- Sam Match
Samuel ("Sam") Match (January 3, 1923, in
Los Angeles, California ) was an Americantennis player .Match was one of the top singles and doubles players in America in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Match was ranked in the top 10 amateur rankings in the United States in both singles and doubles from 1948-50. He was # 4 in doubles in 1948, # 8 in singles in 1949, and # 10 in singles in 1950. "Lawn Tennis and Badminton" magazine ranked him as the 12th best professional player for the year 1955.
Tennis career
In 1947, playing doubles for
Rice University with Bob Curtis, he beatHerbert Flam and Gene Garrett of UCLA 6–4, 8-10, 3–6, 6–2, 7–5 to win theNCAA doubles title. [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:3ZAziByIgIsJ:www.aggieathletics.com/specialsites/ncaatennis2005/hist-doubles.php+%22sam+match%22+tennis&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=4&gl=us]As an amateur, Match won at
La Jolla, California , on1948-02-16 , atPhiladelphia in 1948, and at the Utah State Open in 1948 and 1949.In 1949, playing for
San Francisco State University , he was beaten in five sets in the finals of theNCAA tournament by Jack Tuero ofTulane . He andArt Larsen also lost the doubles championship in the finals. [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:3ZAziByIgIsJ:www.aggieathletics.com/specialsites/ncaatennis2005/hist-doubles.php+%22sam+match%22+tennis&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=4&gl=us]He was also the runner-up in La Jolla (
1950-03-19 ), the California State in San Francisco (1950-05-21 ), the Colorado State in Denver (1950-06-09 ), and inSalt Lake City (1950-07-02 ) ["Vainqueurs 1946-1991", by Michel Sutter] .According to Joe McCauley's book, "The History of Professional Tennis", his first appearance in a professional tournament was at the California State Pro in
Beverly Hills, California , (August 11 to 16, 1953).Hall of Fame & Award
In 1991 he was inducted into the Rice Athletic Hall of Fame. [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:ik7bLB-f3soJ:riceowls.cstv.com/hallfame/rice-hallfame.html+%22sam+match%22+tennis&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us]
In 2005 he was honored as one of the University of San Francisco's 75 greatest athletic legends. [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:VEsWHW1MzsYJ:usfdons.ocsn.com/genrel/101605aab.html+%22sam+match%22+tennis&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=26&gl=us]
Link
* [http://www.jewsinsports.org/profile.asp?sport=tennis&ID=68 Jews in Sports bio]
Notes
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