George Martin Lott (October 16, 1906 – December 3, 1991) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
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 ...
player and tennis coach who was born in
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest o ...
, United States. Lott is mostly remembered as being one of the greatest doubles players of all time. He won the U.S. title five times with three different partners:
John Hennessey in 1928;
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. ...
in 1929 and 1930; and
Les 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 1933 and 1934. At the U. S. championships singles in 1928, Lott beat
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 ...
and
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. ...
before losing to
Frank Hunter in the semifinals.
In 1931 Lott beat defending champion Doeg in the semi finals before losing to
Ellsworth Vines in the final.
In 1934 Lott became a touring professional, thereby giving up his amateur status and the ability to play in Grand Slam tournaments. In 1929 and 1930 he was ranked World No. 6 and No. 7 by
A Wallis Myers
Arthur Wallis Myers (24 July 1878 – 17 June 1939) was an English tennis correspondent, editor, author and player. He was one of the leading tennis journalists of the first half of the 20th century.
Family life
Myers was son of the Rev. John ...
;
["Tilden Ranks Fourth in London Telegraph Rankings"](_blank)
''The Toledo News-Bee'', September 19, 1929. No. 6 by Pierre Gillon in 1930;
and in 1931 was ranked No. 4 by Züricher Sport.
Lott was the men's tennis coach at
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private university, private, Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-centu ...
from 1969 until his death in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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on December 3, 1991.
["George Lott, Tennis coach, 85" (obituary), ''The New York Times'', Wednesday, December 4, 1991.](_blank)
He had been inducted into the school's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1984.
He signed a professional contract in November 1934 with promoter Bill O'Brien and in January 1935, at
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
, started a series of head-to-head matches against
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 ...
and by March trailed him 5–26.
Lott 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 1964.
Grand Slam finals
Singles (1 runner-up)
Doubles (8 titles, 1 runner-up)
Mixed doubles (4 titles, 1 runner-up)
Other tennis achievements
*
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
team member – 1928–31, 1933–34
*The first player, and one of only four (
Bobby Riggs
Robert Larimore Riggs (February 25, 1918 – October 25, 1995) was an American tennis champion who was the World No. 1 amateur in 1939 and World No. 1 professional in 1946 and 1947. He played his first professional tennis match on December ...
,
Mats Wilander
Mats Arne Olof Wilander (; born 22 August 1964) is a Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player. From 1982 to 1988, he won seven major singles titles (three at the French Open, three at the Australian Open, and one at the US Open), and one major ...
and
Roger Federer
Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
being the other three), to win the tournament now known as the
Cincinnati Masters
The Cincinnati Masters or Cincinnati Open (branded as the Western & Southern Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual outdoor hardcourt tennis event held in Mason, Ohio near Cincinnati. The event started on September 18, 1899, and is the olde ...
four times: 1924, 1925, 1927 and 1932. Also won the doubles title in 1924 (with Jack Harris) and 1925 (with Thomas McGlinn) and was a singles finalist in 1926 and a doubles finalist (with Thomas Johnson) in 1927.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lott, George
1906 births
1991 deaths
American male tennis players
American tennis coaches
DePaul Blue Demons men's tennis coaches
French Championships (tennis) champions
Sportspeople from Springfield, Illinois
International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees
Tennis people from Illinois
United States National champions (tennis)
Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era)
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in mixed doubles
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles
Professional tennis players before the Open Era