Helen Jacobs
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Helen Hull Jacobs (August 6, 1908 – June 2, 1997) was an American female tennis player who was born in Globe, Arizona, United States.
She was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1962.
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[edit] Career
Jacobs was ranked in the world's top 10 in professional tennis from 1928 to 1940, and was also a member of the U.S. Wightman Cup team (1927-39). In 1933 she became the first woman to break with tradition by wearing man-tailored shorts at Wimbledon. During her career in tennis she became a writer, her first books being Modern Tennis (1933) and Improve Your Tennis (1936). She also wrote fictional works, as Storm Against the Wind (1944). Her autobiography Beyond the Game appeared in 1936.
[edit] World War II and Personal Life
Jacobs served as a commander in the U.S. Navy intelligence during World War II, one of only five women to achieve that rank in the Navy. Long known to have been lesbian, her lifelong companion was Virginia Gurnee. Jacobs died in East Hampton, New York in 1997, of heart failure. [1]
[edit] Grand Slam record
- French Championships
- Singles finalist: 1930, 1934
- Women's Doubles finalist: 1934
- Wimbledon
- Singles champion: 1936
- Singles finalist: 1929, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1938
- Women's Doubles finalist: 1932, 1936, 1939
- U.S. Championships
- Singles champion: 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935
- Singles finalist: 1928, 1936, 1939, 1940
- Women's Doubles champion: 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935
- Women's Doubles finalist: 1931, 1936
- Mixed Doubles champion: 1934
- Mixed Doubles finalist: 1932
[edit] Grand Slam singles finals
[edit] Wins (5)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1932 | U.S. Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Carolin Babcock | 6-2, 6-2 |
| 1933 | U.S. Championships (2) | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 8-6, 3-6, 3-0 ret. |
| 1934 | U.S. Championships (3) | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Sarah Palfrey Cooke | 6-1, 6-4 |
| 1935 | U.S. Championships (4) | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Sarah Palfrey Cooke | 6-2, 6-4 |
| 1936 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of Germany.svg Hilde Krahwinkel Sperling | 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 |
[edit] Runner-ups (11)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1928 | U.S. Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-2, 6-1 |
| 1929 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-1, 6-2 |
| 1930 | French Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-2, 6-1 |
| 1932 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-3, 6-1 |
| 1934 | French Championships | Image:Flag of Germany.svg Margaret Scriven-Vivian | 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 |
| 1934 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dorothy Round Little | 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 |
| 1935 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 |
| 1936 | U.S. Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Alice Marble | 4-,6 6-3, 6-2 |
| 1938 | Wimbledon | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Helen Wills Moody | 6-4, 6-0 |
| 1939 | U.S. Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Alice Marble | 6-0, 8-10, 6-4 |
| 1940 | U.S. Championships | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Alice Marble | 6-2, 6-3 |
[edit] Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Championships | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | NH | 0 / 0 |
| French Championships | A | A | A | A | A | F | QF | QF | SF | F | SF | A | QF | A | A | NH | R | 0 / 7 |
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | 3R | F | QF | SF | F | SF | F | F | W | QF | F | QF | NH | NH | 1 / 12 |
| U.S. Championships | 2R | A | SF | F | SF | A | QF | W | W | W | W | F | SF | 3R | F | F | SF | 4 / 15 |
| SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 5 / 34 |
NH = tournament not held.
R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
de:Helen Jacobsfr:Helen Jacobs ja:ヘレン・ジェイコブス pl:Helen Jacobs sv:Helen Jacobs

