The History of Women's Tennis

The history of women's tennis in America begins in the tony surroundings of New York's elite. In 1874, a very wealthy American named Mary Ewing Outerbridge decided to vacation on the island of Bermuda. It was there that she was introduced to the game of tennis. She fell in love with the game, bought the proper equipment and brought it back to her Staten Island, New York estate. Her brother, the director of the Staten Island Cricket and Baseball Club, soon installed a lawn tennis court at the club and the game of tennis was officially introduced to America.

A Man's Game
Previous to the early 1870s, wehn Major Walter C. Wingfield patented the equipment and rules of tennis, it was strictly a man's game. Kings and monks played it in their castles and courtyards. It wasn't until Goodyear's invention of vulcanized rubber that tennis found its way onto the lawns of the great cricket clubs throughout England. It soon became a sport for the rich and the privileged. The game reached far and wide and was played in every British colony. Wives could play the sport alongside their husbands. Tennis wasn't just a man's game anymore. Women's tennis had arrived.

Here Come the Women
In 1884, women competed along with the men at Wimbledon. Three years later, in 1887, the first women's US Open Singles Championships were played at the Philadelphia Cricket Club and were won by Ellen Hansel. That same year, the women's French Championships were also played.

A Tennis Pioneer
It was during the roaring '20s that women's tennis started becoming a popular spectator sport. With the help of French sensation Suzanne Rachel Flore Lenglen, women's tennis took off. What especially helped, besides her tennis prowess, was her flair and charisma. Women's tennis clothing was highly elaborate and very concealing, the norm of the day.

Suzanne Lenglen was the first to expose her calves and forearms. Lenglen was a gifted player, and at age 15 she won her first championship, the world hard-court tennis title. During her stint as an amateur from 1919 to 1926, she only lost one match. She managed to capture the French and Wimbledon titles six times each during this period. She turned pro in 1927 and later opened a tennis academy. Many gifted players followed and dominated their respective eras, such as Helen Mills Moody, Margaret Smith Court and Martina Navratilova.

Equal Rights for Women's Tennis
In the early years of the Open Era, women's pro tennis was regarded as second class to the men, even though many of the female players of that time were equally as popular. Women's prize money at these grand slam events wasn't equal to what men could earn. That changed in 1970, with the help of Billie Jean King, the dominant player of the time, when the Virgina Slims tennis circuit was formed. The tour included 19 events with prize money totaling a little more than three hundred thousand dollars.

Eight women participated in the inaugural tour. Since then, the Virgina Slims tour has evolved into the Women's Tennis Association, which presides over the women's tour today. Lucrative television contracts coupled with high-end sponsorship has pushed the prize money and earnings of women tennis players into the tens of millions. Prize money at grand slam tournaments is now equal for women and men.