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Track and Field
As early as the 1840's professional "pedestrianism" was popular. It originated in the Victorian counterculture and throughout the 20th century it had considerable amount of support, -
U.S Tennis
In 1874, the first ever tennis courts were built in the U.S. One was in Staten Island, NY and the other one was in Nahant, MA. There was controversy over which one was built first. -
Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America
In 1876, Northeastern colleges organized the IC4A to supervise the running events that had been taking place in Saratoga, NY since 1873. Also in this year the IC4A started holding annual track meets until 1921 when the NCAA had its first championships for track. -
First Wimbledon Tournament
This was the first ever Wimbledon tournament held in England. It was created because the Marylebone Cricket Club and the All England Cricket Club decided to take up tennis and host a tournament. -
First U.S. National Tennis Championship
The Newport Casino Club turned into the home of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA). This then became the site of the first National Tennis Championship. -
The USLTA Grows
The USLTA grew to about 106 clubs in 1895. Due to a sudden popularity in golf clubs, memberships in the USLTA decrease until about a decade later. -
Golf a Sport of the Upper Class
Golf was a sport for the upper class. A reporter once stated, "golf is a sport restricted to the richer classes of the country." Most Americans did not play because it was expensive and time consuming. The west protested the sport and caused Theodore Roosevelt to warn William Howard Taft not to play golf because it was fatal to play. Despite Roosevelt's warnings, Taft was the first president to play golf. -
Davis Cup
In the 1900 the Davis Cup was created by a wealthy harvard tennis player named Dwight F. Davis. This was the most conveted prize in tennis till about 1960. -
Olympic Games
Until 1908, the Olympic Games were a minor track event for America. They never made an effort to put together a strong team for the first ever Olympics in Athens in 1896. In 1908 at the Olympics in London, because of the big rivarly between American and British track athletes, America started taking the Olympics seriously. -
Jim Thorpe
At the Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden the Americans went all out to win every single track and field event. The team included an Native American and a few African Americans. Jim Thorpe, an athlete from the Carlisle Indian School, was the hero of the games. He won four of the five events in the Pentathlon and scored a 700-point margin over his nearest decathlon competitor. -
A Hero in Golf
In 1913, America had it's first golf hero. Francis Ouimet, an amateur golfer, comepeted against professional British golfers Harry Vardon and Edward Ray. Ouimet upset Vardon and Ray by multiple strokes in the playoff in the United States Open Tournament making Ouimet instantly a hero. -
A New Persona of Golf
Walter Hagen, a former caddie, changed the persona of golf. He was personable treating kings that same way as caddies. He was described as creating a "social revolution in American golf. -
Golf Spreads
Golf spread to more than just the upper class with the spread of country club. Businessmen fount the golf course away to soothe nerves and create business agreements. -
Postwar Games
The games in Berlin 1916 were cancelled due to World War I, but the games after the war were much bigger than the ones prior. The games in Antwerp 1920 (awarded to Belgians because of sacrifices made), Paris 1924, Amsterdam 1928, Los Angeles 1932, and Berlin 1936 were more extravagant then each of the previous. -
Sponsors Emerge
There was very little prize money in golf tournaments. In 1921, the United States Open charged admission to spectators. Wealthy fans began to sponsor touraments, but still there was very little prize money left. Golfers such as Walter Hagen made money on endorsments rather than prize money. -
Amateur Golf and Professional Golf Competitions
In 1922, George H. Walker held a biennial competition. This was an amateur golf competition between the United States and Great Britian. In 1927, Samuel Ryder held a professional tournament. -
Tennis Interest Increases
In 1923, tennis started to become a spectator sport when the Westside Tennis Club was built. Interest increased with the building of this club. Also, in the 1920's players such as Big Bill Tilden and Susan Lenglen became public celebrities due to their wins at Wimbledon and Forest Hills. -
Bobby Jones- a golf star
Between 1923 and 1930, Bobby Jones took over the golfing world. He was about to retire in 1923, but decided not to when he won the U.S Open. In the 9 years to follow, he won 13 national tittles, and finshed first or second in 12 national championships. Besides winning, the American public loved Jones. He brought in crowds as large as 18,000. -
USLTA & Tilden
Starting in 1924 the USLTA tried to prevent Tilden from earning money from tennis journalism because they wanted tennis to keep its amateur image. In 1928, the USLTA sucessfully suspended Tilden from the Davis Cup. -
Penn Relays
The Pennsylvania (Penn) Relays began in 1895. These relays introduced a whole new competition that combined intercollegiate and interscholastic track. At the Penn Relays in 1925, 3000 atheletes representing more than 500 colleges competed. Almost 70,000 fans present for the finals. Jesse Owens competed in these. -
Tennis Protour
In 1926 Charles C. Pyle organized a Protour for tennis. He signed famous players such as Susan Lenglen, Mary K. Browne, and Vincent Richards. He stopped his Protour when Lenglen demanded some of the profit. -
Tilden V.S Cochet
William T. "Big Bill" Tilden's reign over the world of tennis was ended during the quarter finals of the national championships in New York. He lost to Henri Cochet of france in five sets. This match is when the quality of tennis had increased because tennis became a quicker paced game with their hard serves, forehand, backhand, hard drives, and drop shots. -
1936 Olympic Games Berlin
There was huge controversy over whether or not America should go to the games because of everything going on in Germany. However they decided to go and were highly sucessful. (Jesse Owens) One big event that happened during these games was that the American Track and Field coach, Dean Cromwell, took two Jewish athletes out of the 400-meter relay and substituted Jesse Owens and someone else in their place. This caused a huge arugment over his motives. -
Tennis Popularity
In the 1970's tennis became a big sport due to television and the broadcasting of open tennis tournaments. -
AAU V.S. NCAA
The NCAA and the AAU fought over control of the track and field community. This made it hard for the US to put together a team for the Olympics. In 1978, Congress stepped in and made the Amateur Sports Act and that is when the feud finally ended.
