Ernest George Meers
English tennis player, organist and gum merchant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ernest George Meers (1849 – 20 August 1928) was an English tennis player, organist and gum merchant.
Meers (before 1903) | |
| Full name | Ernest George Meers |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) | |
| Born | 1849[1] |
| Died | 20 August 1928 (aged 79)[3] |
| Turned pro | 1885 (amateur tour) |
| Retired | 1895 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 95-57, (62.5%) [4] |
| Career titles | 8 [5] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Wimbledon | SF (1895) |
| US Open | SF (1889) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | F (1888) |
Biography
Meers was born in Kingsnorth, near Ashford, Kent. He earned a Bachelor of Music from Queen's College, Oxford and was later chairman and managing director of Watts Ltd, gummakers.[6] He married Eliza Rose, daughter of Captain Henry Douglas-Hart of the Madras Army, who was assassinated while serving in India in 1858. They had three sons and two daughters who survived him.[7]
Tennis career
His played first tournament at the North of England Championships played in Scarborough in 1884 going out in the round of 16.[8] He reached his first tournament final at the Gore Court Championships in Sittingbourne in 1885 losing to Ernest Wool Lewis.[9] Meers played at the Wimbledon Championships between 1890 and 1895, reaching the quarterfinals of the all-comers competition in 1894 and the semifinals in 1895.[10] He reached the semifinals of the U.S. National Championships in 1889 and won the British Covered Court Championships in 1892.[11]
His other singles successes included winning the British Covered Court Championships indoors on hard wood courts in 1891.[12] He won the Kent Championships on grass three times (1888, 1890–91).[13] In addition he also won three titles at the Essex Championships (1887–88, 1890) and the Chingford Open (1888), the Middlesex Championships one time in 1891.[14]
He played his last tournament at the British Covered Court Championships in 1896 going out in the quarter-finals.[15]