The early years
Great Britain · born Greenford, Middlesex, 1863 · died 1946 · six times Wimbledon champion
All playersBack to the rankings
6
Wimbledon singles titles, 1886 to 1900
13
Wimbledon singles finals, a record
11
South of England titles at Eastbourne
36
Her age at the 1900 Wimbledon title
24
Wimbledon appearances, 1884 to 1913
Born in Greenford, Middlesex, in 1863, the daughter of a London tailoring proprietor, Blanche Bingley played in the first ladies' singles at Wimbledon in 1884 and won the title in 1886. In 1887 she married George Hillyard, later secretary of the All England Club, and played on as Mrs Hillyard. She won six Wimbledon singles titles between 1886 and 1900 from 13 finals, five of them lost to Lottie Dod, and won the South of England Championships at Eastbourne 11 times. She also took the Irish title three times and the German Championships in 1897 and 1900. She entered the 1908 Olympic singles at 44 but withdrew, played her last Wimbledon in 1913 at 49 and died in Pulborough, Sussex, in 1946. She entered the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2013.
| Major singles titles | 6: Wimbledon (1886, 1889, 1894, 1897, 1899, 1900) |
|---|---|
| Major singles finals lost | 7: Wimbledon 1885, Wimbledon 1887, Wimbledon 1888, Wimbledon 1891, Wimbledon 1892, Wimbledon 1893, Wimbledon 1901 |
| Other grass singles titles | 17: Eastbourne 11 (1885, 1888, 1891, 1892, 1893, 1895, 1896, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1905); Irish Championships 3 (1888, 1894, 1897); Northern Championships 2 (1894, 1900); Welsh Championships (1888) |
| Other grass doubles titles | 4: Irish Championships 4 (1894, 1894, 1897, 1897) |
| Titles kept in a challenge round | 1: Wimbledon (1900). Scored as a final won, not a full draw (-4 points). |
| Finals to remember | 1886: beat Maud Watson 6-3, 6-3 for her first title. 1889: beat Lena Rice 4-6, 8-6, 6-4 in the all-comers final. 1900: beat Charlotte Cooper 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, aged 36 |
| Against Lottie Dod | Lost all five of their Wimbledon finals, 1887 to 1893; took the first set 8-6 in 1893 before losing 1-6, 4-6 |
| Late Wimbledon runs | Semi-finals in 1905, 1907 and 1912, at 48; last appearance in 1913, her 24th Wimbledon |
| Middlesex Championships | Singles at Chiswick Park in 1884, her first title; mixed with George Hillyard in 1887, five days after their wedding |
| Wimbledon | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1886 | Women's singles | |
| 1889 | Women's singles | |
| 1894 | Women's singles | |
| 1897 | Women's singles | |
| 1899 | Women's singles | |
| 1900 | Women's singles | |
| Eastbourne | ||
| 1885 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1888 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1891 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1892 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1893 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1895 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1896 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1898 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1899 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1900 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| 1905 | Women's singles†South of England Championships | |
| Irish Championships | ||
| 1888 | Women's singles†| |
| 1894 | Women's doubles†| with Miss Snook |
| 1894 | Mixed doubles†| with George Hillyard |
| 1894 | Women's singles†| |
| 1897 | Women's doubles†| with Charlotte Cooper Sterry |
| 1897 | Mixed doubles†| with George Greville |
| 1897 | Women's singles†| |
| Queen's Club | ||
| 1886 | Women's singles†| |
| 1887 | Women's singles†| |
| 1888 | Women's singles†| |
| Northern Championships | ||
| 1894 | Women's singles†| |
| 1900 | Women's singles†| |
| Welsh Championships | ||
| 1888 | Women's singles†| |
Leading grass titles only: the grass majors, tour-level grass events since 1968 and the leading grass championships before 1968. †single source; ‡ sources disagree. Roll of champions
"I felt I was most lucky to win at all."
The person behind the player.
Wimbledon 1889
She started the final against Lena Rice with double faults, lost the first set and asked the umpire, Mr Chipp, what she could do. "Play better, I should think," he replied. She hit harder, found her length and won 4-6, 8-6, 6-4, with 110 strokes to Rice's 100. She still felt she was lucky to win.
Source: Lawn Tennis for Ladies, Project GutenbergWimbledon 1887 to 1893
Lottie Dod beat her in five Wimbledon finals. In 1887 the second set lasted about ten minutes. At the 1888 West of England Championships officials gave Dod a handicap of 15, and Dod still won. In 1893 Hillyard took the first set 8-6, and Dod came back to win despite a heavy fall.
Source: WikipediaGreenford 1887
She married George Hillyard in Greenford on 13 July 1887, a week after the Wimbledon final. Five days after the wedding the couple won the mixed doubles at the Middlesex Championships at Chiswick Park, where she had won her first title three years earlier. In 1896 they won the mixed together at Monte Carlo.
Source: WikipediaThorpe Satchville, 1896 to 1914
The Hillyards moved to a house near Leicester with nine bedrooms, two tennis courts and a nine-hole golf course. Their house parties drew Norman Brookes, Harold Mahony, Anthony Wilding, May Sutton and Dora Boothby, and until 1914 almost every strong overseas player at Wimbledon stayed with them.
Source: WikipediaWimbledon 1894
Her third title, in 1894, made her the first mother to win the Wimbledon singles. Away from the courts she wrote articles for tennis publications and rode with the Quorn Hunt in Leicestershire.
Source: OlympediaLondon Olympics 1908
At 44 she entered the women's singles at the 1908 Olympic Games. She received a bye in the first round, then withdrew before her quarter-final against Dora Boothby, who went on to take the silver medal. She played Wimbledon for another five years.
Source: OlympediaFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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