Gardnar Mulloy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Gardnar Mulloy

Full name	Gardnar Putnam Mulloy
Country (sports)	United States
Born	(1913-11-22)November 22, 1913 Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died	November 14, 2016(2016-11-14) (aged 102) Miami, Florida, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Turned pro	1934 (amateur tour)
Retired	1969
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
College	University of Miami
Int. Tennis HoF	1972 (member page)
Singles
Career record	918–310 (74.7%)
Career titles	60
Highest ranking	No. 6 (1947, Harry Hopman)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	SF (1947)
French Open	QF (1952, 1953, 1954)
Wimbledon	SF (1948)
US Open	F (1952)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
French Open	F (1951, 1952)
Wimbledon	W (1957)
US Open	W (1942, 1945, 1946, 1950)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Wimbledon	F (1956)
US Open	F (1955)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (1946, 1948, 1949)

Gardnar Putnam "Gar" Mulloy (born November 22, 1913 – died November 14, 2016) was a famous American tennis player. He was known for his amazing skills in doubles matches. His main partner was Billy Talbert.

Gardnar Mulloy was born in Washington, D.C.. He lived to be almost 103 years old! During his long career, he won five major doubles tournaments called Grand Slams. He also helped the U.S. team win the Davis Cup three times.

Mulloy played college tennis for the Miami Hurricanes at the University of Miami in Florida.

Gardnar Mulloy's Tennis Career

Gardnar Mulloy was a tennis coach at the University of Miami. He helped recruit Pancho Segura to the tennis team. Segura became a great player, winning three college singles titles.

In 1967, Mulloy was honored by being added to the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame. He was part of the very first group of people inducted.

Major Tournament Success

In 1952, Mulloy reached the singles final at the U.S. Championships. He played against Frank Sedgman but lost the match. That same year, he was ranked as the No. 1 player in the U.S. He was also ranked among the top 10 players in the world.

Mulloy and his partner, Billy Talbert, were a very strong doubles team. They won the U.S. men's doubles title four times: in 1942, 1945, 1946, and 1948. Mulloy also won the Wimbledon doubles title in 1957. He was 43 years old at the time, which was quite old for a tennis champion! His partner for that win was Budge Patty.

Davis Cup and Military Service

Mulloy was an important member of the U.S. Davis Cup team. He played in the Davis Cup in several years, including 1946, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, and 1957. He helped the U.S. team win the Cup three times against Australia. His record in Davis Cup matches was 11 wins and only 3 losses.

During World War II, Mulloy served in the U.S. Navy. He was the commanding officer of a ship called USS LST-32 in the Mediterranean Sea.

In 1972, Gardnar Mulloy was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. This is a very special honor for tennis players.

In 2015, Mulloy received a special award from France. He was given the French Legion of Honor knighthood. This was for his service in the U.S. Navy during operations in Italy and France. He was the oldest person ever to receive this award for the first time.

Beyond Professional Tennis

Gardnar Mulloy graduated from the University of Miami in 1936. He also coached tennis there. He was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

One of Mulloy's biggest contributions to tennis was making senior tennis popular. He played in tournaments for older players all over the world, even into his nineties. He even created the Mulloy Cup. This is a competition for male tennis players who are 80 years old and older. He won over 127 national championships and 25 international titles during his 75 years of playing tennis.

As late as 2006, Mulloy was still playing and winning senior tennis matches!

Gardnar Mulloy's Personal Life

In 1938, Gardnar Mulloy married Madeleine L. Cheney. They had two daughters named Diane and Janice. After Madeleine passed away, Mulloy married his second wife, Jacqueline Mayer, in 2008. He was 95 years old at the time.

Mulloy was a vegetarian. He also avoided alcohol, coffee, sugary drinks, and tea.

Gardnar Mulloy passed away in Miami on November 14, 2016. He was 102 years old. He was survived by his second wife, his daughters, four grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.

Grand Slam Finals

Gardnar Mulloy played in several Grand Slam finals. These are the most important tennis tournaments in the world.

Singles Final (1 Runner-up)

He reached one singles final:

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	1952	US National Championships	Grass	Frank Sedgman	1–6, 2–6, 3–6

Doubles Finals (5 Titles, 9 Runners-up)

He won 5 doubles titles and was a runner-up 9 times:

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1940	US National Championships	Grass	Wayne Sabin	Jack Kramer Ted Schroeder	7–6, 4–6, 2–6
Loss	1941	US National Championships	Grass	Henry Prusoff	Jack Kramer Ted Schroeder	4–6, 6–8, 7–9
Win	1942	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	Ted Schroeder Sidney Wood	9–7, 7–5, 6–1
Win	1945	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	Bob Falkenburg Jack Tuero	12–10, 8–10, 12–10, 6–2
Win	1946	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	Don McNeill Frank Guernsey	3–6, 6–4, 2–6, 6–3, 20–18
Loss	1948	Wimbledon	Grass	Tom Brown	John Bromwich Frank Sedgman	7–5, 5–7, 5–7, 7–9
Win	1948	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	Frank Parker Ted Schroeder	1–6, 9–7, 6–3, 3–6, 9–7
Loss	1949	Wimbledon	Grass	Ted Schroeder	Pancho Gonzales Frank Parker	4–6, 4–6, 2–6
Loss	1950	French Championships	Clay	Dick Savitt	Ken McGregor Frank Sedgman	2–6, 6–2, 7–9, 5–7
Loss	1950	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	John Bromwich Frank Sedgman	5–7, 6–8, 6–3, 1–6
Loss	1951	French Championships	Clay	Dick Savitt	Ken McGregor Frank Sedgman	3–6, 4–6, 4–6
Loss	1953	US National Championships	Grass	Bill Talbert	Rex Hartwig Mervyn Rose	4–6, 6–4, 4–6, 2–6
Win	1957	Wimbledon	Grass	Budge Patty	Neale Fraser Lew Hoad	8–10, 6–4, 6–4, 6–4
Loss	1957	US National Championships	Grass	Budge Patty	Ashley Cooper Neale Fraser	6–4, 3–6, 7–9, 3–6

Mixed Doubles Finals (2 Runner-ups)

He reached two mixed doubles finals:

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1955	US National Championships	Grass	Shirley Fry	Doris Hart Vic Seixas	5–7, 7–5, 2–6
Loss	1956	Wimbledon	Grass	Althea Gibson	Shirley Fry Vic Seixas	6–2, 2–6, 5–7

Books by Gardnar Mulloy

Gardnar Mulloy wrote a book about his life called The Will To Win. It was published in 1960. In 2009, he released an updated version called As It Was. The famous tennis player Billie Jean King wrote the introduction for this updated book. According to his book, Mulloy is in a record nine Halls of Fame!

Images for kids

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  Gardnar Mulloy in 1956

See also

In Spanish: Gardnar Mulloy para niños