Penelope Dora Harvey Boothby (2 August 1881 – 22 February 1970) was an English tennis and badminton player. She was born in Finchley, Middlesex. She is best remembered for her ladies' singles title at the 1909 Wimbledon Championships. In Badminton, she won the 1909 All England Championships in mixed doubles category.
Biography Boothby was born in Finchley and, with her older sister Gertrude, lived there with her step-parents Harry and Gertrude Penn. Harry was a civil engineer, and by 1901, they had moved to South Norwood, where she played at Beulah Hill Club, and during the winter months, she played badminton.
In 1908, she won a silver medal in the women's singles event at the 1908 Summer Olympics.
In 1909, when she won the Ladies' Singles at Wimbledon, the runner-up of the Men's Singles, Josiah Ritchie, was also living in Norwood. Also in 1909, she won the singles title of the British Covered Court Championships, played on wood courts at the Queen's Club in London, after defeating Madeline O’Neill in the final in straight sets.
In 1911, she became the first female player to lose a Wimbledon final without winning a game, losing to Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers 6–0, 6–0.
In 1914, she married Arthur C. Geen, a professional architect.
She died in Hammersmith or Hampstead, London in 1970.
Grand Slam finals
Singles (1 titles, 2 runners-up)
ResultYearChampionshipSurfaceOpponentScoreWin 19091 Wimbledon Grass Agnes Morton 6–4, 4–6, 8–6Loss 1910 Wimbledon Grass Dorothea Lambert Chambers 2–6, 2–6Loss 1911 Wimbledon Grass Dorothea Lambert Chambers 0–6, 0–6 1This was actually the all-comers final as Charlotte Cooper Sterry did not defend her 1908 Wimbledon title, which resulted in the winner of the all-comers final winning the challenge round and thus Wimbledon in 1909 by walkover.
Doubles (1 title)
ResultYearChampionshipSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreWin 1913Wimbledon Grass Winifred McNair Charlotte Cooper Sterry Dorothea Lambert Chambers 4–6, 2–4 ret.
References
External links
John Arlott (Hrsg.): The Oxford companion to sports & games. Oxford University Press, London 1975 All England champions 1899–2007