Walter Merrill Hall was an important figure in the American tennis landscape, both as a player and administrator.

As a player, Hall was ranked in the U.S. Top Ten 1911, 1915 and 1918. He won the US Clay Court

U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships

The U.S. Men's Clay Court Championship is an annual ATP Tour tennis tournament that started in 1910. It is the last remaining ATP Tour-level tournament in the United States to be played on clay courts....

 doubles title in 1912 (with Harold Hackett

Harold Hackett

Harold Humphrey Hackett was an American tennis player.Born in Hingham, Massachusetts, but a long-time resident of New York, Hackett turned in his best results in doubles with Fred Alexander. Beginning in 1905, they were finalists at the U.S...

) and was a runner-up in singles in 1910 and 1913. He reached the quarterfinals at the US National Championships in 1918, and at the tournament now known as the Cincinnati Masters

Cincinnati Masters

The Cincinnati Open is an annual outdoor hardcourts tennis event held in the Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Ohio, USA. The event started on September 18, 1899 and is the oldest tennis tournament in the United States played in its original city., Between...

 he was a singles finalist in 1911 and a quarterfinalist in 1910.

Hall also won the Middle States singles title three times (1911, 1918 & 1919) and the 1932 New Hampshire state title.

After he ended his playing career, Hall served the sport as an administrator with the United States Tennis Association

United States Tennis Association

The United States Tennis Association is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, from the grass-roots to the professional levels...

as treasurer and then as president (from 1933 to 1936).