Hart, Doris
Tennis
b. June 20, 1925, St. Louis, MO
Soon after she learned to walk, Hart developed a serious infection in her right knee and a specialist recommended amputation. The leg was saved, but the knee bothered her throughout her career and beyond.
When she was ten years old, Hart discovered tennis while she was watching people play from her hospital window after an operation. She and her older brother Bud then got involved in the sport, practicing together and taking lessons at a public court. (Bud was ranked twentieth nationally in 1943.)
Despite her bad knee, Hart developed a fluid style and a solid all-court game to go with an excellent serve. She was sometimes criticized for using frequent half-volleys from the baseline, but she explained she had great confidence in the shot because her brother had trained her never to retreat more than a couple of feet behind the baseline.
Hart's first grand slam singles title came in the 1949 Australian championships. She went on to win the French singles in 1950 and 1952, Wimbledon in 1951, and the U. S. singles in 1954 and 1955. In 1951, she beat her long-time doubles partner, Shirley Fry, 6-1, 6-0, in the Wimbledon finals, taking just thirty-four minutes.
She had even more success in doubles, winning the women's doubles at Wimbledon in 1947 and from 1951 through 1953; at the French championships in 1948 and from 1950 through 1953; at the U. S. championships from 1951 through 1954; and in Australia in 1950. Hart won most of those titles with Shirley Fry, but she teamed with Pat Canning Todd for two and with Louise Brough Clapp for another.
In mixed doubles, Hart won championships at Wimbledon from 1951 through 1956 and at the U. S. Nationals from 1951 through 1955, giving her a total of thirty-four grand slam titles. Her mixed doubles partners were Frank Sedgman in 1951 and 1952 and Vic Seixas from 1953 through 1956, her last year of serious competition.
Hart lost only one match in ten consecutive years of Wightman Cup play, from 1946 through 1955.