Penelope Dora Harvey Boothby (2 August 1881 – 22 February 1970) was an English
female tennis player
This is a list of female tennis players who meet one or more of the following criteria:
* Singles:
**Officially ranked among the top 25 by the Women's Tennis Association (since 1975)
**Ranked among the top 10 by an expert (e.g. A. Wallis Myers) ...
. She was born in
Finchley
Finchley () is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet. Finchley is on high ground, north of Charing Cross.
Nearby districts include: Golders Green, Muswell Hill, Friern Barnet, Whetstone, Mill Hill and H ...
,
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
. She is best remembered for her ladies' singles title at the 1909
Wimbledon Championships
The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
.
Biography
Boothby was born in Finchley, and with her older sister Gertrude, lived there with her step-parents Harry and Gertrude Penn. Harry was a civil engineer, and by 1901, they had moved to
South Norwood
South Norwood is a district of south-east London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon, Greater London and formerly in the historic county of Surrey. It is located 7.8 miles (12.5 km) south-east of Charing Cross, north of Wood ...
, where she played at Beulah Hill Club, and during the winter months, she played badminton.
In 1908, she won a silver medal in the
women's singles event at the
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were ori ...
.
In 1909, when she won the Ladies' Singles at
Wimbledon
Wimbledon most often refers to:
* Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London
* Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships
Wimbledon may also refer to:
Places London
* ...
, the runner-up of the
Men's Singles,
Josiah Ritchie
Major Josiah George Ritchie (18 October 1870 – 28 February 1955) was a tennis player from Great Britain. Major was his first name, not a military title. He was born in Westminster, educated at Brighton College and died in Ashford.
Career
Ritc ...
, was also living in Norwood.
Also in 1909, she won the singles title of the
British Covered Court Championships
The British Covered Court Championships (BCCC) was an indoor tennis event held from 1885 through 1971 and played in London, England. The dates of the tournament fluctuated between October and March.
History
For its first five years the tournament ...
, played on wood courts at the
Queen's Club
The Queen's Club is a private sporting club in West Kensington, London, England. The club hosts the annual Queen's Club Championships men's grass court lawn tennis tournament (currently known as the "cinch Championships" for sponsorship reas ...
in London, after defeating Madeline O’Neill in the final in straight sets.
In 1911, she became the first female player to lose a Wimbledon final without winning a game, losing to
Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers
Dorothea Lambert Chambers (née Dorothea Katherine Douglass, 3 September 1878 – 7 January 1960) was a British tennis player. She won seven Wimbledon women's singles titles and a gold medal at the 1908 Summer Olympics.
Tennis
In 1900, Douglass ...
6–0, 6–0.
In 1914, she married Arthur C.Geen.
[
She died in ]Hammersmith
Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
...
or Hampstead
Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...
,[ London in 1970.
]
Grand Slam finals
Singles (1 titles, 2 runners-up)
1This was actually the all-comers final as Charlotte Cooper Sterry
Charlotte "Chattie" Cooper Sterry (née Charlotte Reinagle Cooper; 22 September 1870 – 10 October 1966) was an English female tennis player who won five singles titles at the Wimbledon Championships and in 1900 became Olympic champion. In winn ...
did not defend her 1908 Wimbledon title, which resulted in the winner of the all-comers final winning the challenge round and thus Wimbledon in 1909 by walkover.
Doubles (1 title)
References
External links
* John Arlott (Hrsg.): ''The Oxford companion to sports & games.'' Oxford University Press, London 1975
*
All England champions 1899–2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boothby, Dora
1881 births
1970 deaths
English female tennis players
English female badminton players
Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain
Olympic tennis players of Great Britain
People from Finchley
Tennis players at the 1908 Summer Olympics
Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era)
Olympic medalists in tennis
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's singles
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's doubles
Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics
Tennis people from Greater London
British female tennis players