Pauline Betz Addie (née Pauline May Betz, August 6, 1919 – May 31, 2011) was an American professional tennis player. She won five Grand Slam singles titles and was the runner-up on three other occasions. Jack Kramer has called her the second best female tennis player he ever saw, behind Helen Wills Moody.
Early life
Betz attended Los Angeles High School and learned her tennis from Dick Skeen. She continued her tennis and education at Rollins College (graduating in 1943), where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. She went on to win four United States Singles Championships.Career
Addie won the first of her four singles titles at the U.S. Championships in 1942, saving a match point in the semifinals against Margaret Osborne duPont while trailing 3–5 in the final set. The following year, she won the Tri-State tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio, defeating Catherine Wolf in the final 6–0, 6–2 without losing a point in the first set, a "Golden Set". She won the Wimbledon singles title in 1946, the only time she entered the tournament, without losing a set. Her amateur career ended when she explored the possibilities of turning professional.According to John Olliff of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, Addie was ranked World No. 1 in 1946 (no rankings issued from 1940 through 1945). Addie was included in the year-end top ten rankings issued by the United States Lawn Tennis Association from 1939 through 1946. She was the top ranked U.S. player from 1942 through 1944 and in 1946.
Addie was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1965.
The Pauline Betz Addie Tennis Center at Cabin John Regional Park in Potomac, Maryland was renamed in her honor on May 1, 2008. Addie, Allie Ritzenberg, and Stanly Hoffberger founded the center in 1972.
