Tennis ~ History of Tennis ~French Open

Ah ...it is that time of year when we all long to hit the courts and smash a few balls back and forth, back and forth. This photo appeared in an album from Portland, Oregon 1917. I was archivally dismantling it and I decided to list this photo of a very elegantly dressed young lady about to play tennis in her fur trimmed jacket.

I wanted to pay tribute to one of my very favorite sports..tennis. I took tennis all through my 3 years in community college and then when I transfered to University of Oregon I played for fun with anyone who would play. I loved watching Nadal get beat by the Swede the other night and then Serena lost. This has been the biggest upset year so far. I have taped all the semi finals and am waiting until Rita returns from her weekend playing a summer tournament for girls basketball, in Phoenix, to watch them as she is as hooked as I am. Basketball finals and tennis at its best on clay in France. I love how when the crowd gets unruly the chair says"merci" in a sweet voice.. he is thanking the crowd for quieting down. I think in the US we say "quiet please". Here is a little history about the sport.

The history of tennis dates back several thousand years. The game was first created by European monks to be played for entertainment purposes during religious ceremonies. To begin with, the ball was hit with the hand. Soon the leather glove came into existence. This was soon replaced with an adaptive handle for effective hitting and serving of the ball.

"The French Open was first held at the Stade de France in 1891; at first, it was a closed competition in which only men, and only French residents at that, could compete. It was only later, much later that the tournament took its modern name of Tournoi de Roland-Garros after the stadium it moved to in the 1920’s, and eventually it became open to women and international competitors."