 Wrenn in 1900 | |
| Full name | Robert Duffield Wrenn |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  United States |
| Born | (1873-09-20)September 20, 1873 Highland Park, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | November 12, 1925(1925-11-12) (aged 52) Manhattan,New York City, U.S. |
| Retired | 1903 |
| Plays | Left-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1955(member page) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 111–40 (70.5%)[1] |
| Career titles | 11[1] |
| Highest ranking | No.1 (1897,ITHF)[2] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| US Open | W (1893,1894,1896,1897) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| US Open | W (1895) |
Robert “Bob” Duffield Wrenn (September 20, 1873 – November 12, 1925) was an American left-handedtennis player, four-timeU.S. singles championship winner, and one of the first inductees in theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame.[2]
Wrenn was born inHighland Park, Illinois. Wrenn attendedHarvard University, where he was a prominentquarterback on thefootball team. Wrenn was considered "one of Harvard's greatest all-around athletes,"[3] a star player at football, ice hockey, and baseball.[4][3]
Wrenn played a small role in the formation ofcollege ice hockey in the United States.[5] In the fall of 1892, Wrenn and fellow tennis champion (and doubles partner)Malcolm Greene Chace played in an international tennis tournament inNiagara Falls, New York,[5] where they met some Canadian athletes who invited them to return the next winter to learn about their sport ofice hockey, which differed from the game of ice polo which was then played in American colleges.[5] Wrenn and Chace gathered some friends from other northeast colleges including Cornell University and returned to Canada over Christmas break 1894-95 for a series of hockey matches.[5] Each of the students returned to their respective campuses to promote the sport of ice hockey.[5] Wrenn later played for theSt. Nicholas Hockey Club.[4]
Wrenn won his tennis titles in 1893, 1894, 1896 and 1897 (losing out toFred Hovey in 1895).
In 1898, he served in Cuba withTheodore Roosevelt'sRough Riders in theSpanish–American War. He contractedyellow fever while inCuba.
Wrenn played for the U.S. Davis Cup team in 1903 together with his brother George. In the final against the British Isles at theLongwood Cricket Club, they were defeated 1–4 and Wrenn lost both his singles matches againstReginald andLaurence Doherty as well as the doubles against the Doherty brothers.[6]
Wrenn was vice-president of theUnited States Tennis Association from 1902 until 1911 and president from 1912 until 1915.[7] He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1955.
He was arrested in 1914 when the car he was driving ran over and killed Herbert George Loveday, the choir director ofSt Mary's Church inTuxedo Park, New York.[8] Wrenn was exonerated when, according to a May 21, 1914 article inThe New York Times, "the Grand Jury, finding from testimony that the mechanism of the car had become disarranged, and the steering gear powerless, declined to find an indictment, and the complaint was dismissed."
Wrenn was an aviator inWorld War I.[4]
Wrenn died ofBright's disease in his apartment in the Hotel Madison inManhattan, at age 52.[4]
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1893 | U.S. Championships | Grass |  Fred Hovey | 6–4, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
| Win | 1894 | U.S. Championships | Grass |  Manliffe Goodbody | 6–8, 6–1, 6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 1895 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Fred Hovey | 3–6, 2–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 1896 | U.S. Championships | Grass |  Fred Hovey | 7–5, 3–6, 6–0, 1–6, 6–1 |
| Win | 1897 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Wilberforce Eaves | 4–6, 8–6, 6–3, 2–6, 6–2 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1895 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Malcolm Chace | Clarence Hobart Fred Hovey | 7–5, 6–1, 8–6 |
| Loss | 1896 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Malcolm Chace | Carr NeelSam Neel | 3–6, 6–1, 1–6, 6–3, 1–6 |
A lot of weird games between a lot of scrub teams probably were played on ice before Jan. 19, 1898, but on that day modern intercollegiate hockey competition was officially born
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