Bob Mark

Bob Mark

Full name	Robert Ian Mark
Country (sports)	Australia
Born	(1937-11-28)28 November 1937 Albury, Australia
Died	21 July 2006(2006-07-21) (aged 68) South Africa
Singles
Highest ranking	10
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	SF (1959)
French Open	3R (1958)
Wimbledon	3R (1958, 1960)
US Open	QF (1960)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	W (1959, 1960, 1961)
French Open	F (1961)
Wimbledon	F (1959)
US Open	F (1960)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian Open	W (1959)
Wimbledon	SF (1959, 1960)
US Open	W (1961)

Robert 'Bob' Mark (28 November 1937 – 21 July 2006) was an amateur tennis player from Australia.

Mark won the Australian Men's Doubles title in 1959, 1960 and 1961 partnering Rod Laver. With Sandra Reynolds, he won the 1960 Australian Mixed Doubles, and in 1961, he teamed with compatriot Margaret Smith to win the U.S. National Championships Mixed Doubles.

At the 1959 Australian Championships, Mark beat Andrés Gimeno in four sets in the quarter finals. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, "Mark hit some wonderful passing shots, particularly off the forehand side. Frequently he ran around Gimeno's second service and clubbed it down the sideline for a winner". ^[1] He lost to Neale Fraser in the semi finals. At the US Championships in 1960, Mark beat third seed Barry MacKay in five sets (having completed the fifth set of his previous round win earlier the same day). The big serving MacKay served many double faults, but Mark served well and his backhand was in form. ^[2] He lost in the quarter finals to Dennis Ralston. In 1960 Mark won the Kent Championships at Beckenham beating Butch Buchholz in the final. ^[3] In 1962, he won the singles title at the South African Championships after a four-set victory in the final against Gordon Forbes. ^[4]

Grand slam finals

Doubles (3 titles, 4 runner-ups)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1958	Australian Championships	Grass	Roy Emerson	Ashley Cooper Neale Fraser	5–7, 8–6, 6–3, 3–6, 5–7
Win	1959	Australian Championships	Grass	Rod Laver	Don Candy Bob Howe	9–7, 6–4, 6–2
Loss	1959	Wimbledon	Grass	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson Neale Fraser	6–8, 3–6, 16–14, 7–9
Win	1960	Australian Championships	Grass	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson Neale Fraser	1–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–4
Loss	1960	US Championships	Grass	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson Neale Fraser	7–9, 2–6, 4–6
Win	1961	Australian Championships	Grass	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson Martin Mulligan	6–3, 7–5, 3–6, 9–11, 6–2

Mixed Doubles: (2 titles, 1 runner-ups)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1959	Australian Championships	Grass	Sandra Reynolds	Renée Schuurman Rod Laver	4–6, 13–11, 6–1
Loss	1959	U.S. Championships	Grass	Janet Hopps	Margaret Osborne Neale Fraser	5–7, 15–13, 2–6
Win	1961	U.S. Championships	Grass	Margaret Smith	Darlene Hard Dennis Ralston	default

References

1. "Olmedo beats Schmidt - and injury". The Sydney Morning Herald . 23 January 1959. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
2. "Mark Upsets MacKay, U.S. No. 1". New York Daily News . 9 September 1960. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
3. "Bob Mark wins tennis final". The Canberra Times . 13 June 1960. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
4. Howard Jones (8 August 2006). "Tennis champ not forgotten". The Border Mail.

External links

• Bob Mark at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Bob Mark at the International Tennis Federation
• Bob Mark at the Davis Cup
• Biography of Bob Mark