The First Tennis Championship

Thinking about balls and how the world seems to have fun with games where we chase, throw, bounce and hit any size of ball is mind boggling.

When they first played football there was no net. No problem you may think but they could not prove if the ball had gone inside the goal, hence the net. Life must have been so much quieter after that, with less fisticuffs and rows on the touchline!

Tennis started off being played by French monks just hitting the ball with a glove on and volleying the ball over the net or with the hand which could have been a bit painful. 12th century France called it Jeu de Paume which means “game of the palm”.

Then came a bat of sorts in the 16th century and next the racket in 1874. It was made from solid wood and was heavy to hold, I would think momentum was a problem swinging all that weight around.

Tennis balls have been made out of a variety of materials, I expect from whatever was around at the time and if you knew how to make a ball, that would make one popular and sure to play.

There was a leather ball stuffed with rags, or horsehair or other materials that were hanging around. In 1870, tennis balls were made of rubber that must have been so hard to hit or just to return as the ball must have been quite heavy. Then someone came up with covering the ball in flannel. What skill sewing that on! As balls were getting rounder, manufacturers were able to get a more regular size. Yellow balls arrived in 1972 and Wimbledon adopted the yellow-coloured balls in 1986. Before that they used white ones.

Can’t say I've given much thought to the shape of the tennis court but that too has evolved and has been a few different shapes before we had the same one all over the world. There was a Major Wingfields who introduced the hourglass court design which is where the basis for today's lines came from. The nets have been really up and down; it's taken years to get to everyone doing the same thing.

The first Wimbledon tournament had to be arranged so as not to clash with the cricket fixtures, to keep everyone happy about this new tournament.

The game of tennis had to evolve with the change of balls and also the size and shape of the racket. The first racket was solid wood and it took 73 years for the design of it to alter in 1947. Many changes have taken place and the oversized aluminium racket in 1968 did look a bit big. Now there are such a variety of materials: fibreglass, titanium, ceramics and more! When I looked at the price of a racket it could be thousands.

A young man Spencer Gore, who was educated at Harrow, born on March 10, 1850, and died on April 19, 1906 was a club cricketer who played for Surrey but also took to playing tennis. He paid his £1 and 1 shilling to enter the match.

Spectators paid 2 shillings and about 200 bought tickets. That was a lot of money then. A week's wages for some. Only the well-heeled could afford to go and see the first ever Wimbledon tournament.

Spencer won in straight sets, 6-1 6-2 6-4 in 40 minutes. When one thinks of the heavy racket and solid balls this was quite an achievement. He must have been fit. I expect the game of cricket helped with that right arm strength.

Spencer died in Ramsgate aged 56 on April 19, 1906. His place of rest is a simple grave as shown in the photo. He was a forerunner of all the tennis champions as we know of in the game today. The fact that he rests in Ramsgate cemetery and not many of us know about that, is sad.

It was quite a family he came from and for those of you who like to know more there is a Spencer Gore biography.

Maybe tennis followers would like to visit his grave. Without that first match, we wouldn’t have tennis as we know it today. There were so many keen people who developed the methods and rules of the game. I became an enthusiastic Wimbledon follower and spent many happy hours in a chair getting tired out just watching. That also makes me an expert for a couple of weeks! There is lots of information about the game online, so have a look and be amazed at the information available.

I ask all of you players and others who enjoy the game if there is any chance of a get together to restore Spencer's Grave and highlight the fact that we have the first Wimbledon champion buried in Ramsgate Cemetery?

A neighbour, Maria, told me of Spencer and his achievement which led to my looking at the place where he is buried and then looking into the event and his life story.

Finding out more about the history of tennis gave me food for thought on how different sports have developed and evolved as the human race is always ready to be first to do X Y and Z and get the gold medal for being number one.

Written by:
Councillor Barbara Young
Pegwell Ward