Henry Ellsworth Vines Jr. (September 28, 1911 – March 17, 1994) was an American

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

champion of the 1930s, the World No. 1 player or the co-No. 1 in 1932, 1934, 1935, 1936 and 1937, able to win Pro Slam titles on three different surfaces. He later became a

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

and reached the semifinals of the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

in 1951.

Career

Amateur

Vines attended the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, where he was a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity and played on the freshman basketball team.Ed Atkinso
Ellsworth Vines: Ultimate Ball Striker
tennisplayer.net, Accessed July 8, 2008. Many believe that Mercer Beasley started him on his tennis career at age 14 in Pasadena. He was mentored by Perry T. Jones through the

Los Angeles Tennis Club The Los Angeles Tennis Club (LATC) is a private tennis club opened in 1920 that was the host of the Pacific Southwest Championships from 1927 until 1974 and 1980 until 1983. It is located at 5851 Clinton Street, between Wilcox and Rossmore, one b ...

and the Southern California Tennis Association. ;1927 Vines, aged 15, reached the quarter finals of the Pacific Northwest Championships in Tacoma in July, where he lost to Dick Stevens. In September Vines lost in the last 16 of the California state championships to Bowie Dietrick. "Vines had the first set, 5-3, on his own service, but was unable to sustain the pace against his able and more experienced opponent, and lost the first set, 8-10. He seemed pretty well tried out by that time, and Dietrick put the second set away at 6-2". ;1928 Vines reached the quarter finals of the Pacific Southwest tournament in October, where he lost to

Christian Boussus Christian Boussus (5 March 1908 – August 2003) was a left-handed French tennis player who found success in the 1920s and 1930s. Tennis career He started playing amateur tennis in the late 1920s by entering one of his first tournaments at the ...

. "Vines forced Boussus to the limit in their match. The young Pasadenan's service was far better than that of Boussus, but the Frenchman's marvelous placements and his steadiness brought him through victoriously. He usually was content to hit the ball back, without trying fancy shots, and forced Vines into errors in long rallies." ;1929 In July, Vines lost in the final of the Western Championships in Chicago to

Keith Gledhill Keith Gledhill (February 16, 1911 – June 2, 1999) was an American tennis player of the 1930s. Playing career In 1929 Gledhill won the national junior singles and, partnering Ellsworth Vines, doubles title. He attended Stanford University and ...

. At the Wisconsin Championships in Milwaukee in August, Vines lost to Gledhill in the final. ;1930 In February, Vines beat

Lester Stoefen Lester Rollo Stoefen (March 30, 1911 – February 8, 1970) was an American tennis player of the 1930s. Career Stoefen, partnering with compatriot George Lott, won three Grand Slam doubles titles: 1934 Wimbledon Championships, 1933 and 1934 U.S. ...

in the final of the Los Angeles championships. In May, Vines won the Southern California championships beating Gledhill in the final. In June, Vines won the Pasadena championships, beating Stoefen in the final. In July, Vines beat Frank Hunter in the final of the New York Metropolitan championships. In September, Vines won the Pacific Southwest championships, beating

Wilmer Allison Wilmer Lawson Allison Jr. (December 8, 1904 – April 20, 1977) was an American amateur tennis champion of the 1930s. Allison's career was overshadowed by the arrival of Don Budge, although he was both a fine singles player and, along with his ...

in five sets in the quarters and

Gregory Mangin Gregory Sylvester Mangin (November 1, 1907 – October 27, 1979) was an American tennis player and Wall Street broker. He won four U.S. Indoor singles titles in the 1930s. Early life and education Mangin was born in Newark, New Jersey. All f ...

in the final. ;1931 Vines won his first title of the year in February, beating Stoefen in five sets to win the Los Angeles championships. Vines won the River Oaks tournament in Houston in April beating Bruce Barnes in the final. "Vines's service had so much pace that at times today it almost knocked the racquet from Barnes's hand." Vines won the Ojai valley championships in April over Stoefen. In May, Vines won the Southern Californian championships beating Alan Herrington in the final. "The flashiness of Vines's playing is shown in the fact that he scored forty placement aces to Herrington's three during the four sets. Vines also led in practically every other department of the game." Vines won the California State championships in June beating Ed Chandler in the final. In July, Vines won the U. S. clay court championships in St. Louis beating Gledhill in the final. and the same month won the Longwood Bowl in Brookline, Mass. over

John Doeg John Thomas Godfray Hope Doeg (December 7, 1908 – April 27, 1978) was a male tennis player from the United States. In August 1929 Doeg won the singles title at the Seabright Invitational defeating Richard Norris Williams in three straight sets. ...

. Then at the Seabright tournament, Vines came from two sets down to beat Doeg in the final. "The turning point of the match came in the tenth game of the fourth set. At this stage Doeg was leading five to four in games and won the first two points from Vines' service in the tenth. Employing his powerful backhand stroke, the Pasadena youngster pulled the match out of the fire by winning the next four points to take the game." In August, Vines beat

Fred Perry Frederick John Perry (18 May 1909 – 2 February 1995) was a British tennis and table tennis player and former world No. 1 from England who won 10 Majors including eight Grand Slam tournaments and two Pro Slams single titles, as well ...

in the final of the Newport Casino tournament. Vines was still 19 when he won his first Grand Slam singles title, the U.S. Championships, beating George Lott in the final in four sets. Vines played "erratically throughout the major part of match, but his brilliant placements and cannonball service were sufficient to overcome Lott's steadier volleying and effective service", according to ''The Daily News (New York)''. Trailing 5–2 in the fourth set, Vines won five consecutive games to close out the match. In September Vines beat Perry in the final of the Pacific Southwest championships in five sets. "Vines served the almost unbelievable total of twenty-three double faults during the match. When he finally got going, he didn't score many aces, but he was getting his first ball in regularly, and although the Englishman, who battled furiously to the finish, usually managed to get his racket on the ball, he couldn't handle the serve at all. Perry covered the court brilliantly, making many seemingly impossible gets." In October, Vines beat Perry again in the final of the Pacific coast championships. ;1932 In April, Vines beat Allison in the final of the Mason-Dixon tournament in White Sulphur Springs. At

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 ...

, Vines beat Bunny Austin easily in the final and the winning ace was hit so hard, Austin claimed he couldn't see it. Vines beat Allison in the final of the Newport Casino event in August. At the U.S. Championships, Vines beat Cliff Sutter in the semi finals in five long sets when he came very close to defeat. He then beat

Henri Cochet Henri Jean Cochet (; 14 December 1901 – 1 April 1987) was a French tennis player. He was a world No. 1 ranked player, and a member of the famous " Four Musketeers" from France who dominated tennis in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Born in ...

in the final to retain his title. In November Vines beat Allison in five sets in the final of the New South Wales championships. Vines was ranked World No. 1 amateur by A. Wallis Myers, Bernard Brown, Pierre Gillou, F. Gordon Lowe and

Jean Borotra Jean Laurent Robert Borotra (, ; 13 August 1898 – 17 July 1994) was a French tennis champion. He was one of the "The Four Musketeers (tennis), Four Musketeers" from his country who dominated tennis in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Borotra wa ...

. ;1933 1933 was a poor year for Vines. One of his most surprising losses was to young Australian player

Vivian McGrath Vivian Erzerum Bede McGrath (17 February 1916 – 9 April 1978) was a tennis champion from Australia. Along with John Bromwich, he was one of the early great players to use a two-handed backhand. His name was pronounced "McGraw". Biography ...

in the Australian championships quarter finals. Vines won the Ojai Valley championships in April beating Gledhill in the final. Vines reached the final of Wimbledon, but lost a classic five set battle to Jack Crawford. It was a "Wimbledon final that produced some of the greatest tennis in the history of the world famous tournament" and "the crowd gave Crawford one of the longest, wildest cheers that ever has echoed through Wimbledon". At the US Championships, Vines lost in the fourth round to Bryan Grant.

Professional

;1934 Vines played his first professional tennis match on January 10, 1934 and then became the leading pro player until 1938 (and the World No. 1 or No. 2 in the combined amateur-professional rankings). In his first World series tour, Vines overcame the 41 year old

Bill Tilden William Tatem Tilden II (February 10, 1893 – June 5, 1953), nicknamed "Big Bill", was an American tennis player. Tilden was the world No. 1 amateur for six consecutive years, from 1920 to 1925, and was ranked as the world No. 1 professional b ...

. From May to June, Vines participated in the US tournament circuit. Vines won tournaments at New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Cleveland, beating Tilden in each of these events. Then Vines lost in the semi finals at Detroit to

Karel Kozeluh Karel may refer to: People * Karel (given name) * Karel (surname) * Charles Karel Bouley, talk radio personality known on air as Karel * Christiaan Karel Appel, Dutch painter Business * Karel Electronics, a Turkish electronics manufacturer * ...

and didn't play in the remaining events of the tour at Milwaukee and St. Louis. At the US Pro in Chicago, Vines lost surprisingly in the semi finals to

Hans Nusslein Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...

. At Wembley, Vines won the title in a round robin that also featured Nusslein, Tilden,

Martin Plaa Martin Plaa (12 March 1901 – 29 March 1978) was a professional tennis player from France who had success as a pro in the early 1930s. Plaa worked for some years in the late 1920s (timing uncertain) as the then very successful France Davis Cup ...

, Bruce Barnes and

Dan Maskell Daniel Maskell (11 April 1908 – 10 December 1992) was an English tennis professional who later became a radio and television commentator on the game. He was described as the BBC's "voice of tennis", and the "voice of Wimbledon". Early lif ...

. Then Vines won in the Parc de expositions tournament in Paris beating Nusslein in the final. In December, Vines beat Tilden in the final of the Roubaix tournament. Vines was ranked World No. 1 pro by Ray Bowers and was ranked No. 1 in combined pro/amateur lists by Pierre Gillou and ''Tennis'' (Italian newspaper). ;1935 Vines beat

in the World series (after a disastrous start to the tour, Stoefen withdrew from the tour). At the French Pro at Roland Garros, Vines beat Nusslein in the final. Vines then won the tournament at Southport beating Tilden. Vines then won tournaments at Deauville and La Baule (also over Tilden). However, he surprisingly lost to Robert Ramillon at a tournament at Le Touquet. At Wembley, Vines trailed Stoefen 4–1 in the fifth set in the semi finals but won in five sets and beat Tilden in five sets in the final. Vines was ranked World No. 1 pro by Bowers and no. 1 in a combined amateur/pro list by Henri Cochet. ;1936 Over the next three years, Vines concentrated on playing tours and did not enter tournaments. He beat Stoefen to win the 1936 World series. In November, he toured Asia with Tilden and won the tour easily. Vines was ranked World No. 1 pro by Bowers and Fred Perry. Vines was also ranked combined pro/amateur World No. 1 by Bill Tilden and Robert Murray(''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

''). ;1937 1937 featured the first of the Vines-

Perry Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also made ...

World Series tours. 1937 was a very successful tour, grossing $412,000. The result was still in doubt until the penultimate match, when Vines beat Perry at Hershey. Vines then won the final match of the series at Scranton to win the series 32–29. Touring UK and Ireland, Perry won a short series against Vines, including winning two of the three matches at Wembley, where they played for the King George VI Coronation Cup. Perry and Vines were ranked joint no. 1 pros by Bowers. ;1938 The 1938 World Series was another tough battle. After coming back from four match points down to win at Richmond on 8 May, Vines said "I've got a good lead over that guy (Perry) and I'm going to keep it just to prove once and for all who's No 1 man" and "if Budge turns pro next year I want to be the one to play against him because that's where the money will be. After this tour ends there'll be no doubt who's the better man between me and Perry". Vines won the series 49–35. In November, Vines and Perry toured South and Central America and won four matches each. Vines was ranked World No. 1 pro by Bowers. ;1939 In 1939 Vines lost his world pro crown to

Don Budge John Donald Budge (June 13, 1915 – January 26, 2000) was an American tennis player. He is most famous as the first tennis player — male or female, and still the only American male — to win the Grand Slam, and to win all four Grand Slam ev ...

but narrowly: in their first pro tour against each other, Vines trailed Budge 17–22. The tour proved that at his best Vines was unbeatable, but also that Budge's consistency would prevail a majority of the time, making the latter the best player of the time. Touring Europe with Tilden and Stoefen in the summer, Budge won the tour and beat Vines more comfortably than he had done in the World Series. Vines lost in the final at Roland Garros to Budge. At the knock-out event at Southport, Vines lost in the semi finals to Nusslein. Vines, by now, was losing interest in tennis and was turning his attention more and more to golf. His final title came at the US Pro, where he beat Perry in the final in four sets. ;1940 In April 1940 Vines, at 28 years old, played his last tennis competition at the West Coast professional tennis tournament in Los Angeles. His physical problems, his desire to enjoy family life, his loss of the world crown, and above all his increasing passion for golf drove him to retire from tennis. Vines' career earnings as of May 1938 were reported to be $185,000.

Abilities

Comparing Vines and

after the 1939 tours, Don Budge wrote, In 1975, Budge ranked his top five players of all-time and rated Vines number one. He also said Vines had the best serve. In 1983, Fred Perry ranked the greatest male players of all time and put them in to two categories, before World War 2 and after. Perry's pre-WWII nominees all below Tilden and excluding himself "Budge, Cochet, Ellsworth Vines 'so powerful!', Gottfried von Cramm, Jack Crawford, Jari Sato, Jean Borotra, Bunny Austin, Roderick Menzel, Baron Umberto de Morpurgo". In the opinion of

Jack Kramer John Albert Kramer (August 1, 1921 – September 12, 2009) was an American tennis player of the 1940s and 1950s. He won three Grand Slam tournaments (the U.S. Championships in 1946 and 1947, Wimbledon in 1947). He led the U.S. Davis Cup tennis ...

, Vines was, along with

, one of the two greatest players who ever lived. Budge was consistently the best, according to Kramer's 1979 autobiography, but, at the very top of his game, Vines was unbeatable by anyone: Tall and thin, Vines possessed a game with no noticeable weaknesses, except, according to Kramer, because of his great natural athletic ability, laziness. He was particularly known for his powerful forehand and his very fast serve, both of which he generally hit absolutely flat with no spin. Although he could play the serve-and-volley game, he generally played an all-court game, preferring to hit winners from the baseline. Playing in the white flannel trousers that were standard dress for the time, he greatly impressed the youthful Kramer in a 1935 match in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

: Kramer made up his mind on the spot to concentrate on tennis. Vines had, according to Kramer, (NOTE: The school'
official all-time roster
does not list him; however, this does not mean that Vines did not earn a basketball scholarship.) In his chapter on 1932,

Bud Collins Arthur Worth "Bud" Collins Jr. (June 17, 1929 – March 4, 2016) was an American journalist and television sportscaster, best known for his tennis commentary. Collins was married to photographer Anita Ruthling Klaussen. Education Collins was b ...

writes in '' Total Tennis: The Ultimate Tennis Encyclopedia'' that Vines: Collins goes on to say that: After becoming bored with tennis while only in his late twenties, Vines became a

in 1942 and over the years had a number of high finishes in tournaments, including at least two professional victories (1946

Massachusetts Open The Massachusetts Open is the Massachusetts state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by Mass Golf (formerly the Massachusetts Golf Association). It has been played annually since 1905 (except for wa ...

, 1955

Utah Open The Utah Open is the Utah state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Utah section of the PGA of America. It was first played in 1926 and has been played at a variety of courses around the state ...

) and a semifinal position in the prestigious 1951

when it was a

match play Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...

tournament. Writes Kramer, He compares Vines to another great tennis player,

Lew Hoad Lewis Alan Hoad (23 November 1934 – 3 July 1994) was an Australian tennis player whose career ran from 1950 to 1973. Hoad won four Major singles tournaments as an amateur (the Australian Championships, French Championships and two Wimbledons ...

: Vines was inducted into the

International Tennis Hall of Fame The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...

in Newport, Rhode Island in 1962. In ''

100 Greatest of All Time ''100 Greatest of All Time'' was a sports television series of five one-hour episodes, produced and first aired by the Tennis Channel in March 2012. It presented a list of 100 tennis players to be considered the greatest of all time, both men and ...

'', a 2012 television series broadcast by the Tennis Channel, Vines was ranked the 37th greatest male player, just behind Australian Lleyton Hewitt at 36th, and just ahead of Pancho Segura at 38th. Vines' contemporary rivals were also included in the list, Perry (a player whom Vines had beaten in two pro championship tours) was ranked at 15th, Cochet was ranked at 27th, and Crawford was ranked at 32nd.

Tennis

Major finals

Grand Slam tournaments

=Singles (3 titles, 1 runner-up)

Doubles (2 titles)

Pro Slam tournaments

=Singles (4 titles, 1 runner-up)

Singles performance timeline

Vines was banned from competing in the amateur Grand Slams when he joined the professional tennis circuit in 1934.

Golf

Tournament wins

*1946

*1951

Southern California PGA Championship The Southern California PGA Championship is a golf tournament that is the championship of the Southern California section of the PGA of America. The Southern California section was formed in 1924, and the tournament was first played that year. It ...

*1955

Results in major championships

''Note: Vines did not play in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

.''
NT = no tournament
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in match play Source for The Masters
www.masters.com
Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur
USGA Championship Database
Source for PGA Championship
PGA Championship Media Guide
Source for 1939 Amateur Championship
The Glasgow Herald, May 26, 1939, pg. 21.

Notes

References

Sources

* ''The Game, My 40 Years in Tennis'' (1979), Jack Kramer with Frank Deford () * ''Total Tennis: The Ultimate Tennis Encyclopedia'' (2003), by Bud Collins () * ''How to Play Tennis'' (1933), by Mercer Beasley * ''Tennis, Myth and Method'' (1978), by Ellesworth Vines * ''Los Angeles Tennis Club''

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vines, Ellsworth American male golfers American male tennis players American men's basketball players Australian Championships (tennis) champions Golfers from Los Angeles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in mixed doubles International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees PGA Tour golfers Professional tennis players before the Open Era Tennis players from Los Angeles Basketball players from Los Angeles United States National champions (tennis) USC Trojans men's basketball players Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era) World number 1 ranked male tennis players 1911 births 1994 deaths