The men's singles was a
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 ...
event held as part of the
tennis at the 1920 Summer Olympics programme. It was the sixth appearance of the event. A total of 44 players from 15 nations entered in the event; 41 players from 14 nations competed. The event was held from 16 to 23 August 1920 at the
Beerschot Tennis Club
The Beerschot Tennis Club, now known as the Royal Beerschot Tennis and Hockey Club is a field hockey and tennis club founded in 1899 in Kontich, Belgium, located in neighboring Antwerp. It hosted the tennis events for the 1920 Summer Olympics.
Hon ...
.
Nations were limited to four players each. The event was won by
Louis Raymond of South Africa, the nation's second consecutive in the event (second-most all-time behind Great Britain's three). South Africa had nearly had both finalists again, as it had in 1912, but defending champion
Charles Winslow
Charles Lyndhurst Winslow (1 August 1888 – 15 September 1963) was a three-time Olympic tennis medalist from South Africa. He won two gold medals: Men's Singles and Doubles at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm. Eight years later, in Antw ...
fell to Japan's
Ichiya Kumagae in the semifinal; Winslow took bronze by walkover against
Noel Turnbull
Oswald Graham Noel Turnbull (20 December 1890 – 17 December 1970) was an English tennis player. He is best known for his gold medal in the men's doubles event (with Maxwell Woosnam) at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics.
Before World War I Turnbu ...
of Great Britain. Kumagae's silver was Japan's first medal in the event.
Background
This was the sixth appearance of the men's singles tennis event. The event has been held at every Summer Olympics where tennis has been on the program: from 1896 to 1924 and then from 1988 to the current program. Demonstration events were held in 1968 and 1984.
As in previous Games, the field for this event was relatively weak and without top competitors. The Olympic tennis tournament was no longer scheduled adjacent to or concurrent with Wimbledon, as it had been in 1908 and 1912; however, it was at the same time as the U.S. Championship this year.
Bill Tilden
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 b ...
and
Bill Johnston Bill or Billy Johnston may refer to:
* Bill Johnston (cricketer) (1922–2007), Australian cricketer
* Bill Johnston (golfer) (1925–2021), American golfer and golf course architect
* Bill Johnston (tennis)
William Marquitz "Little Bill" John ...
, and all the other American players, thus did not enter. Australia's
Gerald Patterson
Gerald Leighton Patterson MC (17 December 1895 – 13 June 1967) was an Australian tennis 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 ...
did enter, but withdrew.
[
Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Japan, Spain, and Switzerland each made their debut in the event. France made its fifth appearance, most among all nations, having missed only the St. Louis 1904 event.
]
Competition format
The competition was a single-elimination tournament with a bronze-medal match. All matches were best-of-five sets.
Schedule
Draw
Finals
Top half
Section 1
Section 2
Bottom half
Section 3
Section 4
The match between Lowe and Zerlendis was played over two days, and lasted for nearly six hours. At one point the ballboys, bored by the long rallying, left the court and went to lunch, forcing the match to stop until they returned.
Results summary
References
Sources
*
*
ITF, 2008 Olympic Tennis Event Media Guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tennis at the 1920 Summer Olympics - Men's singles
Men's singles
Men's events at the 1920 Summer Olympics