US Open History - About the US Open

The US Open is a championship for more than 600 male and female professional players who this year will compete for total prize money of over $22,000,000, with $1,800,000 for each of the winners of the singles tournaments.

The US Open is a hard-court tennis tournament which, since 1987, has been the fourth and final of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments that occur each year, the other three being the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon. The US Open is held annually in August and September over a two-week period. After previously being played on grass courts and clay courts, the US Open moved to the acrylic hard courts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, New York City in 1978.

The US Open is the modern version of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which was first contested in 1881. The tournament was first held in August 1881 at the Newport Casino, Newport, Rhode Island and in the first few years of the United States National Championship, only men competed. The US Open began in 1968, held at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, New York. The 1968 combined tournament was open to professionals for the first time. That year, 96 men and 63 women entered the event, and prize money totalled $100,000

In 1970, the US Open became the first of the Grand Slam tournaments to have tiebreaks in every set, including the last set. The other three Grand Slam tournaments have tiebreaks in every set other than the last set (i.e. the fifth set for men and third set for women), and therefore their last set continues indefinitely until a two-game lead is reached.

Rafael Nadal is the current US Open Champion having won the 2010 title beating Novak Djokovic. It was Nadal's first US Open title, and ninth slam overall for his career. This win, along with Andre Agassi, made Nadal one of two players to complete a Golden Slam - all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic Gold Medal in singles play.

Kim Clijsters won the women's US Open title last year beating Vera Zvonareva. This is the third slam title of her career, and the third US Open Women's Singles title. Clijsters became the first woman to successfully defend her US Open crown since Venus Williams in 2001, but unfortunately injury means that Clijsters will be unable to try and repeat her success in 2011.

• 712,976 tennis fans attended the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center during the 2010 US Open tournament.
• Kim Clijsters is unbeaten in 21 matches at the US Open having won the title first in 2005 before missing three years through injury and a period in retirement. She returned in 2009 to reclaim the title and defended her crown in 2010.
• The 2006 US Open featured the debut of the instant replay on the stadium courts, with Mardy Fish being the first player to challenge a call in Grand Slam tournament history.
• Winner of most Men's Singles US Open titles before 1968 - Richard Sears & Bill Larned & Bill Tilden with 7.
• Winner of most Men's Singles US Open titles after 1967 - Jimmy Connors & Pete Sampras & Roger Federer with 5.
• Winner of most consecutive Men's Singles US Open titles before 1968 - Richard Sears with 7.
• Winner of most consecutive Men's Singles US Open titles after 1967 - Roger Federer with 5.
• Winner of most Women's Singles US Open titles before 1968 - Molla Bjurstedt Mallory with 8.
• Winner of most Women's Singles US Open titles after 1967 - Chris Evert with 6.
• Winner of most consecutive Women's Singles US Open titles before 1968 - Molla Bjurstedt Mallory & Helen Jacobs with 4.
• Winner of most consecutive Women's Singles US Open titles after 1967 - Chris Evert with 4.
• Youngest Mens Winner - Pete Sampras aged 19 years and 1 month.
• Youngest Women's Winner - Tracy Austin aged 16 years and 8 months.