Yvon Petra

Yvon Petra (French pronunciation: [ivɔ̃ petʁa]; 8 March 1916 – 12 September 1984) was a French male tennis player. He was born in Cholon, French Indochina.

Yvon Petra
Full nameYvon Francois Marie Petra
Country (sports) France
Born8 March 1916
Cholon, French Indochina
Died12 September 1984(1984-09-12) (aged 68)
Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
Height1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Turned pro1948 (amateur from 1935)
Retired1955
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF2016 (member page)
Singles
Career record179-65 (73.3%)[1]
Career titles18[1]
Highest rankingNo. 4 (1946, A. Wallis Myers)[2]
Grand Slam singles results
French OpenSF (1946)
WimbledonW (1946)
US Open4R (1936, 1937, 1938)
Professional majors
US Pro1R (1950)
Doubles
Career record0–1
Grand Slam doubles results
French OpenW (1938, 1946)
WimbledonQF (1947)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French OpenW (1937)
WimbledonF (1937)
US OpenF (1937)

Petra is best remembered as the last Frenchman to win the Wimbledon Championships men's singles title (in 1946), beating Geoff Brown in five sets in the final. In doubles, he won the French Championships twice, in 1938 with Bernard Destremau, defeating the best pair in the world Budge-Mako, and in 1946 with Marcel Bernard. In 1938, he won the singles and doubles title at the French Covered Court Championships.[3] He was a prisoner of war in World War II and after his release won three Tournoi de France singles titles from 1943 through 1945.[4][5] He emigrated to the United States and worked as a tennis pro at the Saddle and Cycle Club in Chicago and a country club in Connecticut towards the end of his life. Petra was ranked world No. 4 for 1946 by A. Wallis Myers and world No. 8 for 1947 by Harry Hopman.[2][6] He was the last man to wear long trousers in a Wimbledon final and was the last Frenchman to win the singles title.[7]

Petra joined the tour of professional players in 1948.[8] He was inducted into International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2016.[9]

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 1 (1 title)
Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win1946WimbledonGrassAustralia Geoff Brown6–2, 6–4, 7–9, 5–7, 6–2

Doubles: 2 (2 titles)
Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win1938French ChampionshipsClayFrance Bernard DestremauUnited States Don Budge
United States Gene Mako		3–6, 6–3, 9–7, 6–1
Win1946French ChampionshipsClayFrance Marcel BernardArgentina Enrique Morea
United States Pancho Segura		7–5, 6–3, 0–6, 1–6, 10–8

Mixed doubles: 3 (1 title, 2 runner-ups)
Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win1937French ChampionshipsClayFrance Simonne MathieuGermany Marie-Louise Horn
France Roland Journu		7–5, 7–5
Loss1937WimbledonGrassFrance Simonne MathieuUnited States Alice Marble
United States Don Budge		4–6, 1–6
Loss1937U.S. ChampionshipsGrassFrance Sylvie Jung HenrotinUnited States Sarah Palfrey
United States Don Budge		2–6, 10–8, 0–6

References
  1. "Yvon Petra: Career match record". The Tennis Base. Tennismem SL.
  2. United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 425.
  3. G.P. Hughes, ed. (1947). Dunlop Lawn Tennis Annual and Almanack 1947. London: Ed. J. Burrow & Co. Ltd. p. 281.
  4. Harold Bubil (23 December 1974). "Petra: POW Camp to Wimbledon Champ". Sarasota Journal. pp. 1-D, 4-D.
  5. Henry D. Fetter (6 June 2011). "The French Open During World War II: A Hidden History". The Atlantic.
  6. "World's Best 10 in Tennis", The Courier-Mail, 3 February 1947.
  7. Paul Newman (15 July 2016). "Remembering Yvon Petra: Hall of Famer, WWII veteran and Wimbledon champion". wimbledon.com. AELTC.
  8. McCauley, Joe (2000). The History of Professional Tennis. Windsor: The Short Run Book Company Limited. p. 47.
  9. "Class of 2016". International Tennis Hall of Fame. 7 March 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
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