Hugh Laurence "Laurie" Doherty (8 October 1875 – 21 August 1919) was a British

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 and the younger brother of tennis player Reginald Doherty. He was a six-time Grand Slam champion and a double Olympic Gold medalist at the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from ...

in singles and doubles (also winning a Bronze in mixed doubles). In 1903 he became the first non-American player to win the U.S. National Championships.

Early life

Doherty was born on 8 October 1875 at Beulah Villa in

Wimbledon, London Wimbledon () is a district and town of Southwest London, England, southwest of the centre of London at Charing Cross; it is the main commercial centre of the London Borough of Merton. Wimbledon had a population of 68,187 in 2011 which includes ...

, the youngest son of William Doherty, a printer, and his wife, Catherine Ann Davis. Doherty was the shorter of the two brothers, at 1.78 m, who played championship tennis in their native England and at Wimbledon at the turn of the century. Like his brother he was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

from 1890 to 1894 followed by

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the fifth-oldest surviving college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by ...

, where he played for and became President of the Cambridge University Lawn Tennis Club. He gained his blues in 1896, 1897, and 1898. In 1892 Doherty won the Renshaw cup, the All-England Championships singles title for boys under 16 which was held in Scarborough. In addition to lawn tennis he also played

real tennis Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of tennis (also called "lawn tennis") is derived. It is also known as court tennis in the United Sta ...

and golf.

Career

The brothers were reportedly urged to play tennis by their father, for health reasons. Known as "Little Do", "Famous Tennis Player Dead: R.F. Doherty, Once American Champion, Passes Away in London"
''

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'', 30 December 1910 Doherty won Wimbledon five consecutive times in singles and eight times in doubles with his brother. In 1903, he became the first tennis player to win a Grand Slam tournament outside of his native country by beating defending champion William Larned in three straight sets in the final of the US Championships in Newport. He won the singles title at the

British Covered Court Championships The British Covered Court Championships (BCCC) was an indoor tennis event held from 1885 through 1971 and played in London, England. The dates of the tournament fluctuated between October and March. History For its first five years the tournament ...

, played at the

Queen's Club The Queen's Club is a private sporting club in West Kensington, London, England. The club hosts the annual Queen's Club Championships men's grass court lawn tennis tournament (currently known as the "cinch Championships" for sponsorship r ...

in London, six consecutive times between 1901 and 1906. Additionally he won the singles title at The

South of France Championships The South of France Championships its original name or Championnats du Sud de la France also known as the Championships of the South of France and the Championship of Southern France was a tennis event held from 1895 through 1971 it was originall ...

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative ...

seven times in a row (1900–1906).Hugh Laurence Doherty (UK)
Doherty won the singles event of the tennis competition at the

in Paris. Gold medals were not given at the 1900 Games. In the semifinal he was scheduled to play against his brother but Reggie withdrew, since the brothers refused to play each other before the final. In the final Doherty defeated Harold Mahony in three straight sets. Doherty also won the doubles title at the

1900 Olympic Games The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

with his brother. In the mixed doubles event he partnered with

Marion Jones Marion Lois Jones (born October 12, 1975), also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is an American former world champion track and field athlete and former professional basketball player. She won three gold medals and two bronze medals at the 2000 ...

, the winner of the singles title at the 1899 U.S. Championships, and lost in the semifinal against his brother who had teamed up with Charlotte Cooper. Between 1902 and 1906 Doherty played for the British

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 ...

team and was undefeated during this period. In 1902 he partnered his brother to win the doubles match in the challenge round against the United States but the latter retained the Cup after a 3–2 victory. In 1903 Doherty won both his singles matches as well as the doubles match to help the British Isles to their first Davis Cup victory. In 1904, 1905 and 1906 he was part of the British team that successfully defended the Cup. The brothers co-wrote ''R.F. and H.L. Doherty on Lawn Tennis'' (1903). He gave up tennis for golf in 1906 and distinguished himself in that sport as well. In 1908 Doherty reached the last 16 of the British amateur championship at the

Royal St George's The Royal St George's Golf Club located in Sandwich, Kent, England, is a golf club in the United Kingdom and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation and is the only Open rota golf course to be located in South East England. It has ...

course. In 1914, after the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Doherty joined the Anti-Aircraft branch of the

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a c ...

but was released in 1915 due to ill health. Doherty died of toxemia on 21 August 1919 at Leon Cottage in

Broadstairs Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St Peter's, and had a population in 2011 o ...

, Kent after suffering from tubercular

nephritis Nephritis is inflammation of the kidneys and may involve the glomeruli, tubules, or interstitial tissue surrounding the glomeruli and tubules. It is one of several different types of nephropathy. Types * Glomerulonephritis is inflammation ...

and cystitis for two years. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1980 together with his brother.

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 7 (6 titles, 2 runner-up)

Doubles: 12 (10 titles, 2 runners-up)

Singles titles

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Doherty, Laurie 1875 births 1919 deaths 19th-century English people 19th-century male tennis players Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge English people of Irish descent English male tennis players English Olympic medallists Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic tennis players of Great Britain People from Wimbledon, London Tennis people from Greater London International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees Tennis players at the 1900 Summer Olympics United States National champions (tennis) Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era) Olympic medalists in tennis Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's doubles Medalists at the 1900 Summer Olympics British male tennis players