Tennis is becoming a massively popular sport these days. More and more people start enjoying tennis matches around the world. There are different kinds of tennis tournaments. The classification is done according to the number of points a winner receives. The most famous are 4 Grand Slams and ATP Masters 1000.
Grand Slam
Grand Slam tournaments are the four most popular tennis events during a year. The winner gets 2000 points and valuable prizes, and finalists get 1300 points and a silver plate. These events are visited by a large audience and offer a great prize pool, and because of this, the tournament gets a lot of media attention all over the world. This event comprises four seasonal events – the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open.
Australian Open
This event takes place in January, in Melbourne. The first tournament was organized in 1905, and it opens the Grand Slam season every year. Both men and women participate in the event, either in single or in mixed doubles.
Roland Garros
It happens in Paris, in May and June. It was founded in 1891 and since then it is being played on a clay court. Because of this kind of a court which does not allow fast play, this tournament is considered to be the most tiring.
Wimbledon
It has been founded in 1877, being the oldest tournament. It takes place in Wimbledon, London at the end of June and beginning of July and it is played on the grass court.
US Open
This is the final Grand Slam tournament that happens in August and September. It is a hard surface tennis event, but, it was first played on a grass surface and later on a clay court. It happens in New York City, New York.
ATP Finals
It’s men’s tournament which comes right after Grand Slams. It is held in O2 Arena in London, England and gathers top 8 tennis players (singles and doubles teams). Players compete for a maximum of 1500 points, but for each lost match in the round-robin tournament, 200 points are deducted from their winning points.
ATP Masters 1000
This is a third major tennis tournament group. As the name suggests, winner of the tournament receives 1000 ATP points. A few large cities all around the globe are hosts of these events.
Shanghai is the host of the Shanghai Rolex Masters. It is held in October at Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena and played on a hard surface. Tournament prize pool attracts top players.
Indian Wells is the host of BNP Paribas Open and the WTA Indian Wells Open which takes place in March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. It is played on a hard surface.
Miami Open takes place in a beautiful city of Miami. It is held right after Indian Wells, in Key Biscayne on a hard surface.
Madrid is the location of Madrid Open tournament. It is held in May, on a red clay surface.
Beside these main ones, Masters 1000 are also held in Cincinnati, Montreal, Paris, Monte Carlo and Rome.
There are also Masters 500 and 250 as tournaments which are not so popular and they don’t attract top players.
