Hip Young Things

Tennis is actually quite an old game.  It has roots in history that go back thousands of years.  Initially made up by some bored monks in Europe, tennis was for entertainment in religious practices and celebrations.  Perhaps one of the most interesting facts about tennis is that the racket did not exist; instead players used their hand to hit the ball.  Naturally, a glove made out of leather came to being employed.  However, as soon as this invention came along, the racket finally got created as hitting a ball with your hands is not an especially effective way of playing tennis.

The racket has had many alterations throughout the years to make it better and better, and as the racket improved, so did the ball.  Much like the first incarnation of the racket, the first incarnation of the ball was not terribly efficient, being made out of wood.  Other versions after it gave it the bounciness it is now known for and expected.  Leather and cellulose were used to create it.

However, the Church disliked tennis very much.  It did not fit with their ideal of serious monasteries and pious monks.  It was the 14th century version of football, either United States or United Kingdom style.  Most adored in France, it was known as the game of the palm.  French nobility thought much of the game.  In fact, the French actually provided modern day tennis with its name.  Fans of the game would shout out the word tenez or play in English.  Tenez slowly became tennis.

Rules and regulations for the game came in the 1800s with Walter Wingfield, a major in the military.  He soon organized the game into what it looks like today.  The actually tennis court initially started in the United States, which was more similar in shape to an hourglass and had much length in comparison to the courts of our modern tennis.    For aficionados of tennis, such information and trivia helps deepen their appreciation for tennis opens, the most recent of which is the Australian Open Tennis.

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