Gerald Leighton Patterson MC (17 December 1895 – 13 June 1967) was an Australian

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

player. Patterson was active in the decade following World War I. During his career he won three Grand Slam tournaments in the singles event as well as six titles in the doubles competition and one title in mixed doubles. He was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

, educated at Scotch College and Trinity Grammar School and died in Melbourne on 13 June 1967. He was the co- World No. 1 player for 1919 along with Bill Johnston.

Playing career

Tall and well-built, Patterson played a strong

serve-and-volley Serve-and-volley is a style of play in tennis where the player serving moves quickly towards the net after hitting a serve, to attempt to hit a volley afterwards. In the serve-and-volley playstyle, the server attempts to hit a volley (a shot whe ...

game. At Wimbledon 1919, Patterson beat 41-year-old

Norman Brookes Sir Norman Everard Brookes (14 November 187728 September 1968) was an Australian tennis player. During his career he won three Grand Slam singles titles; Wimbledon in 1907 and 1914 (the first non-British individual to do so) and the Austral ...

, who was defending champion (Brookes' 1914 title was the last held before World War 1) in the Challenge Round. At Wimbledon 1922, the Challenge Round was abolished and Patterson won the title (the first to be held at the current site at Church Road) beating

Randolph Lycett Randolph Lycett (27 August 1886 – 9 February 1935) was a British tennis player. Lycett is primarily known for his success in doubles, winning 5 men's doubles and 3 mixed doubles slams. He was also the runner-up at the 1922 Wimbledon men's si ...

in the final. In 1927, Patterson was five championship points down in the Australian singles final against Jack Hawkes, but won in five sets. Patterson was known as the "Human Catapult" for his powerful serve that many of the top players had trouble returning. He also enjoyed great success representing Australia in

Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organi ...

and amassed a 32–14 win–loss record (singles 21–10, doubles 11–4) and was part of the winning team in 1919. Patterson played Davis Cup in 1920, 1922, 1924, 1925, 1928 and finally as captain in 1946. He was a player ahead of his time, playing with a steel racquet strung with wire in 1925. He was inducted into the Sport Australia Home of Fame in December 1986. This was followed by induction into the

International Tennis Hall of Fame The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...

in 1989 and the

Australian Tennis Hall of Fame The Australian Tennis Hall of Fame was established in 1993 by Tennis Australia under the leadership of then-president Geoff Pollard. Described by Tennis Australia as "one of the highest honours Australian tennis players can receive", inductees a ...

in August 1997.

Personal life

Patterson was the nephew of Australian opera singer

Dame Nellie Melba Dame Nellie Melba (born Helen Porter Mitchell; 19 May 186123 February 1931) was an Australian operatic dramatic coloratura soprano (three octaves). She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early 20th centur ...

and father of racing driver Bill Patterson. In 1917, Patterson was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

for "conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty" as an officer in the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of ...

at Messines.

Grand Slam finals

Gerald Patterson playing a forehand stroke

Singles: 7 (3 titles, 4 runners-up)

Doubles: 14 (6 titles, 8 runners-up)

Mixed doubles: 1 (1 title)

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

Events with a challenge round: (W_C) won; (CR) lost the challenge round; (F_A) all comers' finalist (OF) only for French players ¹Patterson was the first tennis player to play in three Grand Slam singles tournaments within one calendar year.

References

External links

* * * * *
Australian Dictionary of Biography article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Gerald 1895 births 1967 deaths Australasian Championships (tennis) champions Australian Championships (tennis) champions Australian male tennis players Tennis players from Melbourne International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees United States National champions (tennis) Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era) People educated at Scotch College, Melbourne People educated at Trinity Grammar School, Kew Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in mixed doubles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles Australian recipients of the Military Cross World number 1 ranked male tennis players People from Preston, Victoria Royal Field Artillery officers Australian military personnel of World War I Military personnel from Melbourne Australian people of Scottish descent Australian people of English descent