Gould, Jay Jr.
b. 1889
d. Jan. 26, 1935
The son and grandson of multi-millionaires who made most of their money in railroads, Gould learned to play court tennis on a private court in the family home. It was one of fewer than 100 courts in the country, most of them on private estates.
In 20 years of top-level competition, he lost only once in singles and once in doubles. He won the U. S. amateur championship for the first time in 1906, when he was only seventeen, and he held it through 1925, except for 1918 and 1919, when there was no tournament.
In 1914, Gould became the first amateur ever to win the world championship. He held that title through 1922 without being challenged. Gould won a gold medal in the sport in the 1908 Olympics, when it was called jeu de paume on the official program.
He also teamed with W. T. H. Hugh to win eight national doubles championships and with Joseph Wear to win six doubles titles.