Reuben A. Holden, Jr.

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Reuben A. Holden, Jr. (born March 14, 1890 in Cincinnati, Ohio; died February 27, 1967), was an outstanding tennis player during the early part of the 20th Century.

Holden played on the Yale University tennis team, a tennis powerhouse in those years along with Harvard, Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania. In 1910, at the age of 20, Holden won the National Intercollegiate title for Yale, defeating R. Thayer of Pennsylvania in the first round, Cullen Thomas of Princeton in the second, S.F. Raleigh of Princeton in semis and Arthur Sweetser of Harvard in the final. All matches were best of five, and Holden lost one set during the entire tournament.

Ironically, the week before the NCAA singles final, Sweetser reached the doubles final at the international tournament in Holden's hometown: the tournament now known as the Cincinnati Masters.

Holden reached six doubles finals in Cincinnati, winning two titles -- in 1912 and then again 10 years later in 1922. His last doubles final came in 1932, when Holden was the remarkable age of 42.

He also had success when he found himself alone on the court. He was a singles finalist in Cincinnati in the all-comers round in 1912, and reached four singles semifinals: 1908, 1910, 1912 and 1913.

He lost the 1913 semifinal to William McElroy, the eventual champion.

In 1934, just two years after he reached his last doubles final here, tragedy struck the Holden home. The holiday liner SS Morro Castle, bound for home after a trip to Havana with 558 passengers and crew aboard, was engulfed in flames while off the coast of New Jersey. The passenger list that night included Mr. Holden, his two sons, and his wife, Grace. Grace was among the 250 who perished in the fire.