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About Little Mo
(1934–1969)
In the early 1950s, extraordinary tennis champion Maureen Connolly Brinker dominated her sport.
Nicknamed “Little Mo,” the 5'4" dynamo used powerful groundstrokes to become the 1st woman to win all four major tennis tournaments in a calendar year.
In 1968, Little Mo was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Grand Slam
Maureen Connolly Brinker "Little Mo", first woman to ever achieve a Grand Slam (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon & U.S. National Championships Singles Champion) in 1953.
Maureen Connolly (also known as "Little Mo" or "Mo Connolly") was an American tennis player who won nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win a Grand Slam - at the young age of 18!
She is also the only player in history to win a title without losing a set at all four major championships.
In July 1954, Little Mo injured her leg in a horseback riding accident, ending her tennis career at 19. She continued to be a major influence in the world of tennis, however. She married Norman Brinker, and they made their home in Dallas with their two daughters, Cindy and Brenda.
In 1968, Little Mo and her good friend, Nancy Jeffett, co-founded the Maureen Connolly Brinker Tennis Foundation in Dallas, TX. The foundation provided tennis programs for junior players, and encouraged good sportsmanship.
MCB Kansas strives to empower young athletes by implementing and sponsoring junior tennis and sports programs in Wichita, Kansas. Last year alone, despite the pandemic, a record number of 2,000 youth were able to benefit from participating in a tennis program in honor of Maureen’s legacy.
Little Mo Forever
In 2019, the United States Postal Service released a commemorative Forever stamp honoring the legacy of the extraordinary tennis champion Maureen Connolly Brinker with the issuance of the “Little Mo” Forever stamp.
The stamp art features an oil-on-linen painting of the tennis star by Gregory Manchess. Based on a black-and-white photograph taken in 1952, the portrait is a colorful interpretation of Connolly hitting a low volley.
"There is nothing like competition.
It teaches you early in life to win and lose;
and when you lose, to put your chin out instead of dropping it."
Maureen Connolly