Maureen Connolly Brinker (1934-1969) began competing in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association as a teenager and notched her first major singles tournament victory in 1951, winning the United States Championships (now called the U.S. Open). In 1952, she won the Wimbledon crown for the first time. The following year, she became the first woman to capture the single-season Grand Slam of tennis, winning the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Championships. Since then, no American singles player has won all four majors in a calendar year. Only two men and three women have achieved that feat. Connolly’s brilliant career ended abruptly in 1954 when she severely injured her leg in a horseback riding accident. She died of cancer at age 34 in 1969.