Wimbledon Betting Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook

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The Championships, Wimbledon, commonly referred to as simply "Wimbledon", is the oldest event in the sport of tennis.   Held every June and July at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London, England, the tournament is the third Grand Slam event played each year, preceded by the Australian Open and Roland Garros, and followed by the U.S. Open. The tournament lasts for two weeks, subject to the extensions for rain, and is the only Grand Slam event currently played on a grass surface (although that surface is played on in other tournaments as well, such as Queens, Halle and Rosmalen).   Separate tournaments are simultaneously held, all at the same venue, for Gentlemen's Singles, Ladies' Singles, Gentlemen's Doubles, Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles. Youth tournaments — Boys' Singles, Girls' Singles, Boys' Doubles and Girls' Doubles — are also held. Additionally, special invitational tournaments are held: the 35 and over Gentlemen's Doubles, 45 and over Gentlemen's Doubles, 35 and over Ladies' Doubles and wheelchair doubles.   History   The Championships were first played under the control of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in 1877 at a ground near Worple Road, Wimbledon; the only event held was Gentlemen's Singles. In 1884, the All England Club added Ladies' Singles and Gentlemen's Doubles. Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles were added in 1913. The Championships moved to their present location, at a ground near Church Road, in 1922. As with the other three Grand Slam events, Wimbledon was contested by top-ranked amateur players until the advent of the open era in tennis in 1968. Britons are very proud of the tournament but it is a source of national anguish and humour — no British man has won the singles event at Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936, and no British woman since Virginia Wade in 1977. The Championship was first televised in 1937.   Events   There are five main events held at Wimbledon: Gentlemen's Singles, Ladies' Singles, Gentlemen's Doubles, Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles. In addition, four events are held for juniors: Boys' Singles, Girls' Singles, Boys' Doubles and Girls' Doubles. (The Mixed Doubles event is not held at the junior level.) Finally, four invitational events are held: the 35 and over Gentlemen's Invitation Doubles, the 45 and over Gentlemen's Invitation Doubles, the 35 and over Ladies' Invitation Doubles and the Wheelchair Gentlemen's Invitation Doubles.   Matches in the Gentlemen's Singles and Gentlemen's Doubles competitions are best-of-five sets; matches in all other events are best-of-three sets. Most events are single-elimination tournaments; in other words, a player who loses a single match is immediately eliminated from the tournament. However, the 35 and over Gentlemen's Invitation Doubles and the 35 and over Ladies' Invitation Doubles are both round-robin tournaments.

 

 

Up until 1921, the winners of the previous year's competition (except in the Ladies Doubles and Mixed Doubles) were automatically granted byes into the final round (then known as the challenge round.) This led to many winners retaining their titles for successive years, as they were able to rest while their opponent competed from the start of the competition. From 1922, the title holders played through from the start of the championships.

 

Each year, the tournament begins on the Monday falling between 20 and 26 June (six weeks before the first Monday in August). It is held two weeks after the Queen's Club Championships, which are considered the major warm-up period for Wimbledon for male players. Another important warm-up tournament for the men is the Gerry Weber Open, which is held in Halle, Germany at about the same time as the Queen's Club Championships. Wimbledon usually lasts for two weeks; the main events span both weeks, but the junior and invitational events are for the most part held during the second week. Traditionally, there is no play on the "Middle Sunday", which is considered a rest day. However, rain has forced play on the Middle Sunday three times in the Championship's history: in 1991, 1997, and 2004. On each of these occasions, Wimbledon has staged a "People's Sunday", with unreserved seating and readily available, inexpensive tickets.

 

Grounds

 

The nineteen courts used for Wimbledon are all composed purely of rye grass. The speed and the low bounce of grass courts favours serve and volley players, such as former champions Rod Laver, John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg and Pete Sampras. However, baseliners such as Björn Borg have also performed very well, as have all-court players like Roger Federer. Among women, the serve and volley strategy has been less common since around 1980. One of the few female serve and volleyers of the last 25 years, Martina Navrátilová, won the Wimbledon singles titles a record nine times. Other very great champions include: Suzanne Lenglen, Helen Wills Moody, Margaret Smith Court, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, and Steffi Graf.

 

The main show courts, Centre Court and No. 1 Court, are normally used only for two weeks a year, during the Championships, but play can extend into a third week in exceptional circumstances. The remaining seventeen courts are regularly used for other events hosted by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. The show courts will, however, be pressed into action for the second time in three months in 2012 as Wimbledon will host the tennis events of the 2012 Olympic Games.

 

Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam event played on grass courts. At one time, all the other Grand Slam events were played on grass. The French Open abandoned grass for its current red clay in 1928, while the U.S. and Australian Opens stayed with grass for decades longer. The U.S. Open abandoned grass for a synthetic clay surface in 1975 and changed again to a hard surface with its 1978 move to its current venue. The Australian Open abandoned grass for Rebound Ace, a different type of hard surface, in 1988.

 

The main court, Centre Court, was opened in 1922 when the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club moved from Worple Road to Church Road. This change of venue was due to the huge crowd pressure at Worple Road to see the French phenomenon Suzanne Lenglen, and for which it proved completely inadequate.

 

Due to possibility of rain during Wimbledon, a retractable roof is planned for the court, which is expected to be completed in 2009. The retractable roof is said to be designed to close/open in under 10 minutes and will be closed primarily to protect play from inclement (and, if necessary, extremely hot) weather during The Championships. Also, during the time of its opening/closing; play will be suspended. The court has a capacity of almost 14,000. At its south end is the Royal Box, from which members of the Royal Family and other dignitaries watch matches. Centre Court usually hosts the finals and semifinals of the main events, as well as many matches in the earlier rounds involving top-seeded players or local favourites.

 

The second most important court is No. 1 Court. The court was constructed in 1997 to replace the old No. 1 Court, which was adjacent to Centre Court (similar to how the Grandstand at Flushing Meadows is adjacent to Louis Armstrong Stadium). The old No. 1 Court was demolished because its capacity for spectators was too low. The court was said to have had a unique, more intimate atmosphere and was a favourite of many players. The new No. 1 Court has a capacity of approximately 11,000. The third-largest court, No. 2 Court, has been dubbed the "Graveyard of Champions" due to its reputation as the court on which many seeded players have been eliminated during the early rounds. Famous players who have lost on the Graveyard during early round play include John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Pete Sampras, Venus Williams, and Serena Williams. The court has a capacity of about 3,000. There are plans to build a brand new 4,000 capacity No. 2 Court where No. 13 Court currently stands in time for the 2009 Championships.

 

At the northern end of the grounds is a giant television screen on which important matches are broadcast. Fans watch from an area of grass officially known as Aorangi Park, but more commonly called Henman Hill. The "hill" takes its name from local favourite Tim Henman, who many fans had hoped would become the first British man to win the tournament since Fred Perry did so in 1936. When other British players do well at Wimbledon, the hill attracts fans for them, and is often re-named by the press for them: Greg Rusedski's followers convened at "Rusedski Ridge," and the young Scotsman Andy Murray has had the hill nicknamed "Murray Mound," "Mount Murray," or "Murray Field" (after the Scottish rugby stadium).

 

Traditions

 

Colours & Uniforms

 

Dark green and purple (sometimes also referred to as mauve) are the traditional Wimbledon colours. Green apparel was worn by the chair umpire, linesmen, ball boys and ball girls through the 2005 Championships; however, beginning with the 2006 Championships, officials, ball boys and ball girls were outfitted in new navy blue and cream coloured uniforms from American designer Ralph Lauren. This marked the first time in the history of the Championships that an outside company was used to design Wimbledon apparel. As of June 2006, Wimbledon's contract with Ralph Lauren is set to last until 2009.

 

Players

 

The All England Club requires players to wear "almost entirely white" clothing during matches, a reason why a young Andre Agassi boycotted the tournament in the early 1990s. No other Grand Slam tournament has such a strict dress code for players. During matches, female players are always referred to by the title "Miss" or "Mrs". Formerly, married female players were referred to by their husband's names: for example, Chris Evert-Lloyd appeared on scoreboards as "Mrs. J. M. Lloyd" during her marriage to John M. Lloyd. However, this custom has been abandoned. On the other hand, the title "Mr" is never used for male players.

 

Royal Family

 

Previously, players bowed or curtsied to members of the Royal Family seated in the Royal Box upon entering or leaving Centre Court. In 2003, however, the President of the All England Club, HRH The Duke of Kent, decided to discontinue the tradition. Now, players are required to bow or curtsy only if the Queen or the Prince of Wales is present.

 

Strawberries & Cream

 

For the spectators, strawberries and cream is the traditional snack at Wimbledon. Approximately 62,000 pounds of strawberries and 1,540 gallons of cream are sold each year during the Championships.

 

Trophies and prize money

 

The Gentlemen's Singles champion receives a silver gilt cup 18.5 inches (about 47 cm) in height and 7.5 inches (about 19 cm) in diameter. The trophy has been awarded since 1887 and bears the inscription: "The All England Lawn Tennis Club Single Handed Champion of the World." The Ladies' Singles champion receives a sterling silver salver commonly known as the "Venus Rosewater Dish", or simply the "Rosewater Dish". The salver, which is 18.75 inches (about 48 cm) in diameter, is decorated with figures from mythology. The winners of the Gentlemen's Doubles, Ladies' Doubles, and Mixed Doubles events receive silver cups. The runner-up in each event receives an inscribed silver plate. The trophies are usually presented by the President of the All England Club, The Duke of Kent, and by his sister, Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy.

 

At Wimbledon, more prize money has been traditionally awarded in the Gentlemen's events than in the Ladies' events. However, a statement made by the All England Club in February 2007 stated that future prize money would be equal at all levels, even though women only have to play the best of three sets per match as opposed to five by the men. This makes Wimbledon policy identical to that of the Australian Open, US Open, and most recently the French Open.

 

Wimbledon men's singles champions of the last 17 years

 

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1990	Stefan Edberg	Boris Becker	6-2 6-2 3-6 3-6 6-4
1991	Michael Stich	Boris Becker	6-4 7-6(4) 6-4
1992	Andre Agassi	Goran Ivanišević	6-7(8) 6-4 6-4 1-6 6-4
1993	Pete Sampras	Jim Courier	7-6(3) 7-6(6) 3-6 6-3
1994	Pete Sampras	Goran Ivanišević	7-6(2) 7-6(5) 6-0
1995	Pete Sampras	Boris Becker	6-7 6-2 6-4 6-2
1996	Richard Krajicek	MaliVai Washington	6-3 6-4 6-3
1997	Pete Sampras	Cédric Pioline	6-4 6-2 6-4
1998	Pete Sampras	Goran Ivanišević	6-7(2) 7-6(9) 6-4 3-6 6-2
1999	Pete Sampras	Andre Agassi	6-3 6-4 7-5
2000	Pete Sampras	Patrick Rafter	6-7(10) 7-6(5) 6-4 6-2
2001	Goran Ivanišević	Patrick Rafter	6-3 3-6 6-3 2-6 9-7
2002	Lleyton Hewitt	David Nalbandian	6-1 6-3 6-2
2003	Roger Federer	Mark Philippoussis	7-6(5) 6-2 7-6(3)
2004	Roger Federer	Andy Roddick	4-6 7-5 7-6(3) 6-4
2005	Roger Federer	Andy Roddick	6-2 7-6(2) 6-4
2006	Roger Federer	Rafael Nadal	6-0 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 6-3
2007	Roger Federer	Rafael Nadal	7-6(7), 4-6, 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-2

 

Wimbledon women's singles champions of the last 17 years

 

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1990	Martina Navrátilová	Zina Garrison Jackson	6-4, 6-1
1991	Steffi Graf	Gabriela Sabatini	6-4, 3-6, 8-6
1992	Steffi Graf	Monica Seles	6-2, 6-1
1993	Steffi Graf	Jana Novotná	7-6, 1-6, 6-4
1994	Conchita Martínez	Martina Navrátilová	6-4, 3-6, 6-3
1995	Steffi Graf	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	4-6, 6-1, 7-5
1996	Steffi Graf	Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6-3, 7-5
1997	Martina Hingis	Jana Novotná	2-6, 6-3, 6-3
1998	Jana Novotná	Nathalie Tauziat	6-4, 7-6(2)
1999	Lindsay Davenport	Steffi Graf	6-4, 7-5
2000	Venus Williams	Lindsay Davenport	6-3, 7-6(3)
2001	Venus Williams	Justine Henin	6-1, 3-6, 6-0
2002	Serena Williams	Venus Williams	7-6(4), 6-3
2003	Serena Williams	Venus Williams	4-6, 6-4, 6-2
2004	Maria Sharapova	Serena Williams	6-1, 6-4
2005	Venus Williams	Lindsay Davenport	4-6, 7-6(4), 9-7
2006	Amélie Mauresmo	Justine Henin	2-6, 6-3, 6-4
2007	Venus Williams	Marion Bartoli	6-4, 6-1

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