Francis Hunter
Francis "Frank" Townsend Hunter was an American tennis player who won an Olympic gold medal. He won the U.S. National Indoor Championships in 1922 and 1930 and the Eastern Clay Court Championships in 1919.
Early and personal life
Hunter graduated from Cornell University in 1916, where he was a member of the Quill and Dagger society, the ice hockey team, and the Alpha-Kappa Chapter of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity.During WWI he was a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy and served on Admiral Beatty's flagship of the British Royal Navy. He later wrote a book about his experiences with the Admiral.
Hunter was the second husband of the actress Lisette Verea in 1954.
Hunter was later successful in the coal and printing industries.
Tennis career
Hunter set a one-day record by winning five matches in singles, 1920. They were all straight-set victories and came in two different New York tournaments.Hunter won the U.S. National Indoor Championships in 1922 and again in 1930 and the Eastern Clay Court Championships in 1919.
He was a singles finalist at Wimbledon in 1923.
Hunter won a gold medal at the 1924 Paris Olympics, in the men's doubles event with partner Vincent Richards.
He won the Scheveningen Championships on red clay in the Netherlands in 1928 defeating Hendrik Timmer in the semifinal in four sets and Jean Borotra in the final in three straight sets.
Hunter reached the U.S. championships singles final in 1928.
File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-08102, Berlin, Davis-Pokal.jpg|thumb|right|300px|German Daniel Prenn and Hunter, in a Davis Cup match in Berlin in 1929
He reached his third Grand Slam singles final at the U.S. championships in 1929 where he beat R. Norris Williams, losing the final in five sets to Bill Tilden.
He was ranked World No. 4 in 1929 by A. Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph and World No. 5 in another Myers list in September the same year.
Hunter won the Brooklyn Indoor Championships in 1930 defeating J. Gilbert Hall in the semifinal.
Hunter turned professional in mid January 1931 joining Bill Tilden. He reached the final of the U.S. Pro Championships in 1933 where he lost to Vincent Richards. As well as playing on the pro tour, Hunter was also a promoter, including promoting the first Perry-Vines tour in 1937 with S. Howard Voshell.