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, New York, U.S.
Died	December 2, 1981(1981-12-02) (aged 87) Palm Beach, Florida, 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)
hide 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 a member of the Quill and Dagger society and the ice hockey team.

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, then lost 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, then lost 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, losing in five sets to Bill Tilden).^[5] 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][6]

Hunter turned professional in mid January 1931 joining Bill Tilden.^[7] He reached the final of the U.S. Pro championships in 1933 (losing to Vincent Richards).^[8] 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.^[9]

Grand Slam finals[]

Singles: 3 runners-up[]

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	1923	Wimbledon	Grass	Bill Johnston	0–6, 3–6, 1–6	[10]
Loss	1928	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Henri Cochet	6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 5–7, 3–6	[11]
Loss	1929	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Bill Tilden	6–3, 3–6, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6	[11]

Doubles: 3 titles[]

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1924	Wimbledon	Grass	Vincent Richards	Watson Washburn R. Norris Williams	6−3, 3−6, 8−10, 8−6, 6−3	[12]
Win	1927	Wimbledon	Grass	Bill Tilden	Jacques Brugnon Henri Cochet	1–6, 4–6, 8–6, 6–3, 6–4	[12]
Win	1927	U.S. National Championships	Grass	Bill Tilden	R. Norris Williams Bill Johnston	10–8, 6–3, 6–3	[13]

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

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1927	Wimbledon	Grass	Elizabeth Ryan	Kathleen McKane Godfree Leslie Godfree	8–6, 6–0	[14]
Loss	1928	French Championships	Clay	Helen Wills	Eileen Bennett Henri Cochet	6–3, 3–6, 3–6
Loss	1929	French Championships	Clay	Helen Wills	Eileen Bennett Henri Cochet	3–6, 2–6
Win	1929	[Wimbledon	Grass	Helen Wills	Joan Fry Ian Collins	6–1, 6–4	[14]

References[]

External links[]

• Francis Hunter at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
• Francis Hunter at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Francis Hunter at the International Tennis Federation
• Francis Hunter at the Davis Cup
• Olympics profile