Janet Hopps Adkisson (born August 4, 1934) is a former professional tennis player from the U.S. Adkisson was ranked in the top 15 female tennis players three times, and was, according to the
State of Washington
Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...
Sports Hall of Fame, "once recognized as one of the world's top woman tennis players".
Her best singles performance at a
Grand Slam tournament was reaching the fourth round at the
Wimbledon Championships
The Wimbledon Championships, commonly called Wimbledon, is a tennis tournament organised by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Association annually in Wimbledon, London. It is chronologically the ...
in
1959
Events
January
* January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...
and
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events January
* Janu ...
which she lost to
Sally Moore and
Renée Schuurman respectively. Her best singles title was in South America, Barinquilla, Columbia(1958). Defeated Althea Gibson #1 in World and Maria Bueno.
She reached the final of the mixed doubles event at the
1959 U.S. Championships, teaming up with
Bob Mark, in which they were defeated in three sets by
Margaret Osborne and
Neale Fraser
Neale Andrew Fraser, (3 October 1933 – 2 December 2024) was an Australian champion tennis player. Fraser is the most recent man to have completed the triple crown (i.e. having won the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles at a Grand S ...
. With
Karen Hantze she reached the semifinal of the doubles event at the
1960 Wimbledon Championships which they lost in three sets to the first-seeded pair, and eventual champions,
Maria Bueno
Maria Esther Andion Bueno (11 October 1939 – 8 June 2018) was a Brazilian professional tennis player. During her 11-year career in the 1950s and 1960s, she won 19 Grand Slam (tennis)#Tournaments, major titles (seven in women's singles, 11 in w ...
and
Darlene Hard
Darlene Ruth Hard (January 6, 1936 – December 2, 2021) was an American professional tennis player, known for her aggressive volleying ability and strong serves. She captured singles titles at the French Championships in 1960 and the U.S. Cha ...
. At the same tournament, Hopps Adkisson partnered
Bob Mark to reach the semifinal of the mixed doubles event.
Hopps Adkisson won the singles and doubles title at the
US Indoor Championships in 1961 and the mixed doubles title with tennis commentator and author
Bud Collins
Arthur Worth "Bud" Collins Jr. (June 17, 1929 – March 4, 2016) was an American journalist and television sportscaster, best known for his tennis commentary. Collins was married to photographer Anita Ruthling Klaussen.
Education
Collins was b ...
.
Hopps Adkisson was inducted into the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and the ITA Women's Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999.
Grand Slam finals
Mixed Doubles: (1 runner-ups)
References
American female tennis players
1934 births
Living people
20th-century American sportswomen
{{US-tennis-bio-stub