Betty Nuthall
Encyclopedia
Betty May Nuthall Shoemaker (23 May 1911, Surbiton
, Surrey
– 8 November 1983, New York City
, New York
) was an English
tennis
player.
Known for her powerful forehand, according to Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail
, Shoemaker was ranked in the world top ten in 1927, 1929 through 1931, and 1933, reaching a career high in those rankings of World No. 4 in 1929.
In 1927 at the age of 16, Shoemaker tied Elisabeth Moore
as the then-youngest women's singles finalist ever at the U.S. Championships. Shoemaker lost the final to Helen Wills Moody
.
Also in 1927, Shoemaker played on the British Wightman Cup team and defeated Helen Jacobs
in her debut.
In 1930, Shoemaker became the first non-American to win a women's singles title at the U.S. Championships since 1892. She was the last British female player to win the title until Virginia Wade
won in 1968.
At the U.S. Championships in 1933, Shoemaker won a quarterfinal versus Alice Marble
6–8, 6–0, 7–5 after being down two breaks of serve at 1–5 in the final set. In the semifinal versus Moody, Shoemaker won the first set 6–2 in just 12 minutes, which was the first set Moody had lost at this tournament since 1926. Moody, however, turned around the match and won the last two sets 6–3, 6–2 despite losing her serve twice in the second set. Shoemaker never again reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles tournament.
Shoemaker won women's doubles titles at the 1930, 1931, and 1933 U.S. Championships and at the 1931 French Championships. She won mixed doubles championships at the 1929 and 1931 U.S. Championships and at the 1931 and 1932 French Championships.
Shoemaker was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame
in 1977.
NH = tournament not held.
R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
1In 1946, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.
Surbiton
Surbiton, a suburban area of London in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, is situated next to the River Thames, with a mixture of Art-Deco courts, more recent residential blocks and grand, spacious 19th century townhouses blending into a sea of semi-detached 20th century housing estates...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
– 8 November 1983, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player.
Known for her powerful forehand, according to Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, Shoemaker was ranked in the world top ten in 1927, 1929 through 1931, and 1933, reaching a career high in those rankings of World No. 4 in 1929.
In 1927 at the age of 16, Shoemaker tied Elisabeth Moore
Elisabeth Moore
Elisabeth Holmes Moore was an American tennis champion. She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971.-Biography:She was born on March 5, 1876 in Brooklyn...
as the then-youngest women's singles finalist ever at the U.S. Championships. Shoemaker lost the final to Helen Wills Moody
Helen Wills Moody
Helen Newington Wills Roark , also known as Helen Wills Moody, was an American tennis player. She has been described as "the first American born woman to achieve international celebrity as an athlete."-Biography:...
.
Also in 1927, Shoemaker played on the British Wightman Cup team and defeated Helen Jacobs
Helen Jacobs
Helen Hull Jacobs was a World No. 1 American female tennis player who won ten Grand Slam titles. She was born in Globe, Arizona, United States.- Tennis career :...
in her debut.
In 1930, Shoemaker became the first non-American to win a women's singles title at the U.S. Championships since 1892. She was the last British female player to win the title until Virginia Wade
Virginia Wade
Sarah Virginia Wade, OBE is a former English tennis player. She won three Grand Slam singles championships and four Grand Slam doubles championships. She won the women's singles championship at Wimbledon on 1 July 1977, in that tournament's centenary year, the last time any Briton has won a...
won in 1968.
At the U.S. Championships in 1933, Shoemaker won a quarterfinal versus Alice Marble
Alice Marble
Alice Marble was a World No. 1 American tennis player who won 18 Grand Slam championships : 5 in Singles, 6 in Women's Doubles, and 7 in Mixed Doubles.-Early life:Born in the small town of Beckwourth, Plumas County, California, Marble moved with her family at the age of...
6–8, 6–0, 7–5 after being down two breaks of serve at 1–5 in the final set. In the semifinal versus Moody, Shoemaker won the first set 6–2 in just 12 minutes, which was the first set Moody had lost at this tournament since 1926. Moody, however, turned around the match and won the last two sets 6–3, 6–2 despite losing her serve twice in the second set. Shoemaker never again reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles tournament.
Shoemaker won women's doubles titles at the 1930, 1931, and 1933 U.S. Championships and at the 1931 French Championships. She won mixed doubles championships at the 1929 and 1931 U.S. Championships and at the 1931 and 1932 French Championships.
Shoemaker was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame
International Tennis Hall of Fame
The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The hall of fame and honors players and contributors to the sport of tennis and includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility, and a court tennis facility.-History:The hall of fame and...
in 1977.
Win (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1930 | U.S. Championships |  Anna McCune HarperAnna McCune Harper Anna McCune Harper was a female tennis player from the United States. She won the mixed doubles title at Wimbledon in 1931. She was the runner-up in singles at the 1930 U.S. Championships, losing to Betty Nuthall Shoemaker. She also was the runner-up in women's doubles at the 1928, 1930, and... |
6–1, 6–4 |
Runner-ups (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1927 | U.S. Championships | Helen Wills Moody Helen Wills Moody Helen Newington Wills Roark , also known as Helen Wills Moody, was an American tennis player. She has been described as "the first American born woman to achieve international celebrity as an athlete."-Biography:... |
6–1, 6–4 |
| 1931 | French Championships |  Cilly AussemCilly Aussem Cilly Aussem was a German female tennis player.She was the first German to win the women's singles title at Wimbledon in 1931. She also won the women's single titles at the French Championships and German Championships in 1931. Aussem's coach and mixed doubles partner was Bill Tilden... |
8–6, 6–1 |
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 - 1944 | 1945 | 19461 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Championships Australian Open The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court... |
A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | NH | NH | A | 0 / 0 |
| French Championships | A | A | 2R | A | A | F | SF | SF | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | NH | R | A | A | 0 / 5 |
| Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
2R | QF | 1R | 3R | QF | QF | QF | 4R | 1R | A | 2R | 4R | 4R | 1R | NH | NH | NH | 4R | 0 / 14 |
| U.S. Championships U.S. Open (tennis) The US Open, formally the United States Open Tennis Championships, is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which for men's singles was first contested in 1881... |
A | F | A | QF | W | SF | A | SF | 2R | A | A | A | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | 1 / 7 |
| SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 26 |
NH = tournament not held.
R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
1In 1946, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.
See also
- Performance timelines for all female tennis players who reached at least one Grand Slam finalTennis performance timeline comparison (women)This article presents in a tabular form the career tennis Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships and Olympic singles results of every woman who has reached the singles final of at least one Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships or Olympic tournament during her career...