Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of tennis is derived. It is also known as court tennis in the United States, royal tennis in England and Australia, and courte-paume in France. Many French real tennis courts are at jeu de paume clubs.
Robert Leo Fahey, nicknamed "Bag", is an Australian real tennis player and the former World Champion of the sport, holding the title from 16 March 1994 to 21 May 2016 and again from 28 April 2018 to September 2022. Fahey retired from competitive Real Tennis following his loss to Camden Riviere in the 2022 World Championship.
Camden Riviere is an American left-handed real tennis player and current world champion. He became world champion on May 21, 2016, defeating long-time holder Robert Fahey 7 sets to 2 at Riviere's home court, the National Tennis Club, Newport, Rhode Island. Two years later, at Riviere's first defense of the title, Fahey reclaimed the title beating Riviere by 7 sets to 5 at Queen's Club, London. Riviere regained the title from Fahey at the 2022 World Championship played at Prested Hall in Feering, Essex, England, winning by 7 sets to 5. He retained the title in 2023, defeating John Lumley 7 sets to 3 at the Westwood Country Club in Vienna, Virginia.
The 2018 Real Tennis World Championship was a real tennis tournament held at the Queen's Club in London, England. 12-time world champion Rob Fahey regained the world title defeating the defending champion Camden Riviere by a score of 7–5.
The 2022 Real Tennis World Championship was a real tennis tournament held at Prested Hall in Feering, Essex, England in September 2022. Rob Fahey, the 13-time and reigning world champion, was beaten by the challenger, and former champion, Camden Riviere. The challenge had been originally scheduled to take place in April 2020, but was postponed to September 2022 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2016 Real Tennis World Championship was a real tennis tournament held at the National Tennis Club in Newport, Rhode Island. 12-time world champion Rob Fahey lost the championship for the first time since 1994 to challenger Camden Riviere by a score of 7–2.
Claire Faheynée Vigrass is a British real tennis and rackets player and current real tennis Ladies World Champion. She holds over 40 Open singles titles and has completed a calendar year Grand Slam on six occasions. She is the first female player to play in the main draw of three of the four Men's Opens, and the first to female player to reach a semi final stage. She has also challenged for the Rackets World Championships on two occasions and has won five British Open Rackets titles.
John Colin Lumley is a British professional real tennis player currently ranked at number 2 in the world. He unsuccessfully challenged Camden Riviere for the 2023 Real Tennis World Championship at Westwood Country Club in Vienna, Virginia. He currently works as the assistant professional at the Racquet Club of Philadelphia.
The 2023 Real Tennis World Championship was a real tennis tournament held at the International Tennis Club of Washington in McLean, Virginia in September 2023. Reigning champion Camden Riviere was challenged by first-time challenger John Lumley. Riviere won his third World Championship title, and his first successful defense, defeating Lumley 7 sets to 3.
The 2024 Court tennis US Open was the 74th edition of the US Open. The men's event was held at the Racquet Club of Philadelphia February 20-29, 2024, and was organized by the United States Court Tennis Association, forming part of the qualifying series for the 2025 Real Tennis World Championship. The women's event was held at the Tuxedo Club in Tuxedo Park, New York May 17-19, 2024. The men's draw was the second grand slam event of the year.
The 2023 Court Tennis US Open was the 73rd edition of the US Open. The men's event was held at the Tennis and Racquet Club in Boston, Massachusetts between February 23-March 2, 2023 and was organised by the United States Court Tennis Association, forming part of the qualifying series for the 2025 Real Tennis World Championship. The women's event was held at the International Tennis Club of Washington at Westwood Country Club in McLean, Virginia between May 19-23 2024. The men's draw was the second grand slam event of the year.
The 2022 Court Tennis US Open was the 72nd edition of the US Open. The men's event was held at the Tuxedo Club in Tuxedo Park, New York between May 25-June 1, 2022 and was organised by the United States Court Tennis Association, forming part of the qualifying series for the 2023 Real Tennis World Championship. The women's event was held at the Tennis and Racquet Club in Boston, Massachusetts between May 13-15 2024. The men's draw was the second grand slam event of the year.
Bryn Sayers is a British professional real tennis player currently ranked at number seven in the world. He unsuccessfully challenged for the Real Tennis World Championship on four occasions, reaching the Final Eliminator in 2014 against Camden Riviere. He holds two singles Open titles, having won both in 2012. He works as the senior professional at the Queen's Club in London.
The 2024 Real Tennis World Doubles Championship was the 12th edition of the real tennis World Doubles Championship and was held at the Racquet Club of Chicago from April 24-28th 2024. The event was won by defending champions Tim Chisholm and Camden Riviere representing the United States. It was their fifth consecutive title, with Chisholm equalling Robert Fahey and Steve Virgona with 6 overall titles.
Robert Shenkman is an amateur British real tennis player currently based at the Manchester Tennis and Racquet Club. He is the current British Amateur Champion, US Amateur Champion, and MCC Gold Racquet holder, the first amateur to unite the three titles since Julian Snow in 2003. Shenkman is ranked in the top 10 Open singles rankings and has reached the semi final of the US Open doubles championships.
Leon Smart is an professional British real tennis player currently based at the Tennis and Racquet Club in Boston, Massachusetts. He is currently ranked seventh in the world at singles and tenth at doubles. His best result was reaching the semi finals of the US Open singles in 2022 and the French Open singles in 2024.
The British Open is a real tennis tournament, with the men's draw held annually at Queen's Club in London, England, and the women's draw held at the Seacourt Tennis Club on Hayling Island. The men's event is a national Open carrying ranking points for the Real Tennis World Championship. The women's event does not carry any ranking points.
Darren Long is a British professional real tennis player, currently the head professional at the Moreton Morrell Tennis Court Club. He is currently ranked thirteenth in the world at singles and twelfth in the world at doubles. He has reached an Open doubles semi final on three occasions, most recently at the 2024 US Open and the 2024 Australian Open.
Kieran Booth is an amateur Australian real tennis player currently based at the Royal Melbourne Tennis Club. He has won the Australian Open doubles on four occasions, most recently in 2022. He reached the final of the Australian Open singles in 2020 and 2025, and semi-finals at the French and US Open. Booth is also the current Australian Amateur Champion, having won the title 12 times.
The US Open is an annual court tennis tournament run by the United States Court Tennis Association. The event attracts the top professional and amateur players from around the world. The location rotates each year between the Tennis and Racquet Club in Boston, the Tuxedo Club in Tuxedo, New York, the Racquet Club of Chicago, the Racquet Club of Philadelphia. The event has also previously been held at the Racquet and Tennis Club in New York, but it was removed from the rotation due to its male-only policy. The women's rotation excludes Chicago but also includes Prince's Court in Virginia and the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Rhode Island. The men's event carrys ranking points and forms part of the qualification pathway for the Real Tennis World Championship. The women's event does not carry any ranking points.
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