Barbara Scofield (June 24, 1926 – January 31, 2023) was an American tennis player who was active from the late 1940s until the early 1960s.[2]
| Full name | Barbara Scofield-Davidson |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) | United States |
| Born | June 24, 1926 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Died | January 31, 2023 (aged 96) |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Singles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 5 (1950, John Olliff)[1] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | SF (1950) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1950) |
| US Open | QF (1949) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| French Open | F (1951) |
| Wimbledon | SF (1948, 1951) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| French Open | W (1950) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1950) |
Tennis career
editScofield learned playing tennis at age 11 by taking lesson at the Golden Gate Park.[3]
With the Argentine Enrique Morea, Scofield won the mixed doubles at the French Championships in 1950, and the following year, she was a runner-up in the women's doubles event with Beryl Bartlett.
Scofield's best singles result at a Grand Slam tournament was reaching the semifinal of the 1950 French Championships where she lost to fourth-seeded Patricia Todd. In the quarterfinal Scofield had caused an upset by defeating the defending champion and world No. 1 Margaret duPont in three sets.[4] As an unseeded player Scofield reached the singles quarterfinals of the 1949 U.S. National Championships and the 1950 Wimbledon Championships, in both cases losing to third-seeded Doris Hart. In the Wimbledon doubles event, she reached the semifinals in 1948 and 1951, partnering Helen Rihbany and Betty Rosenquest respectively.[5]
In May 1950 Scofield won the singles title at the Wiesbaden International after a successful comeback in the final against Gussie Moran.[6] In July that year she beat Georgie Woodgate to win the singles title of the Welsh Championships.[7] In 1953 Scofield won the singles title at the Swiss International Championships after a three-sets win in the final against Maria de Riba.[8] She won the singles title at the 1955 Eastern Grass Court Championships in South Orange, New Jersey, defeating Barbara Breit in the final.
Scofield was inducted into ITA Women's Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004.[8] She was inducted into the United States Tennis Association Hall of Fame in 2013.[3]
Personal life
editScofield married Gordon Davidson, a Yale graduate from Milwaukee, in April 1951 in Tangier.[9] Scofield died on January 31, 2023, at the age of 96.[10][11]
Grand Slam finals
editDoubles: (1 runner-up)
edit| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1951 | French Championships | Clay |  Beryl Bartlett |
 Shirley Fry Doris Hart |
8–10, 3–6 |
Mixed doubles: (1 title)
edit| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1950 | French Championships | Clay |  Enrique Morea |
Patricia Canning Todd Bill Talbert |
Walkover |
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
edit| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Championships | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 |
| French Championships | 2R | A | SF | 2R | A | A | A | A | 2R | A | A | A | A | 1R | 0 / 5 |
| Wimbledon | 2R | A | QF | 4R | A | 2R | A | 1R | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 6 |
| US Championships | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 |
| SR | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 8 |
References
edit- ^ Collins, Bud (2016). The Bud Collins History of Tennis (3rd ed.). New York: New Chapter Press. p. 763. ISBN 978-1-937559-38-0.
- ^ "While River Hills' Davidson Recalls The Days Of Little Mo". Milwaukee Journal. August 12, 1981. Retrieved August 4, 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Hall of Fame Class of 2013 Barbara Scofield Davidson" (PDF). United States Tennis Association (USTA).
- ^ G.P. Hughes, ed. (1951). Dunlop Lawn Tennis Annual and Almanack 1951. London: Ed. J. Burrow & Co. Ltd. pp. 213, 216–217.
- ^ "Wimbledon players archive – Barbara Davidson". AELTC.
- ^ "Barbara Scofield whips Gussie Moran in three sets". Wilmington Morning News. AP. May 8, 1950. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
Barbara Scofield of San Francisco upset Gertrude Moran of Santa Monica, Calif., today to win the women's singles in Wiesbaden's International Tennis Tournament, 2-6, 12-10, 8-6.
- ^ G.P. Hughes, ed. (1951). Dunlop Lawn Tennis Annual and Almanack 1951. London: Ed. J. Burrow & Co. Ltd. p. 139.
- ^ a b "Barbara Scofield Davidson". Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
- ^ John Olliff (May 26, 1951). "Miss B. Scofield". The Daily Telegraph. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Barbara Davidson". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. February 14, 2023. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
- ^ "Remembering the Legacies of ITA Hall of Famers We Lost in 2023". December 14, 2020.
