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Fred Stolle

Frederick Sydney Stolle, AO[4] (born 8 October 1938) is an Australian former amateur world No. 1 tennis player and commentator. He was born in Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia. He is the father of former Australian Davis Cup player Sandon Stolle.

Career

Stolle is notable for being the only male player in history to have lost his first five Grand Slam singles finals, all but one were to Roy Emerson, the fifth of which he led by two sets to love. However, Stolle went on to win two Grand Slam tournament singles titles, the 1965 French Championships and the 1966 US Championships.[5] At Wimbledon and the Australian Championships he finished as runner-up in these tournaments and losing to compatriot Roy Emerson on no fewer than five occasions. World Tennis magazine ranked Stolle world No. 1 amateur in 1966.[6]

Stolle won ten Grand Slam doubles titles, partnering with compatriots Bob Hewitt (4 titles), Roy Emerson (4 titles) and Ken Rosewall (2 titles). In addition Stolle won 7 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles.

As a member of the Australian Davis Cup team Stolle won the Davis Cup title in 1964,[7] 1965 and 1966.[8] In 1964 Stolle and Emerson were briefly suspended from the Australian Davis Cup team for going on an overseas tour in defiance of a Lawn Tennis Association of Australia order to remain in Australia until April.[9]

Stolle turned professional in 1966,[1] and as a pro, won two singles and 13 doubles titles. He earned about US$500,000 in career prize money.[10]

Stolle coached Vitas Gerulaitis from 1977 until 1983.

For many years, Stolle did TV commentary for ESPN and other tennis broadcasts. He currently provides commentary on Grand Slam tennis tournaments for Australia's Fox Sports and the Nine Network.

Honours

For his contribution to the tennis sport Fred Stolle was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985.[11] In 1988 he was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.[12] He received an Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2005.[4][13] In 2020, Stolle was awarded the ITF Philippe Chatrier Award, for his contribution to tennis both during his career and post-retirement.[14]

Grand Slam finals

Singles (2 titles, 6 runners-up)

Doubles (10 titles, 6 runners-up)

Open-era doubles titles (10)

Performance timeline

(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Singles

Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.

References

  1. ^ a b "Fred Stolle". atpworldtour.com. Association of Tennis Professionals. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Fred Stolle: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  3. ^ "The Sacramento Bee, 24 November 1966". newspapers.com. 24 November 1966.
  4. ^ a b "STOLLE, Frederick Sydney, AO". It's an Honour. Archived from the original on 15 October 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
  5. ^ Frank Deford (19 September 1966). "A forgotten Aussie refreshes the memory". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 25, no. 12. pp. 105–109.
  6. ^ "The Sacramento Bee, 24 November 1966". newspapers.com. 24 November 1966.
  7. ^ Frank Deford (5 October 1964). "Failure of a Winning Formula". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 21, no. 14. pp. 30–31.
  8. ^ Ernest Shirley (10 January 1966). "¡Olé! Manolo—a little bit too late". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 24, no. 2. pp. 48–49.
  9. ^ John Lovesey (13 July 1964). "The Outcasts Are Counted In". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 21, no. 2. pp. 22, 25.
  10. ^ "ATP Player Profile". Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  11. ^ "Tennis Hall of Fame – Fred Stolle". Newport International Tennis Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  12. ^ "Fred Stolle". Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  13. ^ "Staale, Fred: Australian Sports Medal". It's an Honour. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  14. ^ "SANTANA AND STOLLE HONOURED WITH ITF PHILIPPE CHATRIER AWARD". ITF Website. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.

External links