A. Wallis Myers


Arthur Wallis Myers was an English tennis correspondent, editor, author and player. He is considered to be one of the leading tennis journalists of the first half of the 20th century.
Myers was son of the Rev. John Brown Myers, secretary to the Baptist Missionary Society, and Agnes Traphena. He was educated at Watford Endowed School and The Leys School in Cambridge.
Myers was the editor of the Ayers Lawn Tennis Almanack from 1908 onwards. Myers was the lawn tennis correspondent of The Daily Telegraph from 1909 until his death in 1939, the lawn tennis editor of The Field and author of several books on tennis including a biography on four time Wimbledon champion Anthony Wilding who was killed in the First World War. During that war Myers served in the Ministry of Information.
He was a keen tennis player himself and was active mainly in doubles. In April 1906 he won the doubles title with Wilding at the Championships of Barcelona. He won the Monte Carlo doubles championship in 1910 and 1921 and the mixed doubles in 1909. Myers played in the mixed doubles at the 1914 World Hard Court Championships with Phyllis Satterthwaite, reaching the semi-finals, and teamed up with Molla Bjurstedt Mallory at the 1923 Monte Carlo tournament. In 1923 he won the doubles title of the South of France championships. He was the captain of British tennis teams on tour in Europe, South Africa and India.
In 1924 he founded the International Lawn Tennis Club of Great Britain with Lord Balfour, former Prime Minister, and subsequently Member of the Cabinet, as its first President. He was appointed Chevalier of the Legion of Honour by French President Paul Doumer on 29 April 1932 for services to tennis.
In 1900, Myers married Lilian, daughter of Captain George Gentry, of Maldon, Essex. A tribute to Wallis Myers, A. Wallis Myers: A testament to tennis, was written by Prue, the youngest of his seven children.