Geoff Brown (tennis)

{{Short description|Australian tennis player (1924–2001)}}

{{EngvarB|date=August 2013}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}

{{Infobox tennis biography

| name = Geoff Brown

| image =

| caption =

| fullname = Geoffrey Edmund Brown

| country = {{flagu|Australia}}

| residence =

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1924|4|4}}

| birth_place = Murrurundi, New South Wales, Australia

| death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2001|6|20|1924|4|4}}

| death_place = Euroa, Victoria, Australia

| height =

| college =

| turnedpro = 1945 (amateur tour)

| retired = 1958

| plays = Ambidextrous

| careerprizemoney =

| tennishofyear =

| tennishofid =

| website =

| singlesrecord =

| singlestitles =

| highestsinglesranking = No. 10 (1946, Pierre Gillou)United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 425.

| AustralianOpenresult = SF (1946, 1948, 1949)

| FrenchOpenresult =

| Wimbledonresult = F (1946)

| USOpenresult = 4R (1947)

| Othertournaments =

| Olympicssresult =

| doublesrecord =

| doublestitles =

| highestdoublesranking =

| grandslamsdoublesresults =

| AustralianOpenDoublesresult = F (1949)

| FrenchOpenDoublesresult =

| WimbledonDoublesresult = F (1946, 1950)

| USOpenDoublesresult =

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| OlympicsDoublesresult =

| Mixed =

| mixedtitles =

| mixedrecord =

| highestmixedranking =

| AustralianOpenMixedresult =

| FrenchOpenMixedresult =

| WimbledonMixedresult = F (1946, 1950)

| USOpenMixedresult =

}}

Geoffrey Edmund Brown (4 April 1924 – 20 June 2001) was an Australian tennis player.

Brown was born in Murrurundi, New South Wales, Australia. He attended Parramatta Marist High School from 1938 to 1939 before joining the R.A.A.F as a gunner.{{cite web |title=Geoffrey Edmund Brown |url=https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=61172&h=2356187&tid=&pid=&queryId=913778499cf226581772bfcd9c5ba1d0&usePUB=true&_phsrc=Dqh5894&_phstart=successSource&_gl=1*vlglxg*_ga*MTE5NjUxMzc1LjE2Mjg3OTI3Mjc.*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*YWFlMjA2ZDAtMWYyNi00MzgyLTg1OWUtYmRlMWNjODgzOTM2LjQxMS4xLjE2ODI5NDU5MTEuMC4wLjA. |publisher=Australia, World War II Military Service Records, 1939–1945 |access-date=1 May 2023}} He was demobilised at the end of the war and returned to playing tennis.

Brown was runner-up in the 1946 Wimbledon Championships singles final, losing in five sets to Yvon Petra, and doubles final playing with Dinny Pails.{{cite news|title=Petra New World Champion – Geoff Brown Goes Down Fighting|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=l38-AAAAIBAJ&sjid=30sMAAAAIBAJ&dq=geoff%20brown%20tennis&pg=6009%2C388388|newspaper=The Indian Express|date=6 July 1946}} He also reached the doubles finals at the 1949 Australian Championships and 1950 Wimbledon Championships, in both he was partnered by compatriot Bill Sidwell and in both finals they lost to John Bromwich and Adrian Quist.{{cite web|url=http://www.daviscup.com/en/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=10003194|title=Players – Geoffrey Brown|work=Davis Cup Official Website|publisher=International Tennis Federation}}{{cite web|url=http://www.itftennis.com/procircuit/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=10003194|title=Player Biography – Geoffrey Brown|work=ITF Mens Circuit|publisher=International Tennis Federation|access-date=18 August 2012|archive-date=18 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160318114805/http://www.itftennis.com/procircuit/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=10003194|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/roll_of_honour/mens-singles.html|title=Men's Singles Finals 1877–2008|work=Wimbledon Website|publisher=All England Lawn Tennis Club|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507093655/http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/roll_of_honour/mens-singles.html|archivedate=7 May 2013}}{{cite web|url=http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/roll_of_honour/mens-doubles.html |title=Men's Doubles Finals 1884–2008 |work=Wimbledon Website |publisher=All England Lawn Tennis Club |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103214301/http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/roll_of_honour/mens-doubles.html |archivedate=3 November 2013 }} He reached the quarterfinal at the 1949 Wimbledon Championships by defeating US champion Pancho Gonzales in the fourth round.{{cite news|title=Brown Brilliant to beat U.S. Champion|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-sJVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wb0DAAAAIBAJ&dq=geoff%20brown%20tennis&pg=6950%2C7718684|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|date=28 June 1949}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63069565 |title=TENNIS – BROWN SHINES AT WIMBLEDON |newspaper=Townsville Daily Bulletin |location=Qld. |date=27 June 1949 |page=2 |via=National Library of Australia}}

With his countryman Dinny Pails he won the doubles title at the Irish Tennis Championships in July 1946.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article35704625 |title=IRISH TITLES TO AUSTRALIANS. |newspaper=The Advertiser |location=Adelaide |date=15 July 1946 |page=7 |via=National Library of Australia}} He won the singles title at the Kent Lawn Tennis Championships in 1948 and 1950.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article42671649 |title=LAWN TENNIS SINGLES TITLE. |newspaper=The Cairns Post |location=Qld. |date=19 June 1950 |page=1 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63096719 |title=GEOFF BROWN WINS KENT SINGLES TITLE. |newspaper=Townsville Daily Bulletin |location=Qld. |date=19 June 1950 |page=4 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article69225440 |title=BROWN DEFEATS SI DWELL AFTER THREE-HOUR STRUGGLE. |newspaper=The Advocate |location=Burnie, Tas. |date=19 June 1950 |page=15 |via=National Library of Australia}} In April 1949 he reached the final of the South African Championships in Johannesburg but lost in four sets to Eric Sturgess.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article69353232 |title=S. AFRICAN TENNIS BROWN ENTERS FINAL. |newspaper=The Advocate |location=Burnie, Tas. |date=14 April 1949 |page=20 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news|title=Brown Beaten|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FyFVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=IpMDAAAAIBAJ&dq=sturgess%20tennis%20brown&pg=3598%2C6794329|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=17 April 1949}} In April 1950 Brown won the Surrey Tennis Tournament against Paddy Robert in the final.{{cite news|title=Brown Takes Surrey Tennis|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/04/30/archives/brown-takes-surrey-tennis.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=29 April 1950}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article47844775 |title=Tennis Win in 30 Minutes. |newspaper=The West Australian |location=Perth |date=1 May 1950 |page=21 |via=National Library of Australia}} In May he played in the British Hard Court Championships in Bournemouth and reached the final in which he lost to Jaroslav Drobný.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18161425 |title=Brown-Drobny in U.K. Final. |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=6 May 1950 |page=10 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article52716784 |title=FRANK SEDGMAN IN FORM. |newspaper=The Examiner |location=Launceston, Tas. |date=8 May 1950 |page=13 |via=National Library of Australia}} In June he defeated Sumant Misra in the singles final of the Northern Lawn Tennis Championships.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63093279 |title=TENNIS. |newspaper=Townsville Daily Bulletin |location=Qld. |date=12 June 1950 |page=2 |via=National Library of Australia}} Due to an illness and operation Brown did not play tennis for more than a year and returned in October 1951.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18233394 |title=BROWN BACK IN BIG TENNIS. |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=3 October 1951 |page=11 |via=National Library of Australia}} In October 1952 he won the Sydney Metropolitan Grasscourt Championships, defeating Lew Hoad in the final in three sets.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article57565014 |title=Brown has win over Lew Hoad. |newspaper=The Mail |location=Adelaide |date=18 October 1952 |page=29 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60100427 |title=GEOFF BROWN IN COMEBACK. |newspaper=Sunday Times |location=Perth |date=19 October 1952 |page=3 Section: Sporting Section |via=National Library of Australia}}

In 1947 and 1948 Brown played for the Australian Davis Cup team and compiled a record of three wins and one loss.{{cite web|title=Davis Cup – Players – Geoffrey Brown|url=http://www.daviscup.com/en/players/player/profile.aspx?playerid=10003194|publisher=ITF}}

Brown was married firstly to Veronica Lineham. Their first child, Virginia Ann Brown, was born in 1951.{{cite news |title=May Be Future Tennis Star |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/145569513?searchTerm=Geoff%20brown%20Lineham |access-date=1 May 2023 |publisher=Daily Advertiser |date=3 September 1951 |location=Wagga Wagga, New South Wales |pages=1}} He went on to have three more children; Vonnie, Geoffrey Vincent, and Danielle. Brown later remarried. He died in Euroa, Victoria on 20 June 2001, at the age of 77.{{cite news |title=Brown, Geoffrey Edmund |url=https://www.mytributes.com.au/notice/death-notices/brown-geoffrey-edmund/3736119/ |access-date=1 May 2023 |work=Herald Sun |date=22 June 2001}}