Evening star., 1938-11-17
Former Net Champion
Great Developer
Of Novites
Originates New Court
Postime to Provide
Racket Practice
By BILL DISMER, Jr.

II tennis still is looking for its
feminine immortal who not only has
outlasted the contemporaries of her
generation. but. through her teach
ing, also is doing as much to per-
petuate the game as any woman
who ever swung a racket, we NOM
mate Mary K. Browne.
Back in 1912, 1918 and 1914 Mary
won the national singles champion
ship. She won fame before Tilden
and, indeed, led him to his first ma
tional championship in the mixed
doubles tournament in which he
asked her to play in 1918. She was
a member of the first Women's pro-
fessional tennis troupe. touring the
country with Suzanne Lenglen in
1926.
Yet she looks. talks and acts young
enough to start all over. And, al
though she doubtlessly would find
herself outclassed in tournament
competition by the younger genera
ton it appears that Mary K. Browne
is as happy as she was when she
was the No. woman racketer of
the land. She's expending all of her
energy on the game she dotes on
and in a way which is proving A
eodsend to hundreds of girls and
young women.
Proves Keen Teacher.
Today, for instance, she is con-
Guiding a short Sojourn at George
Washington University, to which she
came. by one of many such special
a clinic and make the co-eds fall in
love with her after one days session.
Soon she'll return to Lake Erie COL
lege in Painesville. Ohio, where she
started in 1886 to teach young girls
to play a game they can continue
all their lives. Not to make cham
pions out of them as she says, but
to give them game from which
they can derive pleasure and benefit" J."
Next summer, as she has done IN
the past few years, she'll go to a
girls camp where she'll continue
TO win over more girls to tennis and
to increase the fondness for the
game among those who already
play it.
Judging from a short lecture and
demonstration of stroke technique
she gave last night at Tech High
School, Miss Browne is as able a
teacher as she was a player Her
talk is charmlngly simple and she
demonstrates clearly. And in such
way that you can't help but want
to get racket in your hands and
DO Just what she says.
Devises Practice Game.
Back in FSnesville, Miss Browne
has devised game called battle
board tennis" which is played in
doors and enables one not only to
play tennis all winter. but also i'm
proves his game. Whea she was
looking for a device to provide some
thing more than the ordinary prac-
tice board, the three-time champion
hit upon the idea of placing tennis
net near specially-constructed
board Of patented design with the
floor space in front marked off as
one side of court. Then, with either
two or four players participating
the opponents take turn in serving
against the board so that it will re-
bound into the service court. Alter
nate shots are played and the scor-
ing is the same as in tennis.
Miss Browne claims all that is
needed for an ideal installation is
space IL feet high and 38 feet by
so feet. Her board is supposed to
have special angle feature which
returns the ball not only in a per-
feet arc, Stimulating the return act
ually off an opponents racket, but
also with speed and accuracy.
Still distinctly remembering such
old-tlmers as Maurice Mclaughlin
along with Nine. Lenglen and Til
den, with whom she grew up, Miss
Browne believes she probably is the
only one of that generation still TAX
ing an active part in the game In
reference to that tour she took with
Lengien. the r-complexioned eX-
champ doesn't attempt to hide the
fact that she wasn't in the French
Womans class.
Golf Helps Her Tennis.
"At one stage of our tour" recalled
Miss Browne. "Suzane took 25
straight sets from me. Then, one
day, decided I couldn't feel any
more tired from chasing her shots
she was the greatest one in the world
for making an opponent run-than
had been, so went out in the morn
ing and played golf. That night I
took my first set in 26 evenings of
play
Since then, the former net queen
has taken up golf in a big way. Says
she has to have something to keep
her active in the off season when
she can't play tennis. Judging from
her appearance, it's keeping her as
Youthful as active and might not be
a bad thing for women who do not
want to grow old too quickly to try.
Last night she and Tony Latona
defeated Mary Cootes and Jimmy
Farrin, IS, 1913. in a match
which would have done credit to a
Vines-Perry troupe such as appeared
here last winter.