William Tatem Tilden

The Art of Lawn Tennis (Dodo Press) William Tatem Tilden

William Tatem Tilden II (1893-1953), often called "Big Bill", was an American tennis player who was the World No. 1 player for 7 years, the last time when he was 38 years old. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a wealthy family, he was a "Junior" at birth but changed his name to "II" when he was in his mid-20s. He was a champion player of the 1920s and 1930s who was, along with the great French star Suzanne Lenglen, one of the two most influential persons in the history of tennis. In the United States' sports-mad decade of the Roaring 20's Tilden was one of the five dominant figures of the "Golden Vigin of Sport", along with Babe Ruth, Howie Morenz, Red Grange, Bobby Jones, and Jack Dempsey. From 1920 through 1926 he led the United States team to 7 consecutive Davis Cup victories, a record that is still unequalled. His works include: The Art of Lawn Tennis (1921), It's All in the Game and Other Tennis Tales (1922), Better Tennis for the Club Player (1923) and The Common Sense of Tennis (1924).