A few weeks ago, we were saddened to hear of the death of Budge Patty, who passed away on 3 October, aged 97.
Patty won singles and doubles titles at The Championships but is perhaps best remembered here at Wimbledon for playing some of the longest matches in the history of The Championships.

Born in Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1924, Patty learnt his tennis in Los Angeles, where his family had moved when he was four years old. He was given his distinctive nickname by his brother, who claimed he was so lazy he “wouldn’t budge”. It was sometimes wrongly assumed that the name was a tribute to the great Don Budge, who in 1938 had become the first man to complete the calendar year Grand Slam.

The story around Patty’s first name is equally interesting. It was widely believed that his full name was John Edward Patty and, indeed, this is how he has been referred to in his obituaries over the past few weeks.

However, in a 2000 interview with Steven Lynch for the The Sunday Telegraph, Patty revealed for the first time that his first name was in fact Jesse. He explained he had never used it because he thought it was more of a girl’s name.
Patty’s early career was interrupted by the Second World War. He was stationed with the US Army in Paris, where he decided to settle after the War. Indeed, he was always more at home in Europe and rarely played in his home country, although he did reach the quarter-finals of the US Championships on three occasions.

Patty won two grand slam singles titles during his career, both of which came in 1950. Having been runner-up at Roland Garros in 1949, he went one better the following year, defeating Jaroslav Drobny in five sets. A few weeks later, he added the Wimbledon title, beating Australia’s Frank Sedgman in four sets in the final.

Patty continued to compete in singles at The Championships every year until 1960, reaching the semi-finals in 1954 and 1955. However, the match he will be remembered for was his extraordinary third round encounter with Drobny in 1953. The two players had a history of playing extremely long matches against each other and this one was no different. Patty let six match points slip before Drobny eventually triumphed 6-8, 18-16, 6-3, 6-8, 10-12 after four hours and 20 minutes on Centre Court. At 93 games, it was a Championships record and it remains the fourth longest singles match in Wimbledon history.

The players were rewarded for their efforts with silver cigarette cases, presented to them in the Clubhouse by The Duchess of Kent. It was a slightly ironic gift for the suave Patty, who had a reputation for enjoying life to the full. Previously a heavy smoker, he had given up the habit a few years earlier as part of a renewed commitment to fitness.

Three years previously, the same year he won the singles title, Patty had also been involved in what was then the longest doubles match in Wimbledon history. He and his partner, Tony Trabert, defeated Australians Ken McGregor & Frank Sedgman 6-4, 31-29, 7-9, 6-2 in a quarter-final lasting four hours and five minutes. The second set was notable for exposing a limitation of the scoreboards, which refused to register beyond 19-all.

However, Patty’s greatest doubles victory was to come towards the end of his career. In 1957, the unseeded pairing of 33-year-old Patty and 43-year-old Gardnar Mulloy won the Gentlemen’s Doubles Championship, defeating the top seeds, Neale Fraser & Lew Hoad, in four sets in the final.

After his retirement, Patty continued to attend The Championships on a regular basis, taking part in ceremonies to honour former champions and competing in the veterans’ events. Partnering Sweden’s Lennart Bergelin, who was also Bjorn Borg’s coach, he won the Veterans’ Doubles in 1975 and 1976. Fittingly, their 1975 final victory came against Patty’s near-namesake Don Budge, who was partnered by Gardnar Mulloy.

He was a Chairman’s Guest at The Championships in 1992 and 2010, the 60th anniversary of his gentlemen’s singles triumph.

Patty married Marcino Maria Sfezzo in 1961 and they made their home in Lausanne, Switzerland. He is survived by his wife and their two daughters, Christine and Elaine.