The West Hants Club

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The West Hants Club (often known simply as West Hants) is a sports and fitness club situated in Bournemouth, Dorset in the south of England. The club is primarily a tennis club but also incorporates a gym, swimming pool and squash and racquetball courts.

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West Hants was opened in 1926 and two years later the club began hosting the British Hard Court Championships, an event that was held there for 55 years until 1983. [1] The 1968 British Hard Court Championships was the first 'open' tournament of the so-called Open Era, where both professionals and amateurs could compete. [1]

Between 1996 and 2000, the Bournemouth International men's singles and doubles events were played at the club. [2]

Major tennis tournaments

British Hard Court Championships

In 1928, two years after the formation of the club, West Hants hosted the British Hard Court Championships. The event attracted a host of notable names over the 55 years it was held, including Virginia Wade, Rod Laver, Fred Perry, Ken Rosewall, Ann Jones, Ilie Năstase, Evonne Goolagong and many more. [1]

The club is also notable for having held the first 'open' event of tennis' Open Era, a tournament that admitted both amateurs and professionals to compete. [3] The Hardcourt Championships was one of 12 to be granted a privileged status as the host of professional tennis. [4]

Bournemouth International

West Hants hosted the men's tournaments at the Bournemouth International from 1996 to 1999, the only British event held on clay. [2] The tournament was won by Albert Costa in 1996 and Félix Mantilla in 1997 and 1998. Adrian Voinea emerged victorious in 1999 before the tournament relocated to Brighton and was staged on hard courts. Greg Rusedski was the most successful British player when he reached the semi-finals in 1997 losing to Carlos Moyá. [5]

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The British Hard Court Championships is a defunct Grand Prix tennis and WTA Tour affiliated tennis tournament played from 1968 to 1983 and 1995 to 1999. The inaugural edition of the tournament was held in 1924 in Torquay, moving to the West Hants Tennis Club in Bournemouth, England in 1927 and was held there until 1983. The 1977 and 1979 editions were cancelled due to lack of sponsorship. In 1995 the event was revived at Bournemouth as a women's WTA tournament but was only played there that year. The women's final edition in 1996 was held in Cardiff, Wales. The tournament was played on outdoor clay courts. Bournemouth was one of the world's major tournaments, second only to Wimbledon in England and on the same level as Monte Carlo, Rome and Hamburg. In the pre-war era, it was regarded as the most important event outside the four Grand Slams. Fred Perry is the record holder with five consecutive titles, from 1932 through 1936.

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The 1996 Bournemouth International was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at the West Hants Tennis Club in Bournemouth in England and was part of the World Series of the 1996 ATP Tour. It was the inaugural edition of the tournament and was held from 9 to 15 September 1996. Albert Costa won the singles title.

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The 1970 British Hard Court Championships, also known by its sponsored name Rothmans Open Hard Court Championships of Great Britain, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at the West Hants Tennis Club in Bournemouth in the United Kingdom. The men's events were part of the 1970 Pepsi-Cola Grand Prix circuit and categorized as Class 2. It was the 41st edition of the tournament and was held from 27 April to 2 May 1970. Mark Cox and Margaret Court won the singles titles. Cox won £2,000 first-prize money while Court, who successfully defended her 1969 title, received £1,000 for her singles win.

The 1968 British Hard Court Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth in England. It was the first tournament in the Open Era of tennis. The tournament was held from 22 April to 27 April 1968. Ken Rosewall and Virginia Wade won the first open singles titles while the men's team of Roy Emerson and Rod Laver and the women's team of Christine Truman Janes and Nell Truman won the first open doubles titles.

The 1971 British Hard Court Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth, England. The event was part of the 1971 Pepsi-Cola Grand Prix and categorized as B class. The tournament was held from 16 to 22 May 1971. Gerald Battrick and Margaret Court won the singles titles.

The 1972 British Hard Court Championships, also known by its sponsored name Rothmans British Hard Court Championships, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth, England. The event was part of the Grand Prix circuit and categorized as B class. The tournament was held from 8 to 13 May 1972. Bob Hewitt and Evonne Goolagong won the singles titles.

This article covers the period from 1877 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 Slam tournaments. 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 during 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 the US Open (August–September). There was no prize money and players were compensated for travel expenses only. A player who wins all four majors, in singles or as part of a doubles team, in the same calendar year is said to have achieved a "Grand Slam". If the player wins all four consecutively, but not in the same calendar year, it is called a "Non-Calendar Year Grand Slam". Winning all four at some point in a career, even if not consecutively, is referred to as a "Career Grand Slam". Winning the four majors and a gold medal in tennis at the Summer Olympics in the same calendar year has been called a "Golden Slam" since 1988. Winning all four majors plus gold at some point in a career, even if not consecutively, is referred to as a "Career Golden Slam". Winning the year-end championship also having won a Golden Slam is referred to as a "Super Slam". Winning the four majors in all three disciplines a player is eligible for–singles, doubles and mixed doubles–is considered winning a "boxed set" of Grand Slam titles.

The 1974 British Hard Court Championships, also known by its sponsored name Rothmans British Hard Court Championships, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth, England. The men's event was part of the Grand Prix circuit and categorized as B class. The tournament was held from 20 May through 26 May 1974. Ilie Năstase and Virginia Wade won the singles titles.

The 1975 British Hard Court Championships, also known by its sponsored name Coca-Cola British Hard Court Championships, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth, England. The event was part of the Grand Prix circuit and categorized as B class. It was the 46th edition of the tournament and was held from 12 May through 18 May 1975. Manuel Orantes and Janet Newberry won the singles titles.

The 1969 British Hard Court Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth in England. It was the 40th edition of the tournament and the second edition in the Open Era of tennis. The tournament was held from 28 April through 3 May 1969. John Newcombe, seeded first, and Margaret Court won the first open singles titles while the men's team of Bob Hewitt and Frew McMillan and the women's team of Margaret Court and Judy Tegart won the doubles titles. The poor state of the courts led to a protest by a number of players. The tournament made a financial loss due to higher expenses compared to the previous edition and poor weather during the final two days.

The 1973 British Hard Court Championships, also known by its sponsored name Rothmans British Hard Court Championships, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth, England. The event was part of the Grand Prix circuit and the event was categorized as B class for the men and C class for the women. The tournament was held from 7 May through 12 May 1973. Adriano Panatta and Virginia Wade won the singles titles.

The Australian Hard Court Championships was a former professional tennis tournament established in 1938 and held until 2008. The event was played on clay courts until 1977 when it switched to hard courts. The tournament was a combined event for men and women until the end of the 1980s. In 2009, Tennis Australia merged the separate men's and women's tournaments into a new combined tournament called the Brisbane International.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Club History". The West Hants Club. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  2. 1 2 Roberts, John (17 September 1999). "Bournemouth seeking prime-time slot" . 17 September 1999. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  3. "Amateurs Performing Well In First Open Tennis Meet". Sarasota Herald-Tribune . 23 April 1968. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  4. Harman, Neil (23 April 2008). "Andy Murray beginning to fit clay-court mould". Times Online. Times Newspapers Ltd . Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  5. Roberts, John (14 September 1997). "Rusedski runs out of gas" . Independent. Independent Print Limited. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2010.

Coordinates: 50°44′14″N1°53′14″W / 50.7372°N 1.8871°W / 50.7372; -1.8871