Betty Rosenquest Pratt (April 15, 1925 – January 31, 2016) was an American amateur tennis player who competed in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Pratt was a student at Florida's Rollins College where she played collegiate tennis, graduating in 1947. She was ranked in the Top Ten in the U.S. in 1951 (ranked number eight), 1954 (number five) and 1956 (number five). At the

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...

, Pratt was a semifinalist in both singles (1954), losing to eventual winner

Maureen Connolly Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...

, and doubles (1951). At the

U.S. Nationals United States nationality law details the conditions in which a person holds United States nationality. In the United States, nationality is typically obtained through provisions in the U.S. Constitution, various laws, and international agree ...

, she was a doubles finalist and singles semifinalist in 1956. At the tournament in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, Pratt won the singles title in 1947 (over

Betty Hulbert James Betty or Bettie is a name, a common diminutive for the names Bethany and Elizabeth. In Latin America, it is also a common diminutive for the given name Beatriz, the Spanish and Portuguese form of the Latin name Beatrix and the English name Bea ...

in the final) and was a doubles finalist (with

Margaret Varner Margaret Varner Bloss (born October 4, 1927) is a retired American athlete and professor of physical education from El Paso, Texas who excelled in three distinctly different racket sports: badminton, squash, and tennis. She is the only person to ...

) in 1948. She captained both the U.S.

Wightman Cup The Wightman Cup was an annual team tennis competition for women contested from 1923 through 1989 (except during World War II) between teams from the United States and Great Britain. History U.S. player Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman wanted to generate ...

team and the U.S. Federation Cup Team. Active in the Caribbean, she also represented Jamaica, and directed the Caribbean Tennis Circuit between 1952 and 1964. Pratt continued to win titles at seniors events into her 60s and 70s. She was a charter member of the Rollins College Sports Hall of Fame (1977), and is a member of the Florida Tennis Association Hall of Fame (1979) and Eastern Tennis Association Hall of Fame (1998).

Grand Slam finals

Doubles ( 1 runner-up)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Betty Rosenquest 1925 births 2016 deaths American female tennis players Rollins Tars women's tennis players Tennis people from Florida