Julie Pullin (born 5 November 1975), now Julie Hobbs, is a retired British tennis player who turned professional in 1993. She won eight singles titles and 25 doubles titles on the ITF circuit, many with compatriot Lorna Woodroffe. She is most well known for receiving nine wild cards over her career for the ladies' singles at Wimbledon, but failing to win a match.
| Country (sports) |  United Kingdom England |
|---|---|
| Residence | Brighton & Hove, Sussex |
| Born | 5 November 1975 Cuckfield, Sussex |
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Turned pro | 1993 |
| Retired | 2003 |
| Plays | Left-handed |
| Prize money | $421,976 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 302–283 |
| Career titles | 0 WTA, 8 ITF |
| Highest ranking | No. 125 (10 April 2000) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | 2R (2000) |
| Wimbledon | 1R (1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 255–183 |
| Career titles | 27 ITF |
| Highest ranking | 67 (2 February 1998) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 2R (1998) |
| French Open | 2R (2001) |
| Wimbledon | 2R (2000) |
| US Open | 1R (1997, 1998, 2000, 2001) |
She reached her career-high WTA singles ranking of 125 in April 2000, after she achieved her best performance in a Grand Slam championship, qualifying and reaching the second round of the Australian Open for the first time.[1] Pullin had defeated Slovak 15th seed Martina Suchá in the first round of qualifying 6–4, 7–5, Gloria Pizzichini 6–4, 6–0 in the second and American Samantha Reeves in the final round 6–2, 7–6. She defeated another American, Jane Chi, 6–1, 6–3 in the first round proper, before narrowly losing to Chinese wild card Yi Jing-Qian, 3–6, 6–2, 7–9. It was the only tournament where Pullin won a main-draw Grand Slam match in singles.
She reached the second round of the Wimbledon ladies' doubles tournament once in 2000, with Woodroffe, beating Dawn Buth and Julie Scott 6–4, 6–1, before losing to the 14th seeded Anke Huber and Barbara Schett in the second round.
Julie Pullin announced her retirement in 2003, after playing her last professional singles match in the first round at Wimbledon, losing 1–6, 3–6 to Lina Krasnoroutskaya.
Personal life
editPullin was born in Cuckfield in Sussex to her father Alan and her tennis coach mother Andrea. She has two brothers, Roger and Keith, and a sister, Vicki. She was coached during her career by Leighton Alfred.
Her married name is now Hobbs, and under that name she is now the head coach at the Pavilion and Avenue Tennis Club in Brighton.[2]
WTA career finals
editDoubles: 1 (0–1)
edit| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Grand Slam | |
| Tier I | |
| Tier II | |
| Tier III | |
| Tier IV & V | |
| Result | W-L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | May 1997 | Cardiff, Great Britain | Clay | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Kerry-Anne Guse  Debbie Graham
|
3–6, 4–6 |
ITF finals
editSingles: 18 (8–10)
edit| $100,000 tournaments |
| $75,000 tournaments |
| $50,000 tournaments |
| $25,000 tournaments |
| $10,000 tournaments |
| Result | No. | Date | Location | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1. | 23 March 1992 | Harare, Zimbabwe | Hard |  Julia Muir
|
6–1, 6–1 |
| Win | 2. | 6 April 1992 | Gaborone, Botswana | Hard |  Estelle Gevers
|
6–2, 2–6, 6–4 |
| Loss | 3. | 5 July 1993 | Frinton, Great Britain | Grass | Lucie Ahl
|
1–6, 6–3, 1–6 |
| Win | 4. | 9 August 1993 | College Park, United States | Hard | Vickie Paynter
|
6–4, 3–6, 6–2 |
| Loss | 5. | 27 September 1993 | Bracknell, Great Britain | Hard |  Svetlana Parkhomenko
|
5–7, 2–6 |
| Loss | 6. | 4 March 1996 | Haifa, Israel | Hard |  Hila Rosen
|
4–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 7. | 4 May 1996 | Hatfield, Great Britainm | Clay |  Jessica Steck
|
6–7(5–7), 6–7(3–7) |
| Loss | 8. | 8 July 1996 | Easton, United States | Hard | Stephanie Mabry
|
3–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 9. | 29 September 1996 | Telford, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lucie Ahl
|
3–6, 7–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 10. | 27 April 1997 | Bournemouth, Great Britain | Clay | Joanne Ward
|
6–0, 6–3 |
| Win | 11. | 14 February 1998 | Birmingham, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Joanne Ward
|
6–1, 1–6, 6–3 |
| Win | 12. | 9 August 1998 | Lexington, United States | Hard | Abigail Tordoff
|
6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 13. | 7 November 1999 | Hull, Great Britain | Hard (i) |  Yvonne Doyle
|
4–6, 5–7 |
| Loss | 14. | 20 February 2000 | Redbridge, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Elena Bovina
|
6–2, 0–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 15. | 30 October 2000 | Hull, Great Britain | Hard | Louise Latimer
|
2–4, 2–4, 1–4 |
| Loss | 16. | 19 February 2001 | Algarve, Portugal | Hard | Ekaterina Kozhokina
|
4–6, 6–4, 3–6 |
| Win | 17. | 9 October 2001 | Cardiff, Great Britain | Carpet (i) |  Eva Dyrberg
|
6–1, 6–7(1–7), 6–2 |
| Win | 18. | 5 May 2002 | Gifu, Japan | Hard |  Shinobu Asagoe
|
4–6, 6–4, 6–3 |
Doubles: 46 (27–19)
edit| Result | No. | Date | Location | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1. | 10 February 1992 | Swindon, Great Britain | Carpet | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Jacqueline Geller Tina Samara
|
6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 2. | 4 May 1992 | Lee-on-the-Solent, Great Britain | Clay | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Alison Smith Tamsin Wainwright
|
1–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 3. | 25 October 1993 | Jakarta, Indonesia | Hard | Robyn Mawdsley
|
Ei Iida Nana Smith
|
4–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 4. | 5 February 1996 | Sunderland, Great Britain | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Melissa Beadman  Helen Laupa
|
6–4, 7–5 |
| Loss | 5. | 18 February 1996 | Sheffield, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Lucie Ahl Joanne Ward
|
6–7, 3–6 |
| Win | 6. | 4 March 1996 | Haifa, Israel | Hard | Kate Warne-Holland
|
Hila Rosen Shiri Burstein
|
6–2, 6–4 |
| Loss | 7. | 22 April 1996 | Edinburgh, Great Britain | Clay | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Helen Crook Victoria Davies
|
2–6, 0–6 |
| Win | 8. | 29 September 1996 | Telford, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Natalia Egorova  Henriëtte van Aalderen
|
6–2, 7–6(7–4) |
| Win | 9. | 6 October 1996 | Nottingham, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Emily Bond Ekaterina Roubanova
|
6–2, 6–4 |
| Win | 10. | 28 October 1996 | Edinburgh, Great Britain | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Joelle Schad  Syna Schmidle
|
6–3, 6–4 |
| Win | 11. | 16 February 1997 | Birmingham, Great Britain | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Shirli-Ann Siddall Amanda Wainwright
|
6–2, 6–4 |
| Win | 12. | 23 February 1997 | Redbridge, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Kerry-Anne Guse Clare Wood
|
2–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 13. | 7 April 1997 | Hvar, Croatia | Clay | Amanda Wainwright
|
 Patrícia Marková Zuzana Váleková
|
6–7(3–7), 4–6 |
| Loss | 14. | 27 April 1997 | Bournemouth, Great Britain | Clay | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Amanda Wainwright Shirli-Ann Siddall
|
3–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 15. | 14 July 1997 | Clearwater, United States | Hard (i) | Amanda Wainwright
|
 Maureen Drake Lindsay Lee-Waters
|
6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 16. | 27 July 1997 | Peachtree City, United States | Hard | Amanda Wainwright
|
Sonya Jeyaseelan Kaoru Shibata
|
4–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 17. | 19 October 1997 | Southampton, Great Britain | Carpet (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Lenka Cenková  Sandra Načuk
|
6–2, 6–1 |
| Win | 18. | 2 November 1997 | Edinburgh, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Amanda Hopmans Seda Noorlander
|
6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 19. | 26 July 1998 | Peachtree City, United States | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Vanessa Webb Keri Phebus
|
3–6, 6–2, 6–4 |
| Loss | 20. | 2 August 1998 | Winnipeg, Canada | Hard | Renata Kolbovic
|
Vanessa Webb Keri Phebus
|
6–4, 4–6, 6–7 |
| Win | 21. | 23 August 1998 | The Bronx, United States | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Christína Papadáki  Sarah Pitkowski-Malcor
|
6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 22. | 5 June 1999 | Surbiton, Great Britain | Grass | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Rika Hiraki Linda Wild
|
w/o |
| Loss | 23. | 9 August 1999 | Lexington, United States | Hard |  Kim Eun-ha
|
Alexandra Fusai  Florencia Labat
|
4–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 24. | 18 October 1999 | Southampton, Great Britain | Carpet (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Magda Mihalache Zuzana Váleková
|
6–3, 6–2 |
| Win | 25. | 7 November 1999 | Hull, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Michaela Paštiková Jasmin Wöhr
|
6–4, 6–3 |
| Loss | 26. | 20 February 2000 | Redbridge, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Alexandra Fusai  Tina Križan
|
6–7(4–7), 6–3, 6–7(1–7) |
| Loss | 27. | 21 February 2000 | Bushey, Great Britain | Carpet (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Annabel Ellwood  Nadejda Ostrovskaya
|
1–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 28. | 6 March 2000 | Haikou, China | Hard | Gréta Arn
|
Chae Kyung-yee Ryoko Takemura
|
7–5, 6–4 |
| Win | 29. | 22 October 2000 | Cardiff, Great Britain | Carpet (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Giulia Casoni  Laurence Courtois
|
0–6, 6–1, 6–3 |
| Win | 30. | 30 October 2000 | Hull, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Mia Buric Syna Schmidle
|
4–1, 1–4, 4–1, 5–4(4) |
| Win | 31. | 11 February 2001 | Redbridge, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Irina Selyutina Tina Križan
|
6–1, 6–3 |
| Loss | 32. | 19 February 2001 | Algarve, Portugal | Hard | Alice Barnes
|
Carine Bornu  Aliénor Tricerri
|
3–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 33. | 25 March 2001 | La Cañada, United States | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Rika Hiraki Kim Eun-ha
|
6–2, 6–4 |
| Loss | 34. | 6 May 2001 | Gifu, Japan | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
 Wynne Prakusya Kim Eun-ha
|
6–1, 4–6, 6–7(2–7) |
| Loss | 35. | 13 May 2001 | Fukuoka, Japan | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Rika Hiraki Nana Smith
|
0–6, 6–7(3–7) |
| Win | 36. | 20 May 2001 | Edinburgh, Great Britain | Clay | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Helen Crook Victoria Davies
|
6–2, 6–1 |
| Win | 37. | 4 June 2001 | Surbiton, Great Britain | Grass | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Kim Grant Lilia Osterloh
|
7–6(7–3), 7–5 |
| Win | 38. | 15 July 2001 | Felixstowe, Great Britain | Grass | Trudi Musgrave
|
Natalie Grandin Kim Grant
|
7–5, 6–4 |
| Loss | 39. | 29 July 2001 | Pamplona, Spain | Clay | Trudi Musgrave
|
Giulia Casoni Roberta Vinci
|
6–7(2–7), 4–6 |
| Win | 40. | 5 August 2001 | Alghero, Italy | Hard | Trudi Musgrave
|
Maret Ani  Joana Cortez
|
6–4, 7–5 |
| Loss | 41. | 16 September 2001 | Peachtree City, United States | Hard | Trudi Musgrave
|
Allison Bradshaw Jennifer Russell
|
6–7(1–7), 2–6 |
| Loss | 42. | 19 March 2002 | La Cañada, United States | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Kim Grant Abigail Spears
|
6–4, 5–7, 1–6 |
| Loss | 43. | 12 May 2002 | Fukuoka, Japan | Hard | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Shinobu Asagoe Cho Yoon-jeong
|
2–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 44. | 9 June 2002 | Surbiton, Great Britain | Grass | Lorna Woodroffe
|
Nannie de Villiers Irina Selyutina
|
6–2, 6–2 |
| Loss | 45. | 8 October 2002 | Cardiff, Great Britain | Hard (i) | Mariana Díaz Oliva
|
Marion Bartoli Vanessa Webb
|
4–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 46. | 17 November 2002 | Port Pirie, Australia | Hard | Trudi Musgrave
|
Amanda Augustus Gabriela Lastra
|
7–6(7–1), 6–2 |
References
edit- ^ "Pullin flies British flag". London: BBC. 17 January 2000. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
- ^ "Tennis Coaching Team". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
