Men's Tennis Tournaments

Men's tennis tournaments have long been a mainstay in the field of competitive tennis, and very high on the list of current favorites is Rafael Nadal. Nadal is the very first men's singles player since legendary Bjorn Borg to ever claim three straight Roland Garros (French Open) crowns.

Nadal is credited with having one of the best defensive games in the world of tennis today, and if the French Open. Nadal tends to remain incredibly focused and powerful on both clay and hard courts, taking it to the line time after time, while showing considerable grace and crowd respect by insisting it is his great dream to play so well for such great crowds.

If one is looking at the current history of Men's tennis, it is only proper to look back into the legends that brought men's tennis to where it is today. The first championships were held as amateur competitions in 1877, at Wimbledon, England at the then All-England Lawn and Tennis Croquet Club. In 1881 what was to become the USTA standardized play by forming accepted rules and equipment for the game.

Under these newly established regulations, the U.S. singles championships for men began in 1881, in Newport, Rhode Island. These games continued yearly in Newport until 1915, when they moved to the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, New York. Renamed the U.S. Open in 1968, the U.S. championships moved to the National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in New York City in 1978.

Wimbledon's first men's champions included Arthur Gore and two brothers named Reggie and Laurie Doherty from the U.K. U.S. men's champions America's William Larned, won seven titles in 1901, 1902, and from 1907 to 1911. American Bill Tilden dominated the men's game from 1920 to 1930 winning Wimbledon three times and the U.S. championships seven times. France's Jean Borotra, René Lacoste, and Henri Cochet had winning records as well winning Wimbledon between them from 1924 to 1929.

In the 1930s top ranked men in the world of tennis were Don Budge andEllsworth Vines of America, and Fred Perry of England. Greats like Pancho Gonzales and Jack Kramer continued to play extremely well also. Ecuador's Pancho Segura started playing internationally in the 1940s.

During the 1960s, Australians rose to the forefront with Rod Laver, Fred Stolle, and John Newcombe. Other prominent players of that time period were Manuel Santana, Arthur Ashe, and Stan Smith. In 1968 tournaments were opened to professionals as well as amateurs.