Southdean Covered Court Championships
The Southdean Covered Court Championships was an indoor tennis tournament established in 1934 at the Southdean Sports Club, Middleton-on-Sea, West Sussex, England.[1] The championships ran until 1952 when they were discontinued.[2][3]
| Southdean Covered Court Championships | |
|---|---|
| Defunct tennis tournament | |
| Founded | 1934 |
| Abolished | 1952 |
| Editions | 12 |
| Location | Middleton-on-Sea, West Sussex, England |
| Venue | Southdean Sports Club |
| Surface | Wood |
History
In 1922 Sir Walter Aston Blount, 10th Baronet created a New City holiday resort in the former seaplane factory south of the church. One of the hangars accommodated a dance hall and another indoor tennis courts; there were also outdoor tennis courts, a putting green.[4]
The New City had its own hotel accommodation, dairy, farm, ice generating plant, and mineral water factory, besides a laundry, hairdressing rooms, and lending library.[5] By 1934 the New City had become the Southdean hotel and sports club, which in 1937 was open to nonresidents, and which by then could offer squash courts and a sea-water swimming pool.[6] In 1934 the Southdean Covered Court Championships was established at the Southdean Sports Club. The championships were staged through till 1952 before being discontinued.
Venue
The Southdean Sports Club was founded in 1934.[7] In 1953 the club's facilities included two covered courts and two badminton courts for indoor use plus six grass courts, and four hard clay courts for outdoor tennis.[8] In 1997 Southdean Sports Club was renamed to the Middleton Sports Club.
Finals
Men's singles
(Incomplete roll):[9]
| Year | Winner | Finalist | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 |  Frank Wilde | Henry Billington | 8-6, 6-0.[9] | |
| 1937 | Frank Wilde (2) | Murray Deloford | 6-3, 6-8, 6-3.[9] | |
| 1938 |  Choy Wai-Chuen | Henry Billington | 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.[9] | |
| 1940/1945 | Not held (due to World War Ii) | |||
| 1949 | Paddy Roberts | Howard Walton | 6-4, 1-6, 6-4.[9] | |
| 1950 | Gerry Oakley | Derrick Leyland | 8-6, 6-3.[9] | |
| 1951 | Gerry Oakley (2) | George Godsell | 10-12, 8-6, ret..[9] | |
| 1952 |  Ignacy Tłoczyński | Gerry Oakley | 9-7, 6-4.[9] | |
Women's singles
(Incomplete roll)
| Year | Winner | Finalist | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | Audrey Wright | Mary Whitmarsh | 6-3, 0-6, 10-8 | |
| 1937 | Valerie Scott | Audrey Wright | 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 | |
| 1938 | Gladys Southwell | Rosemary Thomas | 7-5, 6-4 | |
| 1939 | Freda James Hammersley | Thelma Jarvis | 7-5, 6-3 | |
| 1940/1945 | Not held (due to World War II) | |||
| 1949 | Kay Stammers Menzies | Jean Walker-Smith | 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 | |
| 1950 | Betty Smith Coutts | Gladys Lines | 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 | |
| 1951 | Angela Mortimer | Gay Moorhouse Chandler | 6-2, 6-4 | |
| 1952 | Angela Mortimer (2) | Mary Harris | 6-1, 6-1 | |
References
- "Southdean give the lead again covered court tennis tourney: As usual, the Southdean Sports Club opened the tennis season in England with their 6th annual Covered Court Championship tournament, held there last week". Bognor Regis Observer. Sussex, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 8 March 1939. p. 5.
- "Oakley shines in southern finals: Several Sussex players acquitted themselves creditably in the open tennis tournament which reached its final stages on the 11th Southdean Covered Courts Championships at the end of last week". Bognor Regis Observer. Sussex, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 24 March 1951. p. 6.
- Nieuwland, Alex. "Tournament – Tournament Southdean Covered Court Championships". www.tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- A P Baggs and H M Warne. "Middleton-on-Sea," in A History of the County of Sussex: Volume 5 Part 1, Arundel Rape: South-Western Part, Including Arundel, ed. T P Hudson (London: Victoria County History, 1997), 190-204. British History Online, accessed January 17, 2023, http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/sussex/vol5/pt1/pp190-204.
- British History Online
- British History Online
- Bognor Regis Observer (1939)
- "Southdean sports club Middleton-on-Sea". Bognor Regis Observer. Sussex, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 6 November 1953. p. 7.
- "Tournaments:Southdean Covered Courts". The Tennis Base. Tennismem SL. Retrieved 17 May 2023.