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For many across the country, Labor Day marks “The End…” Summer is over, and it is time to return to academic pursuits.
But at the US Open Military Appreciation Day takes center stage. Having been held on Labor Day Monday since 2012, the annual salute to those who serve/have served in the five branches of the US Military has become a tournament tradition. Seven years after its inauguration, the event was designated Lieutenant Joe Hunt Military Appreciation Day in 2019.
But who was Joe Hunt?
He is hardly a household name in tennis history. But when it comes to tennis CVs, Hunt actually stands alone. He is the only player in history to win all the US National Singles Championships – Boys’ 15 and 18, Intercollegiate, and Men’s.
The last victory took place September 6, 1943. The US National Men’s Singles final was staged on a hot and humid day at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, New York. Lieutenant Joe Hunt, on leave from the Navy, defeated Seaman Jack Kramer, who was granted time off from his Coast Guard duties, 6-3, 6-8, 10-8, 6-0.
When Kramer’s last shot sailed long, Hunt collapsed with leg cramps on the…
