Meredith McGrath

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Meredith McGrath
Country (sports) United States
Born (1971-04-28) April 28, 1971 (age 52)
Midland, Michigan
PlaysRight-handed
Prize money$1,448,132
Singles
Career record130–98 (57.0%)
Career titles3
Highest rankingNo. 18 (July 22, 1996)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open2R (1994)
French Open2R (1995)
WimbledonSF (1996)
US Open2R (1993, 1994)
Doubles
Career record255–84 (75.2%)
Career titles25
Highest rankingNo. 5 (October 10, 1994)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenF (1994)
French OpenSF (1996)
WimbledonF (1996)
US OpenQF (1994)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian OpenQF (1996)
French OpenSF (1994)
WimbledonQF (1994)
US OpenW (1995)

Meredith McGrath (born April 28, 1971) is a former professional tennis player.

She was born in Midland, Michigan, and made her debut on the WTA Tour in 1988. In her eight-year professional career, Meredith achieved career-high world rankings of No. 18 in singles and No. 4 in doubles. She notched victories over such players as Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, Anna Kournikova, Jana Novotna, Gigi Fernandez and Mary Jo Fernandez. The pinnacle of her career came in reaching the singles semifinals and doubles finals at the 1996 Wimbledon Championships (leading 7–5, 5–2 in the doubles final before losing to Suková/Hingis). In the singles, she defeated Mana Endo, Amanda Coetzer, Nancy Feber, Katarína Studeníková and Mary Joe Fernandez before losing to Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. An injury two weeks prior to the 1996 Wimbledon Championships eventually ended her career. Meredith won the 1995 US Open Mixed-Doubles Championship (she was runner-up in 1989) and was the runner-up in the 1994 Australian Open Doubles Championship. Meredith won three WTA singles titles, Oklahoma City and Eastbourne in 1994 and Birmingham in 1996, and 25 doubles titles. Meredith was recognized by Tennis Magazine as the WTA Comeback Player of the Year as she overcame near career-ending injuries to having her most successful competitive season in 1996. In 1994, she was awarded the WTA Tour Comeback Player of the Year.

Meredith played her collegiate tennis at Stanford University where she, during her only collegiate season, earned All-American honors in both singles and doubles after having achieved year-end rankings of No. 2 in singles and No. 1 in doubles (undefeated). She had maintained No. 1 rankings in both singles and doubles during her freshman year until a loss at the NCAA Championships. Meredith turned professional after her freshman year, but returned to Stanford to earn her degree in 2000 after injuries forced her early retirement. In 1990, Meredith was awarded the Block S Award for the Most Outstanding Freshman Athlete at Stanford and with her doubles partner, Teri Whitlinger, was named the Volvo Tennis/Tennis Magazine Doubles Team of the Year.

Meredith McGrath is also a 2012 inductee into the prestigious Stanford Hall of Fame. She is also a member of the USTA Midwest Hall of Fame and the USTA NorCal Hall of Fame.

As the No. 1 ranked junior player in the world, McGrath won a total of 19 national and international junior titles. She captured the US Open junior doubles title and Wimbledon junior doubles title with Jennifer Capriati in 1989, and won the US Open junior doubles title with Kimberly Po in 1987 and 1988. Meredith was the runner-up in the 1988 Wimbledon junior singles championship. A three-time national All-American in high school, Meredith won three Michigan High School Division A State Championships. She also received six USTA National Championship Sportsmanship Awards.

WTA career finals[edit]

Singles: 3 (3 titles)[edit]

Legend
Grand Slam 0
Tier I 0
Tier II 1
Tier III 2
Tier IV & V 0
Result W/L Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Win 1. Feb 1994 Oklahoma City, U.S. Hard Netherlands Brenda Schultz 7–6(6), 7–6(4)
Win 2. Jun 1994 Eastbourne, England Grass United States Linda Harvey-Wild 6–2, 6–4
Win 3. Jun 1996 Birmingham, England Grass France Nathalie Tauziat 2–6, 6–4, 6–4

Doubles: 38 (25 titles, 13 runner-ups)[edit]

Legend
Grand Slam 0
Tier I 2
Tier II 11
Tier III 6
Tier IV & V 6
Titles by surface
Hard 13
Clay 2
Grass 0
Carpet 10
Result W/L Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1. Jun 1989 Birmingham, England Grass United States Pam Shriver Soviet Union Larisa Savchenko
Soviet Union Natalia Zvereva
5–7, 7–5, 0–6
Win 2. Nov 1989 Nashville, U.S. Hard Netherlands Manon Bollegraf Soviet Union Natalia Medvedeva
Soviet Union Leila Meskhi
1–6, 7–6, 7–6
Win 3. Feb 1990 Wichita, U.S. Hard (i) Netherlands Manon Bollegraf United States Mary-Lou Daniels
United States Wendy Prausa
6–0, 6–2
Win 4. Aug 1990 Albuquerque, U.S. Hard United States Anne Smith United States Mareen Louie-Harper
United States Wendy Prausa
7–6, 6–4
Loss 5. Sep 1990 Orlando, U.S. Carpet (i) Netherlands Manon Bollegraf Soviet Union Larisa Savchenko
Soviet Union Natalia Zvereva
4–6, 1–6
Win 6. Nov 1990 Oakland, U.S. Carpet (i) United States Anne Smith South Africa Rosalyn Fairbank-Nideffer
United States Robin White
2–6, 6–0, 6–4
Win 7. Nov 1990 Oakland, U.S. Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Katrina Adams
Canada Jill Hetherington
6–1, 6–1
Win 8. Feb 1991 Oklahoma City, U.S. Hard (i) United States Anne Smith United States Katrina Adams
Canada Jill Hetherington
6–1, 6–1
Loss 9. Mar 1991 Boca Raton, U.S. Hard United Kingdom Samantha Smith Soviet Union Larisa Savchenko-Neiland
Soviet Union Natalia Zvereva
4–6, 6–7
Loss 10. Apr 1993 Pattaya City, Thailand Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Cammy Macgregor
France Catherine Suire
3–6, 6–7
Win 11. Apr 1993 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Nicole Arendt
Australia Kristine Radford
6–4, 7–6
Win 12. Oct 1993 Montpellier, France Carpet (i) Germany Claudia Porwik Slovakia Janette Husárová
Belgium Dominique Monami
3–6, 6–2, 7–6
Win 13. Nov 1993 Oakland, U.S. Carpet (i) United States Patty Fendick South Africa Amanda Coetzer
Argentina Inés Gorrochategui
6–2, 6–0
Win 14. Jan 1994 Sydney, Australia Hard United States Patty Fendick Czech Republic Jana Novotná
Spain Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
6–2, 6–3
Loss 15. Jan 1994 Australian Open Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Gigi Fernández
Belarus Natalia Zvereva
3–6, 6–4, 4–6
Win 16. Feb 1994 Oklahoma City, U.S. Hard (i) United States Patty Fendick United States Katrina Adams
Netherlands Manon Bollegraf
7–6, 6–2
Loss 17. Mar 1994 Key Biscayne, U.S. Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Gigi Fernández
Belarus Natalia Zvereva
3–6, 1–6
Win 18. Apr 1994 Pattaya City, Thailand Hard United States Patty Fendick Indonesia Yayuk Basuki
Japan Nana Miyagi
7–6, 3–6, 6–3
Win 19. Apr 1994 Singapore Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Nicole Arendt
Australia Kristine Radford
6–4, 6–1
Win 20. Aug 1994 Rogers Cup, Canada Hard Spain Arantxa Sánchez Vicario United States Pam Shriver
Australia Liz Smylie
2–6, 6–2, 6–4
Win 21. Aug 1994 Schenectady, U.S. Hard Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Pam Shriver
Australia Liz Smylie
6–2, 6–2
Win 22. Oct 1994 Leipzig, Germany Carpet (i) United States Patty Fendick Netherlands Manon Bollegraf
Latvia Larisa Savchenko
6–4, 6–4
Loss 23. Oct 1994 Zurich, Switzerland Carpet (i) United States Patty Fendick Netherlands Manon Bollegraf
United States Martina Navratilova
6–7, 1–6
Win 24. Feb 1995 Paris, France Hard (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko Netherlands Manon Bollegraf
Australia Rennae Stubbs
6–4, 6–1
Win 25. Feb 1995 Generali Ladies Linz, Austria Carpet (i) France Nathalie Tauziat Croatia Iva Majoli
Austria Petra Schwarz
6–1, 6–2
Win 26. May 1995 Edinburgh, Scotland Clay Latvia Larisa Savchenko Netherlands Manon Bollegraf
Australia Rennae Stubbs
6–2, 7–6
Win 27. Sep 1995 Moscow, Russia Carpet (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko Russia Anna Kournikova
Poland Aleksandra Olsza
6–1, 6–1
Win 28. Oct 1995 Leipzig, Germany Carpet (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko Netherlands Brenda Schultz-McCarthy
Netherlands Caroline Vis
6–4, 6–4
Loss 29. Oct 1995 Filderstadt, Germany Hard (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Gigi Fernández
Belarus Natalia Zvereva
7–5, 1–6, 4–6
Win 30. Oct 1995 Brighton, England Carpet (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Lori McNeil
Czech Republic Helena Suková
7–5, 6–1
Loss 31. Nov 1995 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Lori McNeil
Czech Republic Helena Suková
6–4, 3–6, 4–6
Win 32. Feb 1996 Essen, Germany Carpet (i) Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Lori McNeil
Czech Republic Helena Suková
6–4, 3–6, 4–6
Win 33. Mar 1996 Generali Ladies Linz, Austria Carpet (i) Netherlands Manon Bollegraf Australia Rennae Stubbs
Czech Republic Helena Suková
6–4, 6–4
Loss 34. Mar 1996 Key Biscayne, U.S. Hard Latvia Larisa Savchenko Czech Republic Jana Novotná
Spain Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
4–6, 4–6
Loss 35. Apr 1996 Amelia Island, U.S. Clay Latvia Larisa Savchenko United States Chanda Rubin
Spain Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
4–6, 4–6
Win 36. May 1996 Berlin, Germany Clay Latvia Larisa Savchenko Switzerland Martina Hingis
Czech Republic Helena Suková
6–1, 5–7, 7–6
Loss 37. Jul 1996 Wimbledon, England Grass Latvia Larisa Savchenko Switzerland Martina Hingis
Czech Republic Helena Suková
7–5, 5–7, 1–6
Loss 38. Jan 1998 Sydney, Australia Hard United States Katrina Adams Switzerland Martina Hingis
Czech Republic Helena Suková
1–6, 2–6

Mixed doubles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner-up)[edit]

Result No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1. September 10, 1989 US Open Hard United States Rick Leach United States Shelby Cannon
United States Robin White
6–3, 2–6, 5–7
Win 2. September 10, 1995 US Open Hard United States Matt Lucena Czech Republic Cyril Suk
United States Gigi Fernández
6–4, 6–4

ITF finals[edit]

Singles (1–3)[edit]

$75,000 tournaments
$25,000 tournaments
$10,000 tournaments
Outcome No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Winner 1. 18 July 1988 Fayetteville, United States Hard United States Tammy Whittington 6–0, 6–3
Runner-up 2. 6 February 1989 Midland, United States Hard United States Shaun Stafford 3–6, 3–6
Runner-up 3. 28 January 1991 Midland, United States Hard Canada Helen Kelesi 2–6, 2–6
Runner-up 4. 6 February 1994 Midland, United States Hard Netherlands Brenda Schultz-McCarthy 2–6, 0–1 ret.

Doubles (2–3)[edit]

Outcome No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Runner-up 1. 6 February 1989 Midland, United States Hard United States Shaun Stafford South Korea Kim Il-soon
South Korea Lee Jeong-myung
6–2, 2–6, 4–6
Runner-up 2. 28 January 1991 Midland, United States Hard United States Anne Smith United States Katrina Adams
Canada Helen Kelesi
5–7, 5–7
Winner 3. 27 January 1992 Midland, United States Hard Netherlands Manon Bollegraf Canada Helen Kelesi
Netherlands Caroline Vis
6–3, 6–1
Winner 4. 1 February 1993 Midland, United States Hard United States Patty Fendick United States Jean Ceniza
Canada Caroline Delisle
7–6(5), 6–2
Runner-up 5. 27 October 1997 Austin, United States Hard United States Debbie Graham South Korea Park Sung-hee
Japan Miho Saeki
4–6, 7–5, 2–6

Grand Slam doubles performance timeline[edit]

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
Tournament 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 SR W–L
Australian Open A A A A A A F 3R SF A 1R 0 / 4 11–4
French Open A A A QF A 1R 3R 3R SF A A 0 / 5 11–5
Wimbledon A 1R 2R A A 2R 3R SF F A A 0 / 6 13–6
US Open 1R 2R 1R A A 3R QF 3R A A A 0 / 6 8–6
Win–loss 0–1 1–2 1–2 3–1 0–0 3–3 12–4 10–4 13–3 0–0 0–1 0 / 21 43–21

External links[edit]