A Californian born on October 6th 1905, Helen Wills Moody was one of the very first famous American sportswomen.

Helen Wills Moody won the equivalent of 19 Grand Slam singles titles, incredibly from only 24 appearances, and she never made the trip to Australia.

Her only defeats came in finals, for she was forced to withdraw from the 1926 French and Wimbledon tournaments after undergoing an emergency appendix operation.

Helen Wills Moody won Wimbledon eight times, the US Championships seven times and the French on four occasions, all between 1923 and 1938. She also captured 12 doubles and mixed titles, and won two gold medals at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris.

Totally dominant during her era, Wills Moody lost only 35 of her 433 career matches and once won 158 in succession without dropping a set.

Yet for all her success, she was never a crowd-pleaser. Wills Moody was an introverted player who remained aloof to her contemporaries and spectators. She was nicknamed 'Little Miss Poker Face' possibly because of her natural shyness.

After pulling out of the 1933 US Championships final to Helen Hull Jacobs while losing, Wills Moody was so upset at the reaction from the public and the press that she decided never to play there again. She returned to Wimbledon twice more and won both times.

Helen Wills Moody, who married twice but had no children, was forced to retire after her finger was bitten by a dog, affecting her grip on the racquet. She died in 1998 of natural causes at the age of 92.