Tennisarchives.com

General First nameGeorge Albert
LastnameHolland
GenderMale
CountryAustralia
Date of birth1918-11-11
Place of birthSaint Kilda, Victoria, Australia
Date of death1996-04-30
Place of deathCaulfield, Victoria, Australia


About

George Holland was from the state of Victoria in Australia. In 1938, tennis legend Don Budge said that, among the younger and less prominent players he had seen on his trip to Australia, Holland had the brightest future: “I have selected him after careful study of most of the leading young players. I watched many of them in match play during the Australian championships when they did not know I was about,” said Budge, in an article in The Sydney Morning Herald on 14th February 1938.

Budge went on to describe Holland’s game by saying, “He has a forceful service, hits his ground strokes with freedom and likes to chase them to the net, where he volleys and smashes severely, with just a dash of drop-volleys thrown in occasionally. And he possesses a splendid temperament. I summed him up as a clear-thinking lad with a heart as big as his happy outlook on life.”

George Holland made his debut in the Australian championships in 1937 and lost to Arthur Huxley in round one. At the 1938 Australian championships, 19-year-old Holland beat Huxley 10-8 in the fifth set in round one. Then in round two Holland caused a big upset by beating reigning French champion and third ranked player in the world Henner Henkel after losing the first two sets. From the third set onwards, Holland “followed everything to the net and made some glorious volleys,” and was in command of the match. “His groundstrokes had more penetration, he rarely missed his first serve, and he treated Henkel's cannonballs in cavalier fashion to take command of the attack,” according to The Argus. In the quarter finals, Holland lost in four sets to Adrian Quist.

In the first round of the 1939 Australian championships, Holland lost in the first round to Vivian McGrath in straight sets. During World War Two, Holland reached the rank of Lieutenant. After the war, Holland resumed his tennis career. George Holland played at Kooyong in 1952 and was probably a member of the Royal South Yarra Tennis Club in Victoria.

Media


Archive statistics Career1936 - 1949
Tournament wins0
Matches86
Match wins46


Tournaments Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1949 Victorian Championships - 1948 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1948 Tasmanian Championships - 1948 South Australian Championships - 1947 Victorian Championships - 1947 New South Wales Championships - 1947 Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1947 Tasmanian Championships - 1947 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1947 Victorian Championships - 1946 New South Wales Championships - 1946 Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1946 Victorian Championships - 1945 New South Wales Championships - 1945 Kooyong Invitational - 1945 South Australian Championships - 1940 Victorian Championships - 1940 Australian Open - 1939 Victorian Championships - 1939 Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1939 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1939 Yarrawonga Easter - 1939 Australian Open - 1938 South Australian Championships - 1938 Victorian Championships - 1938 New South Wales Championships - 1938 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1938 Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1938 Tasmanian Championships - 1938 Royal South Yarra - 1938 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1938 Australian Open - 1937 South Australian Championships - 1937 Victorian Championships - 1937 Tasmanian Championships - 1937 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1937 Benalla New Years Tournament - 1937 Victorian Championships - 1936 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1936