The Open Era is the current era of professional tennis. It began in 1968 when the Grand Slam tournaments allowed professional players to compete with amateurs, ending the division that had persisted in men's tennis since the dawn of the sport in the 19th century. The first "open" tournament was held in Bournemouth, England, [1] followed by the inaugural open Grand Slam tournament a month later. [2] All records are based on data from the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and the official sites of the four Grand Slam tournaments. Active streaks and active players are in boldface.
Active streaks and active players are in boldface.
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Grand Slam [ broken anchor ] | Player | First–last tournaments |
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Margaret Court | 1970 Australian Open—1970 US Open | |
Steffi Graf | 1988 Australian Open—1988 US Open | |
all four major titles consecutively (in a calendar year) |
NCYGS | Player | First–last tournaments |
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Margaret Court | 1969 US Open—1970 Wimbledon | |
Martina Navratilova | 1983 Wimbledon—1984 French Open | |
Steffi Graf | 1993 French Open—1994 Australian Open | |
Serena Williams | 2002 French Open—2003 Australian Open | |
Serena Williams(2) | 2014 US Open—2015 Wimbledon | |
all four major titles consecutively (not in a calendar year) |
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Event of completion | Age | Player |
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1970 Wimbledon | 27 | Margaret Court |
1972 French Open | 28 | Billie Jean King |
1973 US Open | 22 | Evonne Goolagong Cawley |
1975 US Open | 20 | Chris Evert |
1981 Wimbledon | 19 | Hana Mandlíková |
1981 US Open | 24 | / Martina Navratilova |
1988 Australian Open | 18 | Steffi Graf |
1992 Wimbledon | 18 | Monica Seles |
1995 Wimbledon | 23 | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario |
1997 US Open | 16 | Martina Hingis |
2003 Australian Open | 22 | Venus Williams |
2003 Australian Open | 21 | Serena Williams |
2004 Australian Open | 21 | Justine Henin |
2012 French Open | 25 | Maria Sharapova |
* Reached the final of each Grand Slam tournament at least once during career |
# | Titles (1+) |
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4 | Steffi Graf |
3 | Serena Williams |
2 | Chris Evert |
Martina Navratilova | |
1 | Margaret Court |
Maria Sharapova |
# | Finals (2+) |
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6 | Chris Evert |
Martina Navratilova | |
5 | Steffi Graf |
4 | Serena Williams |
2 | Margaret Court |
Evonne Goolagong Cawley | |
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | |
Justine Henin | |
# | Semifinals (4+) |
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6 | Martina Navratilova |
Chris Evert | |
5 | Steffi Graf |
Serena Williams | |
4 | Gabriela Sabatini |
# | Quarterfinals (5+) |
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10 | Serena Williams |
9 | Martina Navratilova |
7 | Steffi Graf |
6 | Chris Evert |
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | |
5 | Gabriela Sabatini |
Monica Seles | |
Jennifer Capriati | |
Venus Williams |
# | Match wins (Top 10) |
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69 | Serena Williams |
48 | Venus Williams |
47 | Steffi Graf |
46 | Martina Navratilova |
41 | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario |
38 | Maria Sharapova |
31 | Lindsay Davenport |
30 | Chris Evert |
Monica Seles | |
Justine Henin |
# | All 4 titles + Olympic gold medal* | Year |
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1 | Steffi Graf | 1988 |
*called the Golden Slam |
# | All 4 titles* | Year |
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1 | Margaret Court | 1970 |
Steffi Graf | 1988 | |
*called the Grand Slam |
# | 3+ titles | Year |
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5 | Steffi Graf | 1988–89, 93, 95–96 |
3 | Margaret Court | 1969–70, 73 |
2 | Martina Navratilova | 1983–84 |
Monica Seles | 1991–92 | |
Serena Williams | 2002, 15 | |
1 | Billie Jean King | 1972 |
Martina Hingis | 1997 |
# | 2+ titles | Year |
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7 | Serena Williams | 2002–03, 09–10, 12–13, 15 |
6 | Martina Navratilova | 1982–87 |
5 | Chris Evert | 1974–76, 80, 82 |
Steffi Graf | 1988–89, 93, 95–96 | |
3 | Margaret Court | 1969–70, 73 |
2 | Monica Seles | 1991–92 |
Venus Williams | 2000–01 | |
Justine Henin | 2003, 07 | |
1 | Evonne Goolagong Cawley | 1971 |
Billie Jean King | 1972 | |
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | 1994 | |
Martina Hingis | 1997 | |
Jennifer Capriati | 2001 | |
Amélie Mauresmo | 2006 | |
Angelique Kerber | 2016 | |
Iga Świątek | 2022 | |
Aryna Sabalenka | 2024 |
# | All 4 semifinals | Year |
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6 | Chris Evert | 1974, 81–82, 84–85, 86* |
4 | Martina Navratilova | 1984–85, 86*, 87 |
Steffi Graf | 1988–90, 93 | |
3 | Margaret Court | 1969–70, 73 |
2 | Martina Hingis | 1997–98 |
Serena Williams | 2015–16 | |
Justine Henin | 2003, 06 | |
1 | Evonne Goolagong Cawley | 1973 |
Monica Seles | 1992 | |
Conchita Martínez | 1995 | |
Jennifer Capriati | 2001 | |
Kim Clijsters | 2003 | |
Aryna Sabalenka | 2023 | |
*Australian Open not played in 1986 Made all 3 available semifinals |
# | All 4 quarterfinals | Year |
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6 | Chris Evert | 1974, 81–82, 84–85, 86* |
5 | Steffi Graf | 1988–91, 93 |
Serena Williams | 2001, 07, 09, 15–16 | |
4 | Martina Navratilova | 1984–85, 86*, 87 |
3 | Margaret Court | 1969–70, 73 |
Gabriela Sabatini | 1991–93 | |
Martina Hingis | 1997–98, 00 | |
Lindsay Davenport | 1998–99, 05 | |
2 | Venus Williams | 1998, 02 |
/ Monica Seles | 1992, 02 | |
Jennifer Capriati | 2001–02 | |
Justine Henin | 2003, 06 | |
1 | Billie Jean King | 1969 |
Rosemary Casals | 1969 | |
Virginia Wade | 1972 | |
Evonne Goolagong Cawley | 1973 | |
Hana Mandlíková | 1981 | |
Helena Suková | 1986* | |
Claudia Kohde-Kilsch | 1987 | |
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | 1991 | |
Conchita Martínez | 1995 | |
Kim Clijsters | 2003 | |
Amélie Mauresmo | 2004 | |
Maria Sharapova | 2005 | |
Aryna Sabalenka | 2023 | |
*Australian Open not played in 1986 Made all 3 available quarterfinals |
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# | Titles | Years |
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6 | Margaret Court | 1969–71 |
Martina Navratilova | 1983–84 | |
5 | Steffi Graf | 1988–89 |
4 | Steffi Graf (2) | 1993–94 |
Serena Williams | 2002–03 | |
Serena Williams (2) | 2014–15 | |
3 | Billie Jean King | 1972 |
Martina Navratilova (2) | 1981–82 | |
Chris Evert | 1982–83 | |
Steffi Graf (3) | 1989–90 | |
Monica Seles | 1991–92 | |
Steffi Graf (4) | 1995 | |
Steffi Graf (5) | 1996 | |
Martina Hingis | 1997–98 | |
# | Finals | Years |
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13 | Steffi Graf [7] | 1987–90 |
11 | Martina Navratilova | 1985–87 |
6 | Margaret Court | 1969–71 |
Martina Navratilova (2) | 1983–84 | |
Chris Evert | 1984–85 | |
Monica Seles | 1991–93 | |
5 | Steffi Graf (2) | 1993–94 |
Martina Hingis | 1997–98 | |
4 | Chris Evert (2) | 1982–83 |
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | 1994–95 | |
Serena Williams | 2002–03 | |
Venus Williams | 2002–03 | |
Justine Henin | 2006 | |
Serena Williams (2) | 2014–15 |
# | Semifinals |
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19 | Martina Navratilova |
15 | Steffi Graf |
11 | Chris Evert |
Martina Hingis | |
10 | Serena Williams |
9 | Margaret Court |
Chris Evert (2) | |
7 | Chris Evert (3) |
6 | Steffi Graf (2) |
/ Monica Seles | |
Jennifer Capriati | |
Serena Williams (2) | |
Aryna Sabalenka |
# | Quarterfinals |
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19 | Martina Navratilova |
Steffi Graf | |
15 | Gabriela Sabatini |
11 | Chris Evert |
Martina Hingis | |
10 | Lindsay Davenport |
Serena Williams | |
9 | Chris Evert (2) |
Steffi Graf (2) | |
Serena Williams (2) |
# | Match wins |
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45 | Martina Navratilova |
40 | Steffi Graf |
35 | Margaret Court |
33 | Serena Williams |
Serena Williams (2) | |
32 | Steffi Graf (2) |
27 | Steffi Graf (3) |
/ Monica Seles | |
26 | Steffi Graf (4) |
Martina Hingis |
# | Appearances |
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69 | Alizé Cornet |
62 | Ai Sugiyama [8] |
61 | Francesca Schiavone |
56 | Jelena Janković |
54 | Nathalie Dechy |
Elena Likhovtseva | |
52 | Patty Schnyder |
51 | Angelique Kerber |
48 | Ana Ivanovic |
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova |
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% | W–L | Australian Open |
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95.5 | 21–1 | Margaret Court |
91.5 | 43–4 | / Monica Seles |
88.7 | 47–6 | Steffi Graf |
88.2 | 30–4 | Chris Evert |
88.1 | 52–7 | Martina Hingis |
87.6 | 92–13 | Serena Williams |
86.5 | 45–7 | / Martina Navratilova |
82.7 | 43–9 | Kim Clijsters |
82.6 | 38–8 | Justine Henin |
81.5 | 22–5 | Aryna Sabalenka |
% | W–L | French Open |
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95.2 | 20–1 | Margaret Court |
94.6 | 35–2 | Iga Świątek |
92.3 | 72–6 | Chris Evert |
89.4 | 84–10 | Steffi Graf |
88.4 | 38–5 | Justine Henin |
87.1 | 54–8 | / Monica Seles |
84.7 | 72–13 | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario |
83.1 | 69–14 | Serena Williams |
82.4 | 56–12 | Maria Sharapova |
82.3 | 51–11 | / Martina Navratilova |
% | W–L | Wimbledon |
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91.4 | 74–7 | Steffi Graf |
89.6 | 120–14 | / Martina Navratilova |
87.5 | 98–14 | Serena Williams |
86.7 | 65–10 | Billie Jean King |
86.5 | 96–15 | Chris Evert |
84.5 | 49–9 | Evonne Goolagong Cawley |
84.4 | 27–5 | Margaret Court |
82.6 | 90–19 | Venus Williams |
80.3 | 49–12 | Lindsay Davenport |
% | W–L | US Open |
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90.6 | 29–3 | Margaret Court |
89.4 | 101–12 | Chris Evert |
89.0 | 73–9 | Steffi Graf |
88.6 | 31–4 | Tracy Austin |
87.8 | 108–15 | Serena Williams |
85.7 | 36–6 | Billie Jean King |
84.4 | 38–7 | Kim Clijsters |
84.3 | 91–17 | / Martina Navratilova |
84.1 | 53–10 | / Monica Seles |
83.3 | 35–7 | Justine Henin |
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# | Player | Majors |
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6 | Martina Navratilova | 1983 WM, 1983 US, 1984 WM, 1986 WM, 1987 US, 1990 WM |
Serena Williams | 2002 WM, 2002 US, 2008 US, 2010 WM, 2014 US, 2017 AU | |
5 | Chris Evert | 1974 FR, 1976 US, 1977 US, 1978 US, 1981 WM |
Steffi Graf | 1988 AU, 1988 FR, 1989 AU, 1994 AU, 1996 US | |
4 | Evonne Goolagong | 1971 FR, 1975 AU, 1976 AU, 1977 AU (Dec) |
3 | Margaret Court | 1969 US, 1970 AU, 1973 AU |
Billie Jean King | 1971 US, 1972 FR, 1972 US | |
Lindsay Davenport | 1998 US, 1999 WM, 2000 AU | |
Justine Henin | 2006 FR, 2007 FR, 2007 US | |
2 | Martina Hingis | 1997 AU, 1997 US |
Venus Williams | 2001 US, 2008 WM | |
1 | Monica Seles | 1992 US |
Maria Sharapova | 2008 AU | |
Marion Bartoli | 2013 WM | |
Iga Świątek | 2020 FR | |
Emma Raducanu | 2021 US | |
Ashleigh Barty | 2022 AU | |
Aryna Sabalenka | 2024 AU |
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Court claimed both US National titles played in 1968 & 1969 alongside the US Open, but these tournaments were subsequently downgraded to non-Grand Slam status.[ citation needed ]
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# | Titles |
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167 | / Martina Navratilova |
157 | Chris Evert |
107 | Steffi Graf |
92 | Margaret Court |
73 | Serena Williams |
68 | Evonne Goolagong |
67 | Billie Jean King |
55 | Virginia Wade |
Lindsay Davenport | |
53 | / Monica Seles |
# | Finals | Record |
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239 | / Martina Navratilova | 167–72 |
230 | Chris Evert | 157–73 |
138 | Steffi Graf | 107–31 |
122 | Billie Jean King | 67–55 |
121 | Margaret Court | 92–29 |
119 | Evonne Goolagong | 68–51 |
98 | Serena Williams | 73–25 |
93 | Lindsay Davenport | 55–38 |
85 | / Monica Seles | 53–32 |
83 | Venus Williams | 49–34 |
# | Played |
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1661 | / Martina Navratilova [10] |
1455 | Chris Evert |
1206 | Tatjana Maria |
1194 | Sara Errani |
1171 | Varvara Lepchenko |
1168 | Virginia Wade |
1099 | Patty Schnyder |
1096 | Venus Williams |
1093 | Francesca Schiavone |
1064 | Samantha Stosur |
# | Won |
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1442 | / Martina Navratilova |
1309 | Chris Evert |
900 | Steffi Graf |
858 | Serena Williams |
839 | Virginia Wade |
818 | Venus Williams |
765 | Arantxa Sánchez |
733 | Lindsay Davenport |
719 | Conchita Martínez |
704 | Evonne Goolagong |
# | Played (active) |
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1206 | Tatjana Maria |
1194 | Sara Errani |
1171 | Varvara Lepchenko |
1096 | Venus Williams |
1061 | Angelique Kerber |
1013 | Karolína Plíšková |
1002 | Alizé Cornet |
983 | Zhang Shuai |
935 | Caroline Wozniacki |
922 | Vera Zvonareva |
# | Won (active) |
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818 | Venus Williams |
687 | Sara Errani |
683 | Angelique Kerber |
675 | Tatjana Maria |
672 | Varvara Lepchenko |
655 | Caroline Wozniacki |
641 | Karolína Plíšková |
634 | Petra Kvitova |
629 | Victoria Azarenka |
597 | Vera Zvonareva |
# | Consecutive match wins | Years |
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74 | Martina Navratilova | 1984 |
66 | Steffi Graf | 1989–90 |
58 | Martina Navratilova | 1986–87 |
57 | Margaret Court | 1972–73 |
56 | Chris Evert | 1974 |
54 | Martina Navratilova | 1983–84 |
46 | Steffi Graf | 1988 |
45 | Steffi Graf | 1987 |
42 | Chris Evert | 1975–76 |
41 | Martina Navratilova | 1982 |
39 | Martina Navratilova | 1982–83 |
37 | Iga Świątek | 2022 |
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This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2014) |
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Tennis was reinstated as an official Olympic sport in 1988. There have been nine tournaments in the Open Era.
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2024) |
WTA rankings began in 1975. These weekly rankings determine tournament eligibility and seedings. At the end of each year they also become the official WTA season rankings.
Correct as of 7 October 2024 [update] with (▲) indicating active streaks. [17] .
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Year-end rankings total through 2023
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See WTA Prize money. As prize money has increased strongly in recent decades, the lists of prize money leaders for the Open Era (since 1968) and for the WTA Tour period (since 1973) are the same.
Stefanie Maria Graf is a German former professional tennis player. She won 22 major singles titles, the second-most in women's singles won since the start of the Open Era in 1968 and the third-most of all-time.
The Grand Slam in tennis is the achievement of winning all four major championships in one discipline in a calendar year. In doubles, a Grand Slam may be achieved as a team or as an individual with different partners. Winning all four major championships consecutively but not within the same calendar year is referred to as a "non-calendar-year Grand Slam", while winning the four majors at any point during the course of a career is known as a "Career Grand Slam".
Martina Navratilova is a Czech–American former professional tennis player. Widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, Navratilova won 18 major singles titles, 31 major women's doubles titles, and 10 major mixed doubles titles, for a combined total of 59 major titles, the most in the Open Era. Alongside Chris Evert, her greatest rival, Navratilova dominated women's tennis for the first two-thirds of the 1980s.
Christine Marie Evert, known as Chris Evert Lloyd from 1979 to 1987, is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. Widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, Evert won 18 major singles titles, including a record seven French Open titles and a joint-record six US Open titles. Evert was ranked world No. 1 for 260 weeks, and was the year-end world No. 1 singles player seven times. Alongside Martina Navratilova, her greatest rival, Evert dominated women's tennis for much of the 1970s and 1980s.
Monica Seles is a former world No. 1 tennis player who represented Yugoslavia and the United States. She won nine major singles titles, eight of them as a teenager while representing Yugoslavia, and the final one while representing the United States.
Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini is an Argentine former professional tennis player. A former world No. 3 in both singles and doubles, Sabatini was one of the leading players from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, amassing 41 titles. In singles, Sabatini won the 1990 US Open, the Tour Finals in 1988 and 1994, and was runner-up at Wimbledon 1991, the 1988 US Open, and the silver medalist at the 1988 Olympics. In doubles, Sabatini won Wimbledon in 1988 partnering Steffi Graf, and reached three French Open finals. Among Open era players who did not reach the world No. 1 ranking, Sabatini has the most wins over reigning world No. 1 ranked players. In 2006, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in 2018 Tennis Magazine ranked her as the 20th-greatest female player of the preceding 50 years.
The WTA rankings are the ratings defined by the Women's Tennis Association, introduced in November 1975. The computer that calculates the ranking is nicknamed "Medusa".
The Evert–Navratilova rivalry was a tennis rivalry in the 1970s and 1980s between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, widely regarded as two of the greatest female tennis players of all time. It is considered to be one of the greatest rivalries in tennis history and sports in general. The pair contested 80 matches between 1973 and 1988, with Navratilova leading the overall head-to-head 43–37 and 36–24 in finals. It is the most prolific tennis rivalry of the Open Era.
This is a list of the main career statistics of former Czechoslovak-born American tennis player Martina Navratilova.
The 1985 Virginia Slims World Championship Series was the 13th season since the foundation of the Women's Tennis Association. It commenced in March 1985, and concluded in March 1986 after 52 events.
This is a list of Women's Tennis Association (WTA) records since its inception in June 1973. Some records additionally extend back a few more years in order to include the immediately preceding Virginia Slims Circuit era for completeness. The Virginia Slims Circuit started in September 1970 and was replaced in 1973 by the WTA. These however do not make up the entire Open Era records. For those, see Open Era tennis records – Women's singles.
The Open Era is the current era of professional tennis. It began in 1968 when the Grand Slam tournaments allowed professional players to compete with amateurs, ending the division that had persisted since the dawn of the sport in the 19th century. The first open tournament was the 1968 British Hard Court Championships held in April, followed by the inaugural open Grand Slam tournament, the 1968 French Open, a month later. Unless otherwise sourced, all records are based on data from the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and the official websites of the four Grand Slam tournaments. All rankings-related records are based on ATP rankings, which began in 1973. The names of active players appear in boldface.
The 2014 French Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 118th edition of the French Open and the second Grand Slam event of the year. It took place at the Stade Roland Garros from 25 May to 8 June. It consisted of events for professional players in singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. Junior and wheelchair players also took part in singles and doubles events.
The 2014 US Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 134th edition of the US Open, the fourth and final Grand Slam event of the year. It took place at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
The 2015 Wimbledon Championships was a Grand Slam tennis tournament which took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom, from 29 June to 12 July 2015.
This article covers the period 1884 to present. Before the beginning of the Open era in April 1968, only amateurs were allowed to compete in established tennis tournaments, including the four Grand Slams. Wimbledon, the oldest of the majors, was founded in 1877, followed by the US Open in 1881, the French Open in 1891, and the Australian Open in 1905. Beginning in 1905 and continuing to the present day, all four majors have been played yearly, with the exception of the two World Wars, 1986 for the Australian Open, and 2020 for Wimbledon. The Australian Open is the first major of the year (January), followed by the French Open (May–June), Wimbledon (June–July), and US Open (August–September).
'Yes, "open" tennis has come at last and Bournemouth has been entrusted with the task of a world shaking launching,' said the programme notes for the 1968 Hard Court Championships of Great Britain, which brought an end to the sport's segregation of amateur and professional players.
Another significant turning point came in 1968 when the French Internationals became the first Grand Slam tournament to join the "Open" era.