Kathleen McKane Godfree
Encyclopedia
Kathleen "Kitty" McKane Godfree (born 7 May 1896, Bayswater, London – died 19 June 1992, London) was a British female tennis
and badminton
player.
According to Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail
, Godfree was ranked in the world top ten from 1921 (when the rankings began) through 1927, reaching a career high of World No. 2 in those rankings in 1923, 1924, and 1926.
Godfree won five Olympic medals in tennis at the 1920 Antwerp and 1924 Paris games, the most Olympic medals ever won by a tennis player. In 1923 she captured the title at the World Covered Court Championships
.
Godfree won the Wimbledon
singles title twice. In the 1924 final, Godfree recovered from a set and 4–1 (40–15) down against Helen Wills Moody
to win the title. This was the only defeat at Wimbledon for Moody who would go on to win eight titles. In the 1926 final, Godfree recovered from a 3–1 and game-point-against deficit in the third set to defeat Lili de Alvarez
.
The 1924 Wimbledon final was not Godfree's only victory over Moody. Godfree also defeated Moody during the 1924 Wightman Cup
6–2, 6–2. On at least two other occasions, Godfree pushed Moody to the limit. Moody won their quarterfinal in the 1923 U.S. Championships 2–6, 6–2, 7–5 after Godfree recovered to 5–5 in the third set after trailing 5–2. And in the final of the 1925 U.S. Championships, Moody won in three sets.
In 1925, Godfree became the first person to have reached the singles finals of the French Championships, Wimbledon, and U.S. Championships during her career.
In 1922, Kitty and her sister Margaret McKane Stocks were the only sisters to contest a Wimbledon doubles final (until Serena
and Venus Williams
reached the final in 2000), losing to Suzanne Lenglen
and Elizabeth Ryan
6–0, 6–4.
Godfree's lifetime record at Wimbledon was 38–11 in singles, 33–12 in women's doubles, and 40–12 in mixed doubles.
Godfree received a Centenary medallion on Wimbledon's Centre Court in 1977. She presented the winner's trophy to Martina Navratilova in 1986, in honor of the centenary year of play by women at Wimbledon. Godfree was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame
in 1978.
In badminton, Godfree won nine All England Open Badminton Championships
from 1920 through 1925, considered the unofficial World Badminton Championships until 1977.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
NH = tournament not held.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
1Through 1923, the French Championships were open only to French nationals. The World Hard Court Championships (WHCC), actually played on clay in Paris or Brussels, began in 1912 and were open to all nationalities. The results from that tournament are shown here from 1920 through 1923. The Olympics replaced the WHCC in 1924, as the Olympics were held in Paris. Beginning in 1925, the French Championships were open to all nationalities, with the results shown here beginning with that year.
remain the only married couple ever to win the mixed doubles championship at Wimbledon, winning the title in 1926.
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...
and badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
player.
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...
, Godfree was ranked in the world top ten from 1921 (when the rankings began) through 1927, reaching a career high of World No. 2 in those rankings in 1923, 1924, and 1926.
Godfree won five Olympic medals in tennis at the 1920 Antwerp and 1924 Paris games, the most Olympic medals ever won by a tennis player. In 1923 she captured the title at the World Covered Court Championships
World Covered Court Championships
The World Covered Court Championships were part of a series of three world championships sanctioned from 1913–1923 by the International Lawn Tennis Federation . The tournament was played indoors on wood floors, and its venue changed from year to year among several countries...
.
Godfree won the 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...
singles title twice. In the 1924 final, Godfree recovered from a set and 4–1 (40–15) down against 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:...
to win the title. This was the only defeat at Wimbledon for Moody who would go on to win eight titles. In the 1926 final, Godfree recovered from a 3–1 and game-point-against deficit in the third set to defeat Lili de Alvarez
Lili de Alvarez
Lili de Alvarez was a Spanish multi-sport competitor, an international tennis champion, an author, and a journalist....
.
The 1924 Wimbledon final was not Godfree's only victory over Moody. Godfree also defeated Moody during the 1924 Wightman Cup
Wightman Cup
The Wightman Cup was a team tennis competition for women contested from 1923 through 1989 between teams from the United States and Great Britain. U.S. player Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman wanted to generate international interest in women's tennis the way Davis Cup did for men's...
6–2, 6–2. On at least two other occasions, Godfree pushed Moody to the limit. Moody won their quarterfinal in the 1923 U.S. Championships 2–6, 6–2, 7–5 after Godfree recovered to 5–5 in the third set after trailing 5–2. And in the final of the 1925 U.S. Championships, Moody won in three sets.
In 1925, Godfree became the first person to have reached the singles finals of the French Championships, Wimbledon, and U.S. Championships during her career.
In 1922, Kitty and her sister Margaret McKane Stocks were the only sisters to contest a Wimbledon doubles final (until Serena
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
and Venus Williams
Venus Williams
Venus Ebony Starr Williams is an American professional tennis player who is a former World No. 1 and is ranked World No. 101 as of 10 October 2011 in singles and World No. 20 in doubles as of 2011. She has been ranked World No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association on three separate...
reached the final in 2000), losing to Suzanne Lenglen
Suzanne Lenglen
Suzanne Rachel Flore Lenglen was a French tennis player who won 31 Championship titles between 1914 and 1926...
and Elizabeth Ryan
Elizabeth Ryan
Elizabeth Montague Ryan was an American tennis player who was born in Anaheim, California but lived most of her life in the United Kingdom. Ryan won 30 Grand Slam titles. Nineteen of those titles were in women's doubles and mixed doubles at Wimbledon, an all-time record for those two events...
6–0, 6–4.
Godfree's lifetime record at Wimbledon was 38–11 in singles, 33–12 in women's doubles, and 40–12 in mixed doubles.
Godfree received a Centenary medallion on Wimbledon's Centre Court in 1977. She presented the winner's trophy to Martina Navratilova in 1986, in honor of the centenary year of play by women at Wimbledon. Godfree 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 1978.
In badminton, Godfree won nine All England Open Badminton Championships
All England Open Badminton Championships
The All England Open Badminton Championships, or simply All England, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious badminton tournaments. Played annually, it developed after the success of world's first badminton tournament held in Guildford in 1898...
from 1920 through 1925, considered the unofficial World Badminton Championships until 1977.
Wins (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1924 | 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... |
 Helen Wills MoodyHelen 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:... |
4–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
| 1926 | Wimbledon (2) |  Lilí de ÁlvarezLili de Alvarez Lili de Alvarez was a Spanish multi-sport competitor, an international tennis champion, an author, and a journalist.... |
6–2, 4–6, 6–3 |
Runner-ups (4)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1923 | World Hard Court Championships World Hard Court Championships World Hard Court Championships, frequently considered as the precursor to the French Open was held from 1912 till 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. The venue, was the clay courts of the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud, with one exception, namely 1922, when they were held at the Royal Leopold... |
 Suzanne LenglenSuzanne Lenglen Suzanne Rachel Flore Lenglen was a French tennis player who won 31 Championship titles between 1914 and 1926... |
6–2, 6–3 |
| 1923 | 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... |
Suzanne Lenglen |
6–2, 6–2 |
| 1925 | French Championships | Suzanne Lenglen |
6–1, 6–2 |
| 1925 | 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:... |
3–6, 6–0, 6–2 |
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1919 | 1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia 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... |
NH | NH | NH | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 |
| France1 | NH | A | A | SF | F | NH | F | QF | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 4 |
| 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... |
QF | 3R | 2R | 2R | F | W | SF | W | QF | A | A | A | 4R | 4R | 2R | 3R | 2 / 13 |
| United States | A | A | A | A | QF | A | F | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 3 |
| SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 1 / 1 | 0 / 3 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 2 / 20 |
A = did not participate in the tournament.
NH = tournament not held.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
1Through 1923, the French Championships were open only to French nationals. The World Hard Court Championships (WHCC), actually played on clay in Paris or Brussels, began in 1912 and were open to all nationalities. The results from that tournament are shown here from 1920 through 1923. The Olympics replaced the WHCC in 1924, as the Olympics were held in Paris. Beginning in 1925, the French Championships were open to all nationalities, with the results shown here beginning with that year.
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...
Husband
Kitty and her husband LeslieLeslie Godfree
Leslie Allison Godfree was a British male tennis player.Godfree won his first championship in 1923, partnering Randolph Lycett to win the men's doubles at Wimbledon...
remain the only married couple ever to win the mixed doubles championship at Wimbledon, winning the title in 1926.