The Wembley Championships was a men's professional

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

tournament held from 1934–1990 with some periods of inactivity in between and is often considered to be one of the three

Major professional tennis tournaments before the Open Era Before the advent of the Open era of tennis competitions in April 1968, only amateurs were allowed to compete in established tournaments, including the four majors. There was no prize money and players were compensated for travel expenses only. Ho ...

from 1927–1967 until the advent of the

open era The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sp ...

Ken Rosewall Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...

's and Rod Laver's six singles titles are the record for this event. The tournament only had a men's draw. It was first held in 1934 at the Empire Pool at

Wembley Park Wembley Park is a district of the London Borough of Brent, England. It is roughly centred on Bridge Road, a mile northeast of Wembley town centre and northwest from Charing Cross. The name Wembley Park refers to the area that, at its broade ...

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

, north-west London. In 1968, it was titled the Jack Kramer Tournament of Champions. In 1970 it was the penultimate event on the

Grand Prix Tennis Tour The Grand Prix tennis circuit was a professional tennis tour for male players that existed from 1970 to 1989. The Grand Prix and World Championship Tennis (WCT) were the two predecessors to the current tour for male players, the ATP Tour, with t ...

Name

It was officially called the Wembley Professional Championships, although it was later named the London Indoor Professional Championships. In 1968 it was titled the Jack Kramer Tournament of Champions.

Past finals

Notes: ^a1936 tournament was cancelled due to Tilden and Vines playing in Japan. This was reported in London Daily Mail on August 24, 1936. There are sources that say Ellsworth Vines defeated Hans Nüsslein 6–4, 6–4, 6–2, but this must have been a different event. ^bNo reports of a 1938 tournament in British newspapers (the Wembley event was always reported in major British newspapers). Ray Bowers in an article on The Tennis Server website states there was no event held. There are sources that tell us Hans Nüsslein defeated

Bill Tilden William Tatem Tilden II (February 10, 1893 – June 5, 1953), nicknamed "Big Bill", was an American tennis player. Tilden was the world No. 1 amateur for six consecutive years, from 1920 to 1925, and was ranked as the world No. 1 professional b ...

7–5, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, but this must have been held elsewhere. ^r1 For 1934, the tournament was played under Round Robin format with Vines 5-0 and Nüsslein 4-1 as final standings. ^r1 For 1939, the tournament was played under Round Robin format with Budge 3-0 and Nüsslein, Tilden and Vines as 1-2 as final standings.

Doubles

Source:

References

Bibliography

* {{Grand Prix Super Series tournaments Major tennis tournaments Carpet court tennis tournaments Defunct tennis tournaments in the United Kingdom Grand Prix tennis circuit Sport in the London Borough of Brent Tennis tournaments in England Recurring sporting events established in 1934 Recurring events disestablished in 1990 Professional tennis tournaments before the Open Era

Name

Past finals

Doubles

See also

References

Bibliography