Richard Sears (tennis)

For other people of the same name, see Richard Sears (disambiguation).

Richard Sears

Full name	Richard Dudley Sears
Country	United States
Born	October 16, 1861 Boston, MA, USA
Died	April 8, 1943(1943-04-08) (aged 81) Boston, MA, USA
Turned pro	1880 (amateur tour)
Retired	1888
Plays	Right-handed (1-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HOF	1955 (member page)
Singles
Highest ranking	No. 5 (1887, Karoly Mazak)
Grand Slam Singles results
Wimbledon	1R (1884)
US Open	W (1881, 1882, 1883, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887)
Doubles
Grand Slam Doubles results
US Open	W (1882, 1883, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887)
Last updated on: 23 April 2012.

Richard Dudley "Dick" Sears (b. October 16, 1861 d. April 8, 1943 both in Boston) – was an American male tennis player. He was the son of Frederic Richard Sears and Albertina Homer Shelton. He married Eleanor M Cochrane on Nov 24, 1891 and they had Richard Dudley Sears, Jr. and Miriam Sears.

Sears was undefeated in the U.S. Championships, he won the first of his seven consecutive titles (the all-time record until Rafael Nadal's win at the 2012 Monte-Carlo Masters, although in those days the previous year's winner had an automatic place in the final) there in 1881 while still a student at Harvard. Starting in the 1881 first round, he went on an 18-match unbeaten streak at that would take him through the 1887 championships, after which he retired from the game. Not until 1921 was his 18-match unbeaten run overtaken (by Bill Tilden). During his first three championships, Sears did not even lose a single set, never mind a match. Sears was the first 19-year old to win in the U.S., slightly older than Oliver Campbell was in 1890 and the youngest winner ever, Pete Sampras, in 1990.

He was the first U.S. No. 1 in the USLTA rankings, when they began in 1885 (he retained the ranking in 1886 and 1887). Sears was ranked World No. 5 for 1887 by Karoly Mazak.

After giving up playing lawn tennis, Sears won the U.S. Court Tennis singles title in 1892 and went on to serve as USTA President in 1887 and 1888.

Sears was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1955, where his cousin Eleonora Sears also has a place.

Grand Slam record

U.S. championships

• Singles champion: 1881, 1882, 1883, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887
• Doubles champion: 1882, 1883, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887

Grand Slam singles finals

Titles (7)

Year	Championship	Opponent in Final	Score in Final
1881	U.S. Championships	William E. Glyn	6–0, 6–3, 6–2
1882	U.S. Championships (2)	Clarence Clark	6–1, 6–4, 6–0
1883	U.S. Championships (3)	James Dwight	6–2, 6–0, 9–7
1884	U.S. Championships (4)	Howard Taylor	6–0, 1–6, 6–0, 6–2
1885	U.S. Championships (5)	Godfrey Brinley	6–3, 4–6, 6–0, 6–3
1886	U.S. Championships (6)	R. Livingston Beeckman	4–6, 6–1, 6–3, 6–4
1887	U.S. Championships (7)	Henry Slocum	6–1, 6–3, 6–2

Grand Slam doubles finals

Titles (6)

Year	Championship	Partner	Opponents	Score
1882	U.S. Championships	James Dwight	Crawford Nightingale G M Smith	6–2, 6–4, 6–4
1883	U.S. Championships	James Dwight	Alexander Van Rensselaer Arthur Newbold	6–0, 6–2, 6–2
1884	U.S. Championships	James Dwight	Alexander Van Rensselaer W.V.R. Berry	6–4, 6–1, 8–10, 6–4
1885	U.S. Championships	Joseph Clark	Henry Slocum Wallace P. Knapp	6–3, 6–0, 6–2
1886	U.S. Championships	James Dwight	Howard Taylor Godfrey Brinley	6–3, 6–0, 6–2
1887	U.S. Championships	James Dwight	Howard Taylor Henry Slocum	6–4, 3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–3

External links

• International Tennis Hall of Fame