Bill Tilden

Bill Tilden

Tilden in the 1920s
Full name	William Tatem Tilden Jr.
Country (sports)	United States
Born	(1893-02-10)February 10, 1893 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	June 5, 1953(1953-06-05) (aged 60) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1+1⁄2 in (1.87 m)
Turned pro	1931 (amateur from 1912)
Retired	1946
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF	1959 (member page)
Singles
Career record	1726–506 (77.3%)
Career titles	138
Highest ranking	No. 1 (1920, A. Wallis Myers)[1]
Grand Slam singles results
French Open	F (1927, 1930)
Wimbledon	W (1920, 1921, 1930)
US Open	W (1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1929)
Other tournaments
WHCC	W (1921)
Professional majors
US Pro	W (1931, 1935)
Wembley Pro	F (1935, 1937)
French Pro	W (1934)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
Wimbledon	W (1927)
US Open	W (1918, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1927)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French Open	W (1930)
US Open	W (1913, 1914, 1922, 1923)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926)

William Tatem Tilden II (February 10, 1893 – June 5, 1953), nicknamed "Big Bill", was an American tennis player. Tilden was the world No. 1 amateur for six consecutive years, from 1920 to 1925, and was ranked as the world No. 1 professional by Ray Bowers in 1931 and 1932 and Ellsworth Vines in 1933. He won 14 Major singles titles, including 10 Grand Slam events, one World Hard Court Championships and three professional majors. He was the first American man to win Wimbledon, taking the title in 1920. He also won a joint-record seven U.S. Championships titles (shared with Richard Sears and Bill Larned).

Tilden dominated the world of international tennis in the first half of the 1920s, and during his 20-year amateur period from 1911 to 1930, won 138 of 192 tournaments he contested. He owns a number of all-time tennis achievements, including the career match-winning record and the career winning percentage at the U.S. Championships. At the 1929 U.S. National Championships, Tilden became the first player to reach ten finals at the same Grand Slam event. Tilden, who was frequently at odds with the rigid United States Lawn Tennis Association about his amateur status and income derived from newspaper articles, won his last Major title in 1930 at Wimbledon at the age of 37. He turned professional at the end of that year and toured with other professionals for the next 15 years.