Merion Cricket Club Amateur Tennis Tournament

The Merion Cricket Club Amateur Tennis Tournament[1] was a combined men's and women's grass court tennis tournament founded in 1886.[2] The tournament was organised by the Merion Cricket Club and was staged annually until 1891 when it was discontinued.[1]

Merion Cricket Club Amateur Tennis Tournament
Defunct tennis tournament
TourUSNLTA Circuit
Founded1886; 138 years ago (1886)
Abolished1891; 133 years ago (1891)
LocationArdmore, Pennsylvania, United States
VenueMerion Cricket Club
SurfaceGrass

History

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In 1886 the Merion Cricket Club Amateur Tournament was established at the Merion Cricket Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, United States.[3] In 1887 a women's event was added to the schedule the final was unfinished and both Lydia Wood and Miss. Lycett shared the title.[4] In 1892 the club moved to is current location in Haverford, PA.[5] This event was the precursor tournament,[1] to the Pennsylvania State Lawn Tennis Championships that began in 1894 and it continued to host the tournament for the next eight decades.[6]

Finals

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Men's singles

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(Incomplete roll)

Year Winner Runner-up Score
1886[7]   William Linton Landreth   Frederick Winslow Taylor 6–4, 3–6, 6–3
1887[1]   Frederick Winslow Taylor   William Linton Landreth 7–5, 8–6
1890[1]   Rodmond Vernon Beach   Benjamin C. Allen 2–6, 8–6, 6–3

Women's singles

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(Incomplete roll)

Year Winner Runner-up Score
1887[1]   Lydia Wood   Miss. Lycett 2–6, unfinished.[8]
1888[1]   Bertha Townsend   Lydia Wood 6–3, 6–3.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Tournaments: Merion Cricket Club Amateur Tennis Tournament". The Tennis Base. Tennismem SL. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  2. ^ Hall, Valentine Gill
  3. ^ Hall, Valentine Gill (1889). Lawn tennis in America. Biographical sketches of all the prominent players ... knotty points, and all the latest rules and directions governing handicaps, umpires, and rules for playing. New York: D. W. Granbery & co. p. 13.
  4. ^ "Lawn Tennis: The Ladies of Merion Cricket Club in Tournament". Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia: Newspaper Archives. 13 October 1887. p. 3. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Merion Cricket Club (Haverford, Pa.) papers 1353". www2.hsp.org. Philadelphia, PA: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  6. ^ The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
  7. ^ Hall, Valentine Gill
  8. ^ Philadelphia Inquirer