The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club held its first Wimbledon Championships in 1877. The Club, now simply known as the All England Tennis Club, continues to run the Wimbledon Championships, which occupy an important place in competitive tennis as one of only four Grand Slam tournaments in the world. Wimbledon remains the only Grand Slam event on grass courts.
Show Courts
The All England Club has three show courts with stadium seating. High-profile matches and finals take place on Centre Court, the largest of the three show courts. The second largest court is the Number 1 Court at the north end of the grounds, followed by the Number 2 court at the south end of the grounds.
Other Courts
Courts 5 through 12 sit between Centre Court and the Number 2 Court, and courts 14 through 19 sit between Centre Court and the Number 1 Court. As of 2010, courts 3 and 4 were under construction. All of the competition courts at Wimbledon run North-Northwest to South-Southeast. Competitors' practice courts sit at the North end of the grounds, beyond the Number 1 Court.
History of Grass Courts
In the late 18th century, a new version of tennis known as "Field Tennis" or "Long Tennis" evolved from the earlier version of the sport known as "Real Tennis." This new 18th-century version of the game was played on grass courts, according to the International Tennis Federation. In 1873, Walter Clopton Wingfield patented a new version of tennis known as Lawn Tennis, with an hourglass court design. In 1875, tennis rules officials changed the court to the design of today, according to the International Tennis Federation. The Marylebone Cricket Club put together the first official rules of Lawn Tennis. Wimbledon's All England Croquet Club quickly picked up the sport, and changed its name to the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club in 1877. Until the 1970s, three Grand Slam Championships held matches on grass, including Wimbledon, the Australian Open and the U.S. Open. Wimbledon remains the only Grand Slam tournament to conduct its matches on grass.
History of Wimbledon's Courts
The first tennis courts at the All England Club were laid out with one principal court in the center and all others surrounding it. Thus, the name "Centre Court" emerged. The Club moved to a new location in 1922, but continued to call the principal court "Centre Court." By 1980, the club had added new courts to the north of Centre Court, making its name logical once more. The current No. 1 Court opened in 1997 at the north of the grounds.
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