Dora Boothby

Dora Boothby

Full name	Penelope Dora Harvey Boothby
Country (sports)	United Kingdom
Born	(1881-08-02)2 August 1881 Finchley, England
Died	22 February 1970(1970-02-22) (aged 88) Hammersmith, England
Singles
Grand Slam Singles results
Wimbledon	W (1909)
Doubles
Grand Slam Doubles results
Wimbledon	W (1913)
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
Wimbledon	3R (1913)
Medal record Olympic Games – Tennis 1908 London Singles

Penelope Dora Harvey Boothby (2 August 1881 – 22 February 1970) was an English female tennis player. She was born in Finchley, Middlesex. She is best remembered for her ladies' singles title at the 1909 Wimbledon Championships.

Biography

Boothby was born in Finchley and, together with her older sister Gertrude, lived there with her step-parents, Harry and Gertrude Penn. Harry was a civil engineer, and by 1901, they had moved to South Norwood, where she played at Beulah Hill Club, and during the winter months, she played badminton.

In 1908 she won a silver medal in the women's singles event at the 1908 Summer Olympics.^[1]

In 1909 when she won the Ladies' Singles at Wimbledon, the runner-up of the Men's Singles, Josiah Ritchie, was also living in Norwood.^[2] Additionally that year she won the singles title of the British Covered Court Championships, played on wood courts at the Queen's Club in London, after defeating Madeline O’Neill in the final in straight sets.

In 1911 she became the first female player to lose a Wimbledon final without winning a game, losing to Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers 6–0, 6–0.

In 1914 she married Arthur C.Geen.^[2]

She died in Hammersmith^[1] or Hampstead,^[2] London in 1970.

Grand Slam finals

Singles (1 titles, 2 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Winner	19091	Wimbledon Championships	Grass	Agnes Morton	6–4, 4–6, 8–6
Runner-up	1910	Wimbledon Championships	Grass	Dorothea Lambert Chambers	2–6, 2–6
Runner-up	1911	Wimbledon Championships	Grass	Dorothea Lambert Chambers	0–6, 0–6

¹This was actually the all-comers final as Charlotte Cooper Sterry did not defend her 1908 Wimbledon title, which resulted in the winner of the all-comers final winning the challenge round and, thus, Wimbledon in 1909 by walkover.

Doubles (1 title)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1913	Wimbledon Championships	Grass	Winifred McNair	Charlotte Cooper Sterry Dorothea Lambert Chambers	4–6, 2–4 retired

References

• John Arlott (Hrsg.): The Oxford companion to sports & games. Oxford University Press, London 1975
• All England champions 1899–2007

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