The Tennis Grand Slam

History
The US Open has been in existence for more than 120 years. During those times, many changes happened that shaped the tournament into the modern Tennis Grand Slam that it is today.

The first tournament was held in 1881 at the Newport Casino. It was called the US National Singles Championship. Entry was limited to only those clubs which were members of the United States National Lawn Tennis Association, and the competitors were all male, competing in both singles and doubles. Richard Sears the men's championship and he went on to win the next six men's singles championships.

In 1887, the first US Women's National Singles was held at the Philadelphia Cricket Club, and was won by Ellen Hansell. Two years later, a women's doubles championship was established. Three years later, the first mixed doubles championship was held.

After seven years at the Newport Casino, the Championships began to move around the country, with nine different venues hosting the event at least once. At the start of the 20th century, the men's doubles was split into an East and West competition, the winners of which played-off for the right to take on the holders. This challenge round was abolished in 1920, and the knockout system that we know today was employed.

The Open Era started in 1968. The five different competitions were consolidated into one US Open Championships, held at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, Queens, New York. The prize money on offer totalled $100,000, and was shared appropriately between the 96 men and 63 women who entered.

In 1970, the US Open being a tennis grand slam was the first tennis tournament to introduce the tie-breaker system, after F.D. Robbins needed 100 games to defeat Dick Dell. By 1978, the tournament moved to its current home at the hardcourts of the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow, New York.

Andy Roddick

Justine Henin-Hardenne

History Here's the story of how the premier tennis grand slam tournament, the Wimbledon came about. In 1875, the All England Croquet Club was troubled financially due to declining membership. A new sport called lawn tennis was gaining fast in popularity and taking away the members. Club members responded by converting one of the croquet lawns at its Wimbledon grounds into a tennis court.

Two years later, the organization was renamed the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club. A new roller was needed for maintaining its lawns so the club proposed to hold a tournament to raise money. Advertisement was placed in The Times for entries. The Field Magazine was asked for donations.

Twenty-two players entered that first Wimbledon tournament which was won by Spencer Gore in straight sets over W. C. Marshall. Two hundred spectators paid a shilling apiece to watch the final game, enabling the club to buy the needed roller plus some extra cash.

The Wimbledon tournament was immediately accepted as Britains national championship and a tennis grand slam. The men's doubles event was added in 1879, ladies' singles in 1884, and ladies' doubles and mixed doubles in 1913.

Despite being a national championship tournament, Wimbledon was open to foreign players. May Sutton of the United States became the first non-British champion when she won the ladies' singles title in 1905. Two years later, Norman Brookes of Australia won the men's singles.

With the emergence of great players from Europe, particularly France, in the 1920's, Wimbledon became the most important championship event in world tennis and it is still the premier tennis grand slam event in the world.

The All-England Club in 1922 had moved to a new site, boasting a stadium designed to seat 14,000 spectators. Ten years later, total attendance was more than 200,000 for the first time. People turned to tennis in the wake of the worldwide depression.

Tournament play was suspended during World War II. Play at Wimbledon resumed in 1946.

Postwar England saw popularity of the sport magnified due partly to advances in air travel. In 1968, Wimbledon was opened to professional players. It was a belated move after seeing the best players turning professional. It is one tennis grand slam championship that all players would like to win. The tournament's decision influenced the other major tournaments to do the same.

Bjorn Borg

Roger Federer

History

The very first French Championship was held way back in 1891, and the tournament has since grown into one of the four tennis Grand Slam tournaments we know today. However, the competition did not become international until 1925. In 1928, the tournament was moved to its current home, Roland Garros.

The first competition was a one-day national championship which was won by a British. The competition was poorly attended by world class players. It took 24 years before it became fully international and an accepted tennis grand slam event. After the First World War, French tennis was achieving stature. Suzanne Lenglen was the predominant French player, winning the championships six times between 1920 and 1926.

The Rolland Garros stadium was built in 1927. Named after the French war hero, it was an answer to a pressing need for a site to hold the Davis Cup after a win by the Four Musketeers-Jacques Brugnon, Jean Borotra, Henri Cochet and Rene Lacoste. It will be the venue for a throng of spectators enamored by the greatest assembly of players that France had ever known.

In 1968, the Open era started when professionals were allowed to participate. Ken Rosewall was the champion of that first professional tournament. Nancy Richey was the ladies' single champion.

The French Open men's trophy is the Musketeers Cup, and women compete for the Suzanne Lenglen Cup.

Pete Sampras

History

The very first tennis tounament ever played in Australia was held in January 1880, on the courts of the Melbourne Cricket Club. It was built just two years prior to the tournament. It was first called the Championship of the Colony of Victoria. The first champion was A.F. Robinson.

In 1905, the Australian Open was established as the Australasian Tennis Championship and was played at the Warehouseman's Cricket Ground in Melbourne. It became the Australian Championship in 1927 and the Australian Open in 1969. Women's events were added in 1922.

The Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club in Melbourne became the permanent site by virtue of its large capacity. Prior to that, the tournament moved from location to location until 1972.

The present site - Flinders Park - was built out of the need to accomodate increasing attendance to the yearly event. It was built in 1988, with expansion completed in 1995. In 1996, the park was renamed Melbourne Park.

Center Court at Melbourne Park is the only one among the tennis Grand Slam tournaments that boasts of a retractable roof.

The Australian Open is a tennis grand slam tournament and is gaining in stature year after year.

Rod Laver - the only man to ever win a tennis grand slam twice