| ITF name | Karen Susman |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  United States |
| Born | (1942-12-11)December 11, 1942 (age 82) San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Plays | Right–handed |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 0–0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 4 (1962) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | QF (1964) |
| Wimbledon | W (1962) |
| US Open | QF (1959, 1964) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 0–0 |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| French Open | 3R (1964) |
| Wimbledon | W (1961, 1962) |
| US Open | W (1964) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| French Open | 3R (1964) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1960, 1964) |
Karen Susman (néeHantze; born December 11, 1942,San Diego)[1][2] is an American formertennis player. Susman won the women's singles title atWimbledon in1962. She won threeGrand Slam women's doubles titles, all withBillie Jean King. She also won the 1960 Wimbledon junior girls' singles title.
Hantze Susman is currently the longest surviving Wimbledon ladies' singles champion, following the death ofAngela Mortimer, the1961 champion, who died in August 2025.
Aged 17, Hantze reached the Quarter Finals of the women's singles at theUnited States Championships in 1959. She made her debut atWimbledon in the summer of 1960, reaching the Quarter Finals of the women's singles, but going on to win the Junior Girl's singles championship.
After reaching the singles Quarter Finals again in 1961, Hantze andBillie Jean Moffitt, as an unseeded team, won the 1961 women's doubles title at Wimbledon, defeating the third-seeded team ofJan Lehane andMargaret Smith in the final in straight sets. Their combined ages made them the youngest team to win the title at the time.
Returning as Mrs. Susman in 1962 and seeded eighth in the singles, Susman won the women's singles in 1962 without losing a set. She became the first player in Wimbledon history to win both the junior and adult singles' events. Susman and Moffitt successfully defended their doubles title in 1962, defeating the South African team ofRenée Schuurman andSandra Reynolds in a three-set final.
Due to her pregnancy, Susman did not play at Wimbledon in 1963, but she returned in 1964 and unseeded, lost in the last 32 to the top seeded Margaret Smith, 11-9 6-0. Susman and Moffitt reached the 1964 women's doubles final at Wimbledon, losing to the top-seeded team of Smith andLesley Turner. For Wimbledon's centenary celebration in 1977, Susman and (Moffitt) King teamed for the last time. As the eighth-seeded team, they were upset in the second round by the team ofMary Carillo andTrish Bostrom.
Susman and Moffitt won the 1964 women's doubles title at theU.S. Championships, defeating Smith and Turner in the final in three sets. Susman and Moffitt reached the 1962 women's doubles final at the U.S. Championships, losing to the team ofMaria Bueno andDarlene Hard in three sets. They also reached the 1965 women's doubles final at the U.S. Championships, losing to the team ofNancy Richey andCarole Caldwell Graebner. Susman gave birth to her only child in October 1963[3] and played very little in 1963, deciding not to defend her Wimbledon singles and doubles titles. She returned to play in 1964, and at Wimbledon, she lost in a third-round match toMargaret Smith. She entered the U.S. Championships the same year, but withdrew before the tournament. Susman played little in the 1960s and 1970s, but joined the start of Team Tennis in the U.S. in 1974 and made occasional tournament appearances,[4] returning to Wimbledon once and the US Open, where her last Grand Slam singles tournament was at the 1980 US Open. She defeatedTanya Harford in the first round andJanet Newberry in the second round, then lost to 14th-seededIvanna Madruga.
According to Lance Tingay ofThe Daily Telegraph and theDaily Mail, Susman was ranked in the world top 10 in 1961, 1962, and 1964, reaching a career high of world No. 4 in 1962.[5] Susman was included in the year-end top 10 rankings issued by theUnited States Lawn Tennis Association from 1959 through 1962 and in 1964. She was the second-ranked U.S. player behind Hard from 1960 through 1962.[6]
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1962 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Věra Suková | 6–4, 6–4 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1961 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Billie Jean Moffitt |  Jan LehaneMargaret Smith | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Win | 1962 | Wimbledon | Grass | Billie Jean Moffitt |  Sandra Reynolds PriceRenée Schuurman | 5–7, 6–3, 7–5 |
| Loss | 1962 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Billie Jean Moffitt |  Maria BuenoDarlene Hard | 4–6, 6–3, 6–2 |
| Loss | 1964 | Wimbledon | Grass | Billie Jean Moffitt | Margaret SmithLesley Turner | 7–5, 6–2 |
| Win | 1964 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Billie Jean Moffitt | Margaret Smith Lesley Turner | 3–6, 6–2, 6–4 |
| Loss | 1965 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Billie Jean Moffitt | Carole Caldwell GraebnerNancy Richey | 6–4, 6–4 |
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 – 1968 | 1969 | 1970 – 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A / A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 |
| France | A | A | A | A | A | A | QF | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 |
| Wimbledon | A | A | QF | QF | W | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | 2R | A | A | A | 1 / 5 |
| United States | 3R | QF | 3R | 3R | 3R | A | QF | A | 1R | A | 1R | A | A | 2R | 3R | 0 / 10 |
| SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 16 |
Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.
