Gene Mako
The longtime doubles partner of Don Budge and a former Wimbledon and US Open doubles champion, Gene Mako died on 14 June 2013. He was 97.
Mako was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1973. He partnered Budge to reach seven doubles finals at Grand Slam events. They won two doubles titles at Wimbledon (1937 and 1938) and two at the US Championships (1936 and 1938). In 1936, Mako partnered with Alice Marble to win the mixed doubles title at the US Nationals, defeating Budge and his partner Sarah Palfrey.
Mako was also an integral member of the United States Davis Cup team from 1935 to 1938, helping the team win two championships, in 1937 and 1938.
David Markin
Former United States Tennis Association President and International Tennis Federation Board member David Markin died on 30 May 2013.
Markin served as USTA President from 1989-90, was chairman of the US Open site committee in the mid 1990s, served as Chairman of the Davis Cup Committee and the Junior Tennis Council and was also an active leader and supporter at the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum. He was instrumental in planning the revitalization of the National Tennis Center, including the construction of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Tim Heckler
Tim Heckler, the former CEO of the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA), died on Monday 4 February after suffering from a heart attack. He was 71.
Heckler started his tennis teaching career in 1970, the same year he joined the USPTA, and was CEO for 30 years, retiring in December 2012. In 2008 he received the association’s highest honor, the George Bacso Lifetime Achievement Award.
Paul Flory
Paul Flory, the Chairman of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, died on Thursday 31 January 2013 after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 90.
Flory was Tournament Director in Cincinnati from 1975-1997 before becoming Tournament Chairman. He was instrumental in making Cincinnati a successful ATP and WTA event.
ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: "Everyone at the ITF was sorry to learn of the death of Paul Flory. He made enormous contributions to tennis and built the Cincinnati tournament into one of the premier stops on the tour. When I was President of the Italian Tennis Federation, I served with Paul on the TPL Board and appreciated his wisdom and commitment to our sport. Our condolences go to the family and friends of Paul Flory."
Hunter Delatour
ITF Honorary Life Counsellor Hunter Delatour died on 18 January 2013. He was 95.
Delatour served as president of the USTA from 1983-84, president of the International Tennis Hall of Fame from 1986-87 and he was on the ITF Board of Directors from 1983-87, during which time he served as ITF vice president.
During his tenure as USTA president, the NJTL and the USTA merged, and the USTA formed a closer relationship with the International Tennis Hall of Fame and collegiate tennis.
In 1975 he was elected secretary of the USLTA, followed by two-year terms as second vice president, first vice president and president. His two years as immediate past president culminated 12 years of service on the USTA Board of Directors.
Gussy Moran
Gussy Moran, who was famous for wearing lacey knickers at Wimbledon in 1949, died in Los Angeles in January 2013 aged 89.
Moran reached the doubles final at Wimbledon in 1949 and achieved a US national ranking of No. 4. Following her retirement from tennis, Moran worked as a coach, wrote a column for Tennis magazine and developed her own line of clothes.
Harold Monger
Professor Harold Monger, President of the Liberia Tennis Association, died in Ghana on 11 January 2013.