening event in neered women's emancipation from 1923, suddenly, the "Wightman medieval sports attire (Cummings, Cup" matches became a reality. 1957). Mrs. Helen Wills Moody First pitting America's and Eng- popularized the use of a white land's finest women players, the eyeshade. Both Helen Jacobs and challenge matches continued to in- Alice Marble favored shorts rather clude only these two nations. Led than dresses for play. by Wightman, Browne, Wills, Ja- Competition for college-age cobs, and Marble the United States women, non-existent prior to the captured the thir- 193O's, was initiated by Mrs. Hazel teen times between 1923-1940. Wightman through invitational col- Dominate, indeed they did! legiate tournaments in Boston (per- These six Californians contributed sonal correspondence). Mary K. the new and perfected styles of Browne expanded this idea opening play which captured champion- the tournaments she co-sponsored ships during the early twentieth with Ohio's Lake Erie College to century. They influenced clothing college women, plus others who styles and expanded competitive could add to the caliber of play. opportunities both nationally and The first of the Mary K. Browne internationally. Without them, ten- Invitational Tournaments took nis as known in the 197O's might place on the courts of Lake Erie indeed have advanced toward its College on June 14, 15, 16, 1934 present popularity much slower.

52 The Growth of National Women's Tennis, 1904-1940

At least, these women played a Painesville (Ohio) Telegraph, June 15, viable part in the development of 1934, p. 12. tennis into a truly national sport Personal correspondence between Helen Hull Jacobs and the writer. and pastime. Personal correspondence between Alice Marble and the writer. Personal correspondence between Mrs. REFERENCES Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman and the Cummings, P., American tennis, Boston: writer. Little, Brown and Company, 1957. Potter, E. C, Jr., Kings of the court. Davidson, O. and Jones, C. M., Great New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, women tennis players, : Pel- 1963. ham Books, 1971. Schaap, R., An illustrated history of the Olympics, New York: Alfred A. Freeman, L. R., Why California tennis Knopf, 1963. players win. Outing, LXV, October, Sutton, M. -G., My career as a lawn 1914. tennis player, American lawn tennis, Hawthorne, F., Following the ball. Out- VI, May 15, 1912. ing, LXXI, October, 1917. Wind, H. W., Profiles: Run Helen!, The Hoffman, J., The Sutton sisters. The New Yorker, XXVIII, August 30, 1952, racquet, XLVIII, August, 1953. p. 39. Marble, A., The road to Wimbledon, Wind, H. W., The story of Hazel Hotch- New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, kiss Wightman, The fireside book of 1946. tennis, eds. Allison Danzig and Peter Metzler, P., Tennis styles and stylists. Schwed, New York: Simon and Schus- New York: The Macmillan Company, ter, Inc., 1972. 1970. Wightman, H. H., personal interview, Nason, J. et. al.. Famous athletes of to- December 7, 1973. day, Boston: L. C. Page and Com- Yates, C. R., Lawn tennis on the Pacific pany, 1940. Coast, Outing, XVI, July, 1890.

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