Julius Seligson
Country (sports) | ![]() |
---|---|
Born | December 22, 1909 New York City, NY |
Died | October 13, 1987 | (aged 77)
College | Lehigh University |
Singles | |
Highest ranking | No. 8 in USTA Singles (1928) |
Julius "Julie" Seligson (December 22, 1909, in New York City – October 13, 1987) was an American tennis player in the early part of the 20th century.
Seligson was ranked as high as # 8 in USTA Singles in 1928.[1] In 1928 he won the NCAA Men's Tennis Championship in singles. He was inducted into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.
Early and personal life[]
Seligson was born in New York City, New York, and was Jewish, and experienced anti-Semitism in tennis.[2][3][4][5] He attended Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School.[4]
In 1937 he married Gertrude "Gerry" Seligson (nee Goodman).[6] They lived in Westport, Connecticut, from 1948 on.[7][6]
Tennis career[]
As a junior he was the national boy's 18-and-under champion in 1925 and 1926.[7] In 1927 he won the Eastern Grass Court Championships.
He played collegiate tennis at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, from which he graduated in 1930.[3][8] Seligson never lost a regular season match.[8] In 1928 he won the NCAA Men's Tennis Championship in singles, beating Ben Gorchakoff 6–1, 6–1, 6–1, to become Lehigh’s first individual national champion.[9][8] [2] He won 66 straight matches, before losing in the 1930 NCAA finals 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, 8–6 to Cliff Sutter of Tulane.[8][7]
He won the NCAA indoor singles championship in 1928, 1929, and 1930.[8] In 1930 he also won the Eastern Clay Court Championships.[10]
Seligson was ranked as high as # 8 in USTA Singles in 1928.[1]
In 1928 and 1930, he was a singles finalist at the U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships. In 1929, at the Cincinnati Masters, he reached the singles final, where he lost to Herbert Bowman in four sets: 6–2, 4–6, 4–6, 1–6.
He later turned professional and won three titles at the Metropolitan Clay Court Championship.[8]
Halls of Fame[]
In 1992, he was inducted into the Lehigh University Athletic Hall of Fame, and in 2002 he was enshrined into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.[8][11]
After tennis career[]
After graduation he became an insurance broker.[10]
Seligson died in 1987 of a malignant melanoma at his home in Westport, Connecticut. He was 77 years old.[12][8]
See also[]
- List of select Jewish tennis players
References[]
- ^ a b The American Hebrew. American Hebrew. September 22, 1940 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Seligson, Julie : Jews In Sports @ Virtual Museum
- ^ a b Wechsler, Bob (2008). Day by Day in Jewish Sports History. KTAV Publishing House, Inc. ISBN 9780881259698 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Baltzell, E. Digby (2017). Sporting Gentlemen: Men's Tennis from the Age of Honor to the Cult of the Superstar. Routledge. ISBN 9781351488341 – via Google Books.
- ^ Postal, Bernard; Silver, Jesse; Silver, Roy (September 22, 1965). Encyclopedia of Jews in Sports. Bloch Publishing Company – via Google Books.
- ^ a b "Gertrude "Gerry" Seligson, 95". WestportNow.
- ^ a b c "Julius Seligson". October 14, 1987 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Traditions & History & - Hall of Fame". Lehigh University Athletics.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on May 12, 2005. Retrieved 2007-02-21.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ^ a b "Lehigh - Julius Seligson". history.lehighsports.com.
- ^ "Rick Leach To Be Inducted To ITA Hall Of Fame". USC Athletics.
- ^ "Julius Seligson obituary". The New York Times. October 14, 1987. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
External links[]
- Lehigh University alumni
- Jewish tennis players
- 1909 births
- Jewish American sportspeople
- Sportspeople from New York City
- 1987 deaths
- American male tennis players
- Tennis people from New York (state)
- Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School alumni
- 20th-century American Jews