Margaret Court facts for kids
Court in 2018
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| Country (sports) |  Australia |
|---|---|
| Residence | Perth, Australia |
| Born | 16 July 1942 Albury, Australia |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Turned pro | 1960 |
| Retired | 1977 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1979 (member page) |
| Singles | |
| Career titles | 192 (92 during the Open Era) |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (1962) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973) |
| French Open | W (1962, 1964, 1969, 1970, 1973) |
| Wimbledon | W (1963, 1965, 1970) |
| US Open | W (1962, 1965, 1969, 1970, 1973) |
| Doubles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (1963) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973) |
| French Open | W (1964, 1965, 1966, 1973) |
| Wimbledon | W (1964, 1969) |
| US Open | W (1963, 1968, 1970, 1973, 1975) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | W (1973, 1975) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career titles | 21 (7 during the open era) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1963, 1964, 1965, 1969) |
| French Open | W (1963, 1964, 1965, 1969) |
| Wimbledon | W (1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1975) |
| US Open | W (1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1969, 1970, 1972) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | W (1964, 1965, 1968, 1971) |
Margaret Court (born Margaret Smith on 16 July 1942) is an Australian former tennis player. Many people think she is one of the greatest tennis players ever. She won 24 major singles titles. This is more than any other player in tennis history.
She also won 19 major women's doubles titles and 21 major mixed doubles titles. This means she has a total of 64 major titles. This is also the most in tennis history.
Margaret Court was born in Albury, New South Wales. When she was 17, she won her first Australian Open singles title in 1960. She won this title seven times in a row. By age 21, she had won all four major singles titles. This is called a career Grand Slam. She achieved this at Wimbledon in 1963.
She took a short break from tennis in 1966 and 1967. She played as an amateur until 1968. This was when the Open Era of tennis began. In 1970, she won all four major singles titles in one year. This is known as a Grand Slam. She won six major singles titles in a row. This is a record.
Margaret Court had her first child in 1972. She returned to tennis later that year. In 1973, she won three more major singles titles. She took breaks after her second and third children too. She stopped playing tennis for good in 1977.
Court is one of only three players to win the "Boxed Set". This means winning every major title. This includes singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. She is the only player to win a double Boxed Set. This means winning all 12 major titles at least twice. She also won the Fed Cup with Australia four times.
After her tennis career, Margaret Court became a Christian minister. She founded Margaret Court Ministries.
Contents
Early Life and Tennis Beginnings
Margaret Court was born on 16 July 1942. She grew up in Albury, New South Wales. She was the youngest of four children. Her father worked at a cheese and butter factory.
Her family lived in a small house. They did not own a car when she was young. Margaret played many sports as a child. These included basketball, cricket, and soccer. She was known as a tomboy. She liked climbing trees and swinging over the river.
She found tennis when she was eight years old. She practiced by hitting a ball against a wall. She used an old fence paling. Later, a friend of her mother gave her an old tennis racquet. She started playing on the grass courts at a nearby club.
The club's coach, Wally Rutter, saw her talent. He invited her to his coaching lessons. Margaret said Rutter helped her become a professional tennis player. He also taught her about good sportsmanship.
When she was 16, Margaret moved to Melbourne. She wanted to train full-time with Frank Sedgman. He was a former world No. 1 player. She lived with her older sister. She also worked part-time as a receptionist. Sedgman made her train very hard. She ran, lifted weights, and ran on sandhills. He also taught her to play on clay courts. This helped her prepare for the French Open.
Tennis Career Highlights
As a teenager, Margaret won many junior titles in Australia. In 1960, she won her first major title. This was the Australian Championships. She was only 17. She then won this title seven times in a row.
In 1962, she became the first Australian woman to win a Grand Slam tournament outside Australia. She won the French and US Championships. The next year, she won Wimbledon. She was the first Australian woman to do so. In total, she won an amazing 64 major titles. This includes singles, doubles, and mixed doubles.
In August 1966, Margaret took a break from tennis. In 1967, she married Barry Court. His father and brother were important leaders in Western Australia. She came back to tennis in November 1967. In 1970, she won all four Grand Slam singles titles. This is a very rare achievement.
The next year, she lost the Wimbledon final. She was pregnant with her first child, Daniel. He was born in March 1972. She returned to tennis later that year. She played throughout 1973. Her second child, Marika, was born in 1974. She started playing again in November.
She missed most of 1976 after her third child was born. She played a little in 1977. But she retired for good that year. She found out she was expecting her fourth child. Her last major singles match was at the 1975 US Open. Her last major tournament was the 1976 Australian Open in women's doubles.
Margaret Court is one of only three players to win a "boxed set" of Grand Slam titles. This means winning every type of major title. These are singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles. She is the only person to win all 12 Grand Slam events at least twice. She also won boxed sets both before and after the Open Era began.
In 1973, Margaret Court played a famous match. It was against Bobby Riggs. He was a 55-year-old former male tennis champion. He beat her 6–2, 6–1. Four months later, Billie Jean King beat Riggs in the "Battle of the Sexes" match.
In 2003, a tennis court in Melbourne Park was renamed Margaret Court Arena.
Playing Style and Records
In the 1960s, Margaret Court was known for her long reach. This helped her at the net. She was tall and strong. She was very good at volleying and overhead shots. She moved very well for her size.
She played an attacking style. She would serve and then rush to the net. This style helped her beat players who played more defensively. She was also very committed to fitness. People called her "The Aussie Amazon." She lifted weights and ran on sandhills. This training helped her stay healthy during her career.
Margaret Court holds a record of 64 Grand Slam titles. This includes 24 singles titles. She also won 19 women's doubles titles. And she won a record 21 mixed doubles titles. Two of her mixed doubles titles were shared. This was because the finals were not played due to bad weather.
She won 62 out of 85 Grand Slam finals she played. This is about 73% of her finals. She won 24 out of 29 singles finals. This is about 83%.
Margaret Court reached the final in 29 Grand Slam singles tournaments. She reached the semifinals in 36. And she reached the quarterfinals in 43. She played 47 Grand Slam singles tournaments in total.
She is the only player to win the Grand Slam in both singles and mixed doubles. She won the singles Grand Slam in 1970. She won the mixed doubles Grand Slam in 1963 with Ken Fletcher. She won it again in 1965 with three different partners.
Margaret Court was ranked world No. 1 six times. This was from 1962 to 1970. She was also ranked No. 1 in 1973. This was when the official rankings started.
Career Timeline Highlights
- 1960 – Won her first singles title at the Australian Championships.
- 1962 – Won three of the four major singles tournaments.
- 1963 – Became the first Australian woman to win a singles title at Wimbledon. She and Ken Fletcher won all four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles in one year.
- 1964 – Won her career "boxed set" of Grand Slam titles. This means she won every type of major title.
- 1965 – Won three of the four major singles tournaments. She also won all four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She did this with three different partners.
- 1966 – Took a temporary break from tennis.
- 1969 – Won three of the four major singles and mixed doubles tournaments.
- 1970 – Won all four Grand Slam singles tournaments. This is called a Grand Slam. Only two other women have done this.
- 1971 – Won the Australian Championship for the 10th time. She left the tour to have her first child.
- 1973 – Won three of the four major singles and women's doubles tournaments. She was the first mother in the Open Era to win the Australian, French, and US Open championships.
- 1975 – Played her last major singles match. She won her last Grand Slam title in women's doubles. This was her 62nd Grand Slam title.
- 1977 – Played her final singles match. She retired after learning she was pregnant with her fourth child.
Honours and Awards
Margaret Court has received many awards for her tennis career.
- In 1967, she became a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).
- She won the ABC Sportsman of the Year Award in 1963 and 1970.
- In 1979, she was put into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
- In 1985, she joined the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. She became a "Legend" in 1998.
- In 1993, she was put into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame.
- She received the Australian Sports Medal in 2000.
- In 2001, she received the Centenary Medal.
- In 2003, Australia Post honored her with a special postage stamp.
- In 2006, she received the Philippe Chatrier Award. This is a top award from the International Tennis Federation.
- In 2007, she became an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO).
- In 2021, she was made a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC). This is for her amazing service to tennis.
Ministry and Community Work
Margaret Court grew up as a Roman Catholic. In the 1970s, she became involved with Pentecostalism. In 1991, she became a Pentecostal minister. She often speaks publicly about her faith.
She started a ministry called Margaret Court Ministries. In 1995, she founded a church in Perth called the Victory Life Centre. She is still its senior pastor. Her TV show, A Life of Victory, is shown on the Australian Christian Channel.
In 1997, Court started Victory Life Community Services. This is now called Margaret Court Community Outreach (MCCO). In 2014, it was one of the biggest food charities in Western Australia. It gave out about 25 tonnes of food each week.
Since 2010, she has been the president of Victory Life International. This is a group of churches. She also supports the Australian Family Association and Drug Free Australia.
Portrayal in Film
Margaret Court has been shown in movies.
- Jacqueline McKenzie played her in the 2001 TV movie When Billie Beat Bobby.
- Jessica McNamee played her in the 2017 Hollywood film Battle of the Sexes.
Images for kids
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Margaret Court playing doubles at Wimbledon alongside Evonne Goolagong
