1. Arthur David "Art" or "Tappy" Larsen was a US tennis player in the 1940s and 1950s.
20 Facts About Art Larsen
1. 2.
Art Larsen was the world No 3 tennis player in the rankings by John Olliff and Pierre Gillou for 1950 and the US No 1 male tennis player in the USLTA rankings for 1950.
3.
Art Larsen won the "Times" national sports award for the outstanding tennis player of 1950.
4.
Art Larsen was the first player to win all of the USLTA national tennis titles, the US Open, the US Clay Court, the US Hardcourt, and the US National Indoor.
5.
Art Larsen was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1969.
6.
Art Larsen is most remembered for his victory at the US Championships in 1950 and for his personal eccentricities.
7.
Art Larsen pushed Pancho Gonzales to five-set matches at the US Championships in both 1948 and 1949, Gonzales winning both US Championships.
8.
Art Larsen was ranked as world No 3 in 1950 by John Olliff of The Daily Telegraph, and by Pierre Gillou in L'Equipe.
9.
Art Larsen was ranked as the US No 1 tennis player for 1950 by the USLTA.
10.
Art Larsen won the "Times" national sports award for the outstanding tennis player of 1950.
11.
Art Larsen was ranked among the world top ten male tennis players in expert rankings for 1949,1950,1951,1952,1953, and 1954.
12.
In 1951, Art Larsen defended his US Championship, reaching the semifinal where he lost to Sedgman, the champion for that year.
13.
In 1954, Art Larsen defeated Drobny and Seixas at the French Open, but lost the final to Trabert.
14.
In 1950, Budge Patty was the Wimbledon champion and was ranked world No 1 by John Olliff, and Art Larsen ranked world No 3 by the same source.
15.
In November 1950, Art Larsen won the New South Wales Championships at White City in Sydney, defeating the two Australian singles representatives in the Davis Cup Challenge Round, Frank Sedgman and Ken McGregor, in the final two rounds.
16.
Art Larsen was the first man to win all of the recognized USLTA national titles, the US Open Tennis Championships, the US Clay Court Championships in 1952 over Savitt in the final, the US Hardcourt Championships in 1950 and 1952 over Flam in both finals, and the US National Indoor Championships in 1953 over Kurt Nielsen in the final.
17.
Art Larsen partially was paralyzed and lost sight in one eye.
18.
Art Larsen was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1969.
19.
Art Larsen had concentrated on tennis as mental therapy after serving long stretches in the front lines during.
20.
Art Larsen was called Tappy because he went around touching everything for good luck, and sometimes he would chat with an imaginary bird that sat on his shoulder.