Harry Grove

Harry Grove

Full name	Henry Grove
Country (sports)	United Kingdom
Born	May 7 1862 Lambeth, London, United Kingdom
Died	February 7 1896 (aged 33) London, United Kingdom
Turned pro	1881 (amateur tour)
Retired	1896 (due to death)
Singles
Career record	{{#property:P564}}
Grand Slam Singles results
Wimbledon	SF (1887)
Career record	{{#property:P555}}

Harry Grove (1862–1896) was a British tennis player in the early years of Wimbledon.

Herbert Chipp said the following of Harry Grove "His volleying powers were great; the stroke was made with great crispness - especially brilliant were his cross-volleys. And he played a strong game too from the baseline, the strokes from that position being severe and of the very low trajectory, perhaps lower than was altogether safe. But, although a most formidable opponent to any volleyer, he never seemed to feel quite at home when opposed to a good baseline player, more, I think, to lack of judgment, than to any defects of execution. Invariably, so it seemed to me, he came in on the wrong ball, thus, active though he was, offering his baseline adversary on such occasions the chance of passing him down either line. One stroke he would often attempt of which I never could see the utility - from his point of view. It was a sort of forehand slog, made apparently without rhyme or reason, and I always reckoned upon it as a safe fifteen to me, for in all the matches I played him I cannot remember that this stroke ever passed the net. Yet he must, I suppose, have scored with it at times, or he would scarcely have ventured to employ it. There was nothing remarkable in his service; it was just of medium pace and fair length. His backhand was admirably easy, elegant, and severe. In lasting power he was the equal of anybody. So good was his condition that he appeared to be able to reel off set after set with no sense of fatigue or loss of his fine touch, often playing with scarcely any intermission from morn to dewy eve. Like his brother-in-law, [Harry] S. Barlow, he was somewhat partial to unnecessary five-set matches. It was always a very great pleasure to meet him in a match. His geniality was on a par with his brilliancy of execution."

Grove first entered the men's singles in 1881, when he lost in round one. Grove reached the semis in 1887, beating Herbert Wilberforce and Herbert Bowes-Lyon before losing to Herbert Lawford in four sets. In 1891 he overcame Ernest Meers before losing to Ernest Renshaw in the quarter finals. He last entered Wimbledon in 1893, when he lost in the opening round. Grove died aged just 33 in 1896.