Howard Kinsey

Howard Oreon Kinsey (December 3, 1899 – July 26, 1966) was an American tennis player in the 1920s. He was originally from California.[2]

Howard Kinsey
Kinsey in Paris (1926)
Full nameHoward Oreon Kinsey
Country (sports) United States
Born(1899-12-03)December 3, 1899
St. Louis, MO, United States
DiedJuly 26, 1966(1966-07-26) (aged 66)
San Francisco, CA, United States
Turned pro1927 (amateur from 1920)
Retired1931
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Singles
Highest rankingNo. 7 (1924, A. Wallis Myers)[1]
Grand Slam Singles results
French OpenQF (1926)
WimbledonF (1926)
US OpenQF (1924, 1925)
Professional majors
US ProF (1927)
Doubles
Grand Slam Doubles results
French OpenW (1926)
WimbledonF (1926)
US OpenW (1924)
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
WimbledonF (1926)

Playing record

His most significant championships were the 1926 French National men's doubles championship, where he and Vincent Richards beat Henri Cochet and Jacques Brugnon (a pairing who went on to win three other French National doubles titles) in the final, and the 1924 U.S. National men's doubles championship with his brother, Robert Kinsey. Bill Tilden wrote of the pair that he had "seldom seen a team work together more smoothly than the Kinseys."[3] In 1926, he reached the Wimbledon final losing to Jean Borotra.[4]

Kinsey was ranked world No. 7 in 1924 by A. Wallis Myers in his amateur rankings for The Daily Telegraph.[1] As a pro, American Lawn Tennis Magazine ranked Kinsey as world No. 6 in 1930.[5]

Later in 1926, he went on to be one of the first players signed up by the promoter Charles C. Pyle to play in his professional tennis league. After a split with Pyle, he joined Richards in forming an association of professional tennis players.[6]

In 1936, he and Helen Wills Moody volleyed a tennis ball back and forth 2,001 times without missing. The feat took them 1 hour and 18 minutes. They only broke off the exchange so that Kinsey could go teach a lesson that he had scheduled.

Kinsey is a member of the USTA Northern California Hall of Fame.[7]

Grand Slam finals

Singles: (1 runner-up)
Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Loss1926WimbledonGrass Jean Borotra6–8, 1–6, 3–6

Doubles: (2 titles, 1 runner-up)
Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win1924U.S. National ChampionshipsGrass Robert Kinsey Pat O'Hara Wood
Gerald Patterson		7–5, 5–7, 7–9, 6–3, 6–4
Win1926French ChampionshipsClay Vincent Richards Jacques Brugnon
Henri Cochet		6–4, 6–1, 4–6, 6–4
Loss1926WimbledonGrass Vincent Richards Jacques Brugnon
Henri Cochet		5–7, 6–4, 3–6, 2–6

Mixed Doubles (1 runner-up)
Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss1926WimbledonGrass Mary Browne Kathleen McKane
Leslie Godfree		3–6, 4–6

See also

References
  1. United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 424.
  2. "Howard Kinsey, 66, a tennis champion". New York Times. July 28, 1966. Retrieved July 11, 2008.
  3. Tilden, William T. (1922). The Art of Lawn Tennis. New York: Garden City. p. 151. OL 24183166M.
  4. Collins, Bud (2010). The Bud Collins History of Tennis (2nd ed.). New York: New Chapter Press. pp. 399, 418, 458, 477. ISBN 978-0942257700.
  5. K. De Lang, ed. (January 14, 1930). "Lawntennis" (PDF). Het Vaderland (in Dutch). C.M. Schilt. 61: 15. Retrieved July 5, 2013.
  6. Collins, Bud (2010). The Bud Collins History of Tennis (2nd ed.). New York: New Chapter Press. p. 33. ISBN 978-0942257700.
  7. "USTA Northern California Tennis Hall of Fame". USTA. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020.
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