J. Allen Morris Jr. (April 9, 1932 – February 27, 2017)[1] was a tennis player and coach. In 1956 he was a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon where he defeated Ashley Cooper. Morris won the New York State Championships in both 1959 and 1960. He also won the Eastern Clay Court Championships in 1959.
Allen Morris
Full name
J. Allen Morris Jr.
Country (sports)
United States
Born
(1932-04-09)9 April 1932 Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Died
27 February 2017(2017-02-27) (aged 84) Greensboro, North Carolina, United States
Morris was ranked No. 16 in the United States in 1956.[2] That year, he was a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon where he defeated Ashley Cooper in the round of 16.[2]
In 1964 he played an exhibition match against Arthur Ashe in Greensboro N.C. to help promote diversity & inclusion within the growing game of tennis. Morris defeated Ashe in front of a large crowd on Greensboro's Memorial Stadium Tennis Courts in two sets.
In 1977 and 1978, Morris won the U.S. Senior Clay Court Championship in the singles and doubles division[3] and was ranked in the top ten in the world.[2] He was also head coach of the University of North Carolina men's tennis team from 1980 to 1993.[4] As head coach, he led his team to ACC championships in 1990 and 1992.[3] His record as coach was 245–123.[4]
U.S. Championshipsedit
Morris started his international tennis career at the 1953 U.S. National Championships (now US Open), where he lost in the first round to Australian Mervyn Rose in five sets. In 1954 and 1955, he reached the third round, losing to Rex Hartwig and Tony Trabert, respectively. Morris lost in the first round in 1956 to Ulf Schmidt.
1956 Wimbledonedit
Morris competed in the 1956 Wimbledon tournament while still a student at Presbyterian College. In round one, Morris defeated Eric Bulmer in four sets. In round two, Morris defeated Bruce Gulley in three sets. In round three, Morris defeated F. Robin Kipping in three sets. In round four, Morris defeated Ashley Cooper in five sets. In the quarterfinal round, Morris lost to Vic Seixas in a three-set match.
Awardsedit
Morris was inducted into the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1976.[5] In 2009, Morris was inducted into the Guilford County Sports Hall of Fame.[2] He was also inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1978, the Southern Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985, the Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 1993, the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame in 2002 and the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.
Morris won state singles titles in multiple states and holds the record for the most state singles titles in North Carolina, having won the championships 7 times from 1958 to 1967, including 5 times in a row from 1961 to 1965.
^ abcd. Greensboro Sports Commission. Archived from the original on March 26, 2012. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
^ ab"Mullinix, Morris Tapped For Guilford County Hall Of Fame". University of North Carolina Tarheels. Retrieved June 27, 2011.
^ ab"CONTENT CONTRIBUTORS". Retrieved June 26, 2011.
^. USTA. Archived from the original on February 9, 2006. Retrieved July 3, 2011.
North Carolina Tennis History, 1978 by Carlyle Lewis
April 12, 2024
allen, morris, tennis, allen, morris, april, 1932, february, 2017, tennis, player, coach, 1956, quarterfinalist, wimbledon, where, defeated, ashley, cooper, morris, york, state, championships, both, 1959, 1960, also, eastern, clay, court, championships, 1959, . J Allen Morris Jr April 9 1932 February 27 2017 1 was a tennis player and coach In 1956 he was a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon where he defeated Ashley Cooper Morris won the New York State Championships in both 1959 and 1960 He also won the Eastern Clay Court Championships in 1959 Allen MorrisFull nameJ Allen Morris Jr Country sports United StatesBorn 1932 04 09 9 April 1932Atlanta Georgia United StatesDied27 February 2017 2017 02 27 aged 84 Greensboro North Carolina United StatesTurned pro1953 amateur tour Retired1971CollegePresbyterian CollegeSinglesCareer record188 85Career titles25Grand Slam singles resultsWimbledonQF 1956 US Open3R 1954 1955 Contents 1 Tennis career 1 1 U S Championships 1 2 1956 Wimbledon 1 3 Awards 2 ReferencesTennis career editMorris was ranked No 16 in the United States in 1956 2 That year he was a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon where he defeated Ashley Cooper in the round of 16 2 Morris won the New York State Championships in both 1959 and 1960 He also won the Eastern Clay Court Championships in 1959 In 1964 he played an exhibition match against Arthur Ashe in Greensboro N C to help promote diversity amp inclusion within the growing game of tennis Morris defeated Ashe in front of a large crowd on Greensboro s Memorial Stadium Tennis Courts in two sets In 1977 and 1978 Morris won the U S Senior Clay Court Championship in the singles and doubles division 3 and was ranked in the top ten in the world 2 He was also head coach of the University of North Carolina men s tennis team from 1980 to 1993 4 As head coach he led his team to ACC championships in 1990 and 1992 3 His record as coach was 245 123 4 U S Championships edit Morris started his international tennis career at the 1953 U S National Championships now US Open where he lost in the first round to Australian Mervyn Rose in five sets In 1954 and 1955 he reached the third round losing to Rex Hartwig and Tony Trabert respectively Morris lost in the first round in 1956 to Ulf Schmidt 1956 Wimbledon edit Morris competed in the 1956 Wimbledon tournament while still a student at Presbyterian College In round one Morris defeated Eric Bulmer in four sets In round two Morris defeated Bruce Gulley in three sets In round three Morris defeated F Robin Kipping in three sets In round four Morris defeated Ashley Cooper in five sets In the quarterfinal round Morris lost to Vic Seixas in a three set match Awards edit Morris was inducted into the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1976 5 In 2009 Morris was inducted into the Guilford County Sports Hall of Fame 2 He was also inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1978 the Southern Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985 the Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 1993 the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame in 2002 and the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004 Morris won state singles titles in multiple states and holds the record for the most state singles titles in North Carolina having won the championships 7 times from 1958 to 1967 including 5 times in a row from 1961 to 1965 References edit Obituary Access 21 January 2019 a b c d Allen Morris Greensboro Sports Commission Archived from the original on March 26 2012 Retrieved June 26 2011 a b Mullinix Morris Tapped For Guilford County Hall Of Fame University of North Carolina Tarheels Retrieved June 27 2011 a b CONTENT CONTRIBUTORS Retrieved June 26 2011 The North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame Members USTA Archived from the original on February 9 2006 Retrieved July 3 2011 North Carolina Tennis History 1978 by Carlyle Lewis Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Allen Morris tennis amp oldid 1207721374, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
