Surbiton_Trophy_Programme_2017

3 – 11 JUNE 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club 

OFFICIAL PROGRAMME 

LEAD PARTNER OFFICIAL PARTNER EVENT PARTNER

Over the past nine years we have encouraged everyone to get involved in 

tennis. Whether that’s playing at your local park, representing your school, 

watching a local match or cheering on your favourite players at our major 

tournaments. We’ve been proud to sponsor British Tennis. 

See our legacy 

aegontennis.co.uk/legacy 

#9greatyears

A warm welcome to the Aegon Surbiton Trophy at 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club 

We are delighted to welcome you 

here to the Surbiton Racket and 

Fitness Club for the Aegon Surbiton 

Trophy in the biggest and best ever 

British grass court tennis season. 

Last year brought us some 

memorable moments on these pristine grass 

courts. Who can forget Yen-Hsun Lu taking the 

men’s title after an epic tiebreaker and change of 

surface? Or Marina Melnikova dodging the showers 

to claim the women’s crown? With another strong 

field of players coming to Surbiton this year, we can 

expect to see plenty more thrilling tennis in 2017. 

The Aegon Surbiton Trophy is one of the 

cornerstones of our revamped Aegon Trophy Series, 

in which substantial investment from ourselves 

and our friends at Wimbledon has created the 

highest-value circuit at this level in the world. 

Together with partner tournaments at Manchester, 

Nottingham, Ilkley and Southsea, Surbiton forms 

part of an ATP Challenger and ITF Women’s Pro 

Circuit calendar that is now worth over $850,000. 

However, this event is not just about attracting 

top players to the club. Not only will it offer up 

thrilling tennis for fans on the day, it also provides 

us with a golden opportunity to inspire people in 

the area to pick up a racket and go hit it. 

There are so many people to thank in the 

delivery of this fantastic event - the ITF, ATP, our 

sponsors, Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club, Surrey 

LTA and their volunteers, as well as all of our local 

volunteers. 

Finally, I would like to take a moment to 

acknowledge the incredible contribution of our 

lead partner Aegon. Over the nine years of our 

partnership they have delivered invaluable support 

for all levels of British Tennis with dedication and 

enthusiasm. 

I wish all of the players at this year’s Aegon 

Surbiton Trophy the very best of luck and hope you 

enjoy the world-class action they are sure to serve 

up this week. 

Martin Corrie 

LTA President 

forewords 

Passing on our British tennis 

legacy: Game, Set and Match 

Since 2009, we’ve been on an 

amazing journey as Lead Partner of 

British Tennis. 

We’ve seen the five-time winner at the Aegon 

Championships, Andy Murray, become world No.1, 

the Aegon GB Davis Cup Team become World 

Champions, Team Aegon’s Jo Konta break into the 

women’s Top 10, and our Aegon FutureStar Kyle 

Edmund reach the men’s top 40. 

Half the schools in the UK now play tennis 

through our Aegon Schools Programme, and we 

also regenerated 212 parks through our Aegon 

Parks Tennis Programme offering free tennis to all. 

We’re delighted the ladies’ $100k and men’s 

¤127k events make their return to the Surbiton 

grass courts. It’s a fantastic chance for all the 

family to watch some great grass court tennis. 

Enjoy the tennis and join us in celebrating a 

great nine years. 

Adrian Grace 

Chief Executive, Aegon UK 

Aegon Surbiton Trophy 

The tournament 

Tournament Director Dave Malia 

ITF Supervisor Carl Baldwin 

ATP Supervisor Stephane Cretois 

The club 

Club President Mike Carroll 

Club Director Roy Staniland 

Head Coach Tom Crisp 

The Programme 

Design Anthony Collins 

Printed by cubiquitymedia.com 

The tournament would like to thank BMW for 

supplying the player transportation. 

The tournament would also like to thank the 

members of Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club for the 

use of the club, and thank you to Hollyfield School 

and Christchurch Primary School, Surbiton, for 

providing our ball crew. 

www.LTA.org.uk/aegonsurbitontrophy @SurbitonTrophy 3

former champions 

our 

champions 

Many of the world’s greatest players have competed on the 

beautiful grass courts of Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club. But where 

did their lives take them after they finished playing tennis? Club 

President Mike Carroll looks back at some of the most interesting 

Surbiton champions from both the near and the distant past. 

4 Aegon surbiton trophy 2017

Charlotte Cooper Sterry 

Charlotte Cooper Sterry 

(champion 1900, 1901, 1902, 1907, 1913) 

Born and brought up in west London, Sterry (née 

Cooper) also won Wimbledon five times during 

the late 1800s and early 1900s. She became the first 

female champion at the Olympic Games in 1900. 

he year was 1881. Queen Victoria was on 

T the throne. Picasso was born. The infamous 

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral took place, and the 

First Boer War came to an end. It was also the year 

this tennis club was born. Originally known as 

Berrylands Lawn Tennis Club, it initially had 200 

members, compared to the 1,500 or so we have 

today. 

By 1890 the club had staged its very first Surrey 

Grass Court Championships, a pre-Wimbledon 

tournament that has been – on and off and in 

various guises – an important fixture on the British 

tennis calendar ever since. Nowadays, of course, it’s 

known as the Aegon Surbiton Trophy. 

Many of the world’s greatest tennis players have 

competed in this event. Here we pick some of our 

favourite former champions and discover what 

happened to them after their success at Surbiton. 

Toupie Lowther 

(champion 1903, 1906) 

Tennis wasn’t Lowther’s only sporting skill. She 

also excelled at fencing, motoring, weight-lifting 

and even jujitsu. After World War I broke out 

in 1914 she put together an all-female squad of 

ambulance drivers which operated close to the 

front lines in northern France. In 1918 the French 

government awarded her the Croix de Guerre. 

Arthur Gore 

(champion 1907) 

Gore was already something of a legend in 

Edwardian tennis by the time he won here at 

Surbiton in 1907 since, six years previously he had 

captured the first of his three Wimbledon titles. 

And he was no spring chicken: in 1909, he was 41 

years old when he won Wimbledon for the third 

time – still the oldest men’s singles champion at 

the All England Club. 



Dorothea Chambers 

(champion 1914, 1920) 

Chambers was already one of the greatest female 

players of her era by the time she took her first 

title at Surbiton. Between 1903 and 1914 she won 

a staggering seven singles titles at Wimbledon, as 

well as the singles at the 1908 Olympics. 

Cam Malfroy 


Not long after winning at Surbiton, this New 

Zealand player became a decorated fighter pilot in 

World War II, flying Hurricanes and Spitfires. He 

was credited with destroying five enemy aircraft 

in all. 

Althea Gibson 

Helen Wills Moody 


This Californian player won 19 Grand Slam singles 

titles in all, an achievement that cemented her 

status as a global superstar. Her graceful playing 

style was universally admired. Charlie Chaplin 

once said that watching her playing tennis was 

the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Her 

beauty inspired many artists to produce paintings, 

sculptures, murals and drawings in her image. 

Maureen Connolly 


Nicknamed Little Mo, this Californian player 

who won nine Grand Slam singles titles in the 


Roger Taylor 

Helen Wills Moody 

1950s, had her playing days cut cruelly short after 

a horse-riding accident. She then threw all her 

energies into a second career as a sportswriter, TV 

commentator, entrepreneur and coach. 

Althea Gibson 

(champion 1956, 1957, 1958) 

Gibson’s first Surbiton title came just days after 

this American player won at Roland Garros, 

thereby becoming the first black person to win a 

Grand Slam in tennis. Venus Williams once wrote 

in tribute to her: “I am honoured to have followed 

in such great footsteps. Her accomplishments set 

the stage for my success, and through players like 

myself and Serena and many others to come, her 

legacy will live on.” 

Roger Taylor 

(champion 1963, 1967) 

Yorkshireman Taylor was a key British player in 

the 1960s and 1970s. It was fairly early in his career 

when he won his first Surbiton title, a grass- 



Ann Jones 

Sue Barker 

court triumph that presaged his three semi-final 

showings at Wimbledon several years later. Taylor 

was the sole British member of a group of touring 

professionals called the Handsome Eight. 

David Lloyd 

Ann Jones 

(champion 1964, 1970) 

Originally from Birmingham, Jones won three 

Grand Slam singles titles in a decade dominated 

by Billie Jean King and Margaret Court. Nowadays 

she is one of the vice-presidents at the All England 

Club. 

Judy Tegart-Dalton 

(champion 1968, 1971) 

This Australian player, who also reached the 

final at Wimbledon in 1968, was for many years 

a member at Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club. She 

now lives back in Australia but returns most years 

to Surbiton and stays with the same family that 

hosted her the years she won the title. 

Sue Barker 


Of all the former Surbiton champions, Barker 

needs least in the way of introduction. Two years 


Wesley Moodie 

after her triumph at Surbiton she won the singles 

title at Roland Garros. Her post-tennis career as a 

TV sports presenter at the BBC has won her even 

more accolades than her tennis did. 

David Lloyd 


Essex-born Lloyd learned a thing or two about 

resilience on the tennis court, a skill that prepared 

him well for an enormously successful business 

career during which he launched many property 

and leisure businesses, including the health club 

chain that still bears his name. He was even once 

chairman of Hull City AFC. 

Evonne Goolagong Cawley 


Goolagong was already well established as an 

international champion when she won her 

Surbiton title. The third of eight children from an 

Australian Aboriginal family, she won seven Grand 

Slam singles titles in all between 1971 (at the age 

of 20) and 1980 (three years after she became a 

mother). 

Evonne Goolagong Cawley 

Wesley Moodie 


This tall South African player loved Surbiton so 

much that, after winning the title in 2003, he 

moved very close to the club with his family for 

several years. In 2011 he retired from tennis and 

returned to South Africa. 

Brenda Schultz-McCarthy 


Brenda’s booming serve was devastating on the 

grass courts of Surbiton. At one time this Dutch 

player (who now lives in Florida) held the female 

record for the world’s fastest serve. 


Aegon 

A lasting 

legacy 

lot has changed since Aegon joined British 

A Tennis as its first ever lead partner back 

in 2009. 

We’ve enjoyed Davis Cup glory, Andy Murray’s 

Grand Slam titles, Johanna Konta breaking into the 

world’s top-10, and a grass-court season going from 

strength to strength. 

Aegon has been at the forefront of British Tennis’ 

efforts to grow the game we all love across the 

country. As the partnership comes to an end after 

nearly a decade of working together, we sat down 

with Aegon UK’s Head of Brand and Sponsorship, 

Tara McGregor-Woodhams, to look back over the 

company’s fondest memories of its time in tennis. 

“It’s tricky to pick out one highlight for us as 

there are so many to choose from” Tara says. “In no 

particular order, I’d say the Aegon Championships 

being named Tournament of the Year four years in a 

row, seeing our boys win the Davis Cup, and helping 

3,000 talented youngsters through the Aegon 

FutureStars programme rank up there among the 

greatest memories.” 

For many British Tennis fans, Tara included, the 

2015 Davis Cup victory will be a moment that lives 

long in the memory. Not since 1936 had the British 

topped the team tennis charts, but Leon Smith’s 

Aegon GB Team made history with their stunning 

victory over Belgium in Ghent two years ago. 

“It was the most amazing achievement and a team 

effort that had been five years in the making,” Tara 

says. “Leon is a brilliant captain and kept the team 

focused as they climbed through the divisions. 

“I will never forget the opening in Ghent when 

the curtain came down and the crowds roared. 

The atmosphere was utterly electric. The team’s 

performance was absolutely staggering. It was such a 

privilege to be part of history.” 

Glory at the elite end of the spectrum makes the 

headlines, but Tara says the grass roots of the game 

have been just as important to Aegon. 

“For nine years, we’ve supported Britain’s top 

young players through our FutureStars programme,” 

she adds. “It’s lovely to see our original FutureStars 

Jo Konta break into the women’s top 10 and Kyle 

Edmund make the men’s top 40.” 

From international glory to growing the 

grassroots, Aegon has been committed to British 

Tennis for nine years. For that we say thank you, 

and we are sure we will continue to see Tara and the 

team courtside for years to come. 


crosshead 

NEW BRITISH TENNIS 

TEAM MEMBERSHIP 

Give back to the sport you love and 

enjoy great benefits from just £20 * 

Join today at lta.org.uk/membership 

or visit the British Tennis 

Membership stand 

Other adult and junior price options are available. Visit the website for more details. 


technology 

Bird’s-eye 

view of the 

future 

Technology is revolutionising professional sport more than ever 

before. Stadium engineering, TV broadcasting and augmented 

reality all improve the experience for both spectators and players. 

Here we explore how tennis might benefit in the future. 


An aerial drone 

captures images of the 

All England Club. 

photo: skyvantage 

ain. When it comes to tennis, it’s the ultimate 

R dampener. But for how long? Given the 

exponential advances in roof engineeering over 

recent years, it wouldn’t be surprising if clubs and 

stadia all over the world soon started installing 

retractable roofs to shield players and spectators 

from the elements. Wimbledon, of course, is on its 

way to constructing a second roof (on No.1 Court). 

Melbourne Park already has three retractable roofs, 

the US Open has one, and there are also outdoor 

tennis stadia with retractable roofs in Shanghai, 

Beijing, Wuhan, Hamburg, Madrid, Halle and 

Tokyo. Who knows? Perhaps one day even Surbiton 

will have one? British summer, do your worst! 

The way professional tennis is filmed and 

broadcast is all set to change drastically, too. 

Since it was first introduced in 2006, Hawk- 

Eye technology has proved to be enormously 

successful, adding an extra element of drama 

when the balls land close to the lines. Aerial video 

drones might soon become commonplace, too, 

especially at large venues where there are multiple 

courts to cover. 

Currently drones are used most effectively 

in sports played out across wide areas or in 

inaccessible places: golf, trail running, road 

cycling, mountain biking, rally driving, horse 

racing, rock climbing, surfing and sailing, for 

example. Thanks to the drones, TV spectators are 

placed right in the thick of the action – whether 

that’s halfway up mountains, out at sea, in the 

middle of the desert, or lost in the rough. But 

they could add an exciting element to tennis, too. 

Imagine a drone swooping across the entirety of 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club, giving viewers a 

bird’s-eye vista of all the action, and zooming in 

on the most intriguing matches. Much cheaper 

(and quieter) than hiring a helicopter to do the 

same job. 

Toby Pocock is owner of aerial filming specialists 

Skyvantage, based in the Surrey town of Reigate. In 

2015 he used his drones to take stunning aerial 


technology 

Firstvision has invented 

a video camera that 

slots into the chest area 

of a player’s shirt. 

The results are 

astounding: you see 

the player’s racket 

close-up as he 

strikes the ball, and 

as he prepares for 

the ball toss. 

photos of the All England Club. He says safety 

regulations currently prohibit drones operating 

directly above tennis tournaments packed with 

thousands of spectators. And just as well if you 

recall how, in September 2015, at the US Open, a 

drone operated by an amateur cameraman crashlanded 

into empty seating in the Louis Armstrong 

stadium. Fortunately no one was injured but the 

Italian player Flavia Pennetta, who was competing 

against Romania’s Monica Niculescu, said she 

thought it had been a terrorst attack. 

“A little bit scary,” she said after the match. 

“With everything going on in the world, I thought: 

‘OK, it’s over.’ If there had been spectators, it would 

have hit them and done a lot of damage.” 

Fortunately, drone technology is improving 

all the time. “Drones are getting smaller and 

more reliable,” Pocock says. “Some even feature 

parachutes in case the motors fail.” He believes 

that in a few years’ time aerial drones will be an 

indispensable tool for all major tennis broadcasting 

teams. 

Shirt cams are another intriguing piece of 

TV technology. Spanish company Firstvision has 

invented a tiny, unobtrusive camera that fits into 

the chest area of a player’s shirt, beaming out live 

footage. On a tennis court it allows viewers to see 

the court as if they were actually playing on it. 

The company tested their device on the courts 

of the Academia Sanchez-Casal, in Barcelona 

(Andy Murray’s old alma mater). The results are 

astounding: you see the player’s racket close-up as 

he strikes the ball, and as he prepares for the ball 

toss. You get an intimate view when he wipes sweat 

off his brow, drinks from a water bottle and pulls 

up his socks at change of ends. And you hear him 

grunting, groaning and cursing during play, more 

clearly than if you were his doubles partner. 

At professional level the results would be 

even more impressive. Imagine how thrilling (or 

frightening) it would be to face Milos Raonic’s 

serve, or to find yourself in between the umpire 

and Nick Kyrgios’s chest just as an argument kicks 

off – with all the accompanying sound effects. If 

the language gets too fruity, all you do is turn the 

volume down. 

Talking of fruity language, what about coach 

mikes? At Davis Cup and WTA events, where 

courtside coaching is permitted, why shouldn’t 

coaches be miked up so that spectators can 


Left: Hawk-Eye. 

Below: a virtual reality 

headset. 

eavesdrop on the conversation they have with 

their players? Imagine being privy to conversations 

between Andy Murray and Leon Smith during the 

Davis Cup final. Or listening in as Johanna Konta’s 

coach Wim Fissette analyses his protegée’s serve. 

Tennis player statistics is another intriguing 

element of the sport. Using something known 

as augmented reality, it should soon be possible 

to point your smartphone at a tennis player 

on the court and immediately receive all the 

live statistical data you could possibly want. 

What’s Roger Federer’s heart rate as he serves on 

championship point at Wimbledon? What speed 

did Andy Murray just bash down his serve at? Give 

me all the biographical details on that unknown 

Japanese player competing at Surbiton. Easy. 

Simply point your phone and press. A split second 

later you have the live data on your screen. 

Augmented reality is already used in sports such 

as American football, rugby, cricket, swimming, ice 

hockey, motor racing and snooker. It won’t be long 

before tennis jumps on the bandwagon. 

City-Insights is a London-based technology 

company that offers augmented reality (via 

Imagine a drone swooping 

across the entirety of Surbiton 

Racket & Fitness Club, giving 

viewers a bird’s-eye vista of all 

the action, and zooming in on 

the most intriguing matches. 

people’s mobile phones) for visitors in museums, 

city centres, property, retail, universities, parks 

and sports venues. They recently discussed with 

the All England Club the possibility of offering 

Wimbledon spectators augmented reality 

features such as archive photos and video footage, 

statistical data on players during competition, and 

background stories from club groundsmen and 

employees. 

Sarah Mallock is one of the company founders. 

She believes that, in the future, many tennis 

tournaments will offer extra video, photographic, 

audio and analytical features through spectators’ 

mobile phones. 

“The ultimate would be if you could point your 

phone at players in a match and watch as a second 

layer of information appeared on your screen,” she 

says. “We are unfortunately a long way from the 

full VR headset experience being available through 

the average smartphone but I am sure it is all 

heading that way.” 

It won’t be long. 


tennis surrey 

Surrey Tennis 

Surrey Tennis is the County Association that supports 

registered venues and coaches across the county. 

We work in partnership with the LTA. 

he LTA currently has Regional Offices, with 

T the LTA South East covering Surrey, along 

with Kent, Middlesex and Sussex. You then have 

County Associations that have their own County 

Offices, which includes Surrey Tennis. 

The LTA South East and Surrey Tennis work 

together to get more people playing tennis more 

often in the county. Surrey Tennis focuses on 

supporting and promoting competitions, venue 

and coach initiatives that are offered by the County 

Association. Whereas the LTA South East focuses on 

supporting and promoting LTA competitions along 

with national coach and venue initiatives that can 

benefit those in Surrey. 

What Surrey Tennis does 

Surrey Tennis focuses on advising and support 

in 4 key areas: 

Clubs and venues: supporting registered 

clubs and venues across the county and advising 

them on issues affecting their venue e.g. facilities, 

membership, promotion. Surrey Tennis will work 

closely with key partners that specialise in these 

areas so that we can ensure venues are getting the 

best support possible. 

Coaches: providing local support for coaches 

in the county. This is now primarily being done 

through the formation of the Surrey Coaches 

Group. Coaches in the county can join now, and 


Office team and Surrey 

Tennis councillors 

There are currently 16 councillors who are 

volunteers that support the delivery and 

operation of the 4 key areas listed above. 

We also have 3 full-time staff that make up 

the Surrey Tennis Office Team: 

be able to access numerous benefits including: 

subsidised CPD and First Aid courses, local 

forums where coaches can network and share 

best practice, subsidised offers on balls and other 

coaching equipment, subsidised medals and 

trophies. 

For further information please visit 

www.tennissurrey.org.uk/surrey-coaches-group 

You can also contact the group on coaches@ 

tennissurrey.org.uk 

Chris Risebro – Surrey Tennis Coordinator 

chris.risebro@tennissurrey.org.uk 

Tim Sagar – Tennis Development Manager 

tim.sagar@tennissurrey.org.uk 

Lewis Woodham – Competitions 

Administrator 

competitions@tennissurrey.org.uk 

Office Number – 020 8487 7036 

Competitions run and supported 

by the County Association 

Surrey inter-club leagues and team competitions 

Open and Senior Postal and Junior Trophy 

Surrey Junior Little Leagues 

Knock-out competitions 

Aegon Team Tennis Surrey 

Road to Wimbledon County Finals 

Surrey County Championships 

County Cup teams of all ages 

For all other competitions that take place in 

the county you need to contact the LTA South 

East team. 

Disability tennis supporting our partner, 

the Tennis Foundation (Britain’s leading tennis 

charity), in raising awareness of disability tennis 

across the county. Surrey Tennis is keen to support 

and work with those venues, coaches or volunteers 

who are interested in getting involved in this area 

of tennis. Whether it be running sessions at your 

venue, or reaching out to the local community 

groups, Surrey Tennis and The Tennis Foundation. 

New website 

Surrey Tennis has a new website where you can 

find out the latest tennis news happening in 

the county, along with the current offerings for 

venues, coaches, competition and disability tennis 

in the county. You will also find information and 

links to LTA initiatives, where Surrey venues or 

coaches may benefit. 

Visit www.tennissurrey.org.uk 


aegon trophy series 

Trophy hunting 

Tennis now has a British grass-court swing below the main 

ATP / WTA pro tours. It’s called the Aegon Trophy Series and, 

as a breeding ground for future star players, it’s invaluable. 

f you want a snapshot of the British grass 

I court tennis scene then the Aegon Trophy 

Series is a wonderful place to start. Now in its third 

year, it runs throughout the month of June and 

features some of the oldest clubs, one of the newest 

clubs and certainly some of the most prestigious 

clubs in the country. 

Its wide geographical spread – from Ilkley in 

West Yorkshire, via Manchester and Nottingham, 

to Surbiton in the London suburbs and Southsea 

in Hampshire – means that tennis fans all over 

England can get their grass-court fix in the run-up 

to Wimbledon. 

George Donnelly is the LTA’s Tournament Lead 

overseeing the whole series. He explains what a 

great opportunity it is for both players and fans. 

“It’s a chance to see many international players, 

both male and female, ranked between 50 and 150 

in the world, as they prepare for Wimbledon,” he 

says. “Many of them at this level are the future stars 

of the game. Thanks to serious investment in the 

venues, this year they will have better facilities than 

before, and more prize money.” Indeed, the prize 

money fund for the entire series has almost tripled, 

rising from $300,000 in 2016 to $850,000 this year. 

Donnelly points out how the different events can 

inspire local players to take up tennis. “With five 

tournaments in the series now, it means we have 

a much better platform to showcase tennis across 

the UK, and encourage local people to pick up a 

racket and try out tennis for themselves.” 

The first tournament in the series, from June 3rd 

to 11th, is the Aegon Surbiton Trophy, at Surbiton 

Racket & Fitness Club in south London. Here, on 

the club’s 11 grass courts, there will be both an ITF 

women’s event and an ATP Challenger for the men. 

Originally established all the way back in 1881, this 

club has quite a history. Among the tennis legends 


that have played here are Fred Perry, Stefan Edberg, 

Pat Cash, Jim Courier, Tim Henman, Boris Becker, 

Michael Chang, Andy Roddick and Roger Federer. 

From June 11th to 18th, the series moves to The 

Northern Lawn Tennis Club in South Manchester 

where its seven grass courts (two protected from 

rain by inflatable covers, and a further two with 

flat covers) will host an ITF women’s tournament. 

Like Surbiton, The Northern Lawn Tennis Club 

was also established in 1881. In its time it has 

been graced by many of the world’s greatest 

players and has hosted major Davis Cup ties. The 

legendary Pete Sampras won his very first grass 

court tournament here in 1990. Last year this 

tournament won the ‘event of the year’ category 

at the annual Manchester Sports Awards. “The 

quality of the club’s grass courts have often found 

it referred to as ‘the Wimbledon of the North’,” the 

LTA website states. 

During the same week as Manchester there is 

a men’s ATP Challenger at Nottingham Tennis 

Centre. (A WTA tournament runs alongside this 

but is separate to the Aegon Trophy Series.) With its 

13 courts, this venue near the city’s university has 

hosted some of the world’s very best players during 

its history, both in ATP and Davis Cup events. 

From June 17th to 25th the series then moves 

north to Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club. Here, 

the Aegon Ilkley Trophy includes a women’s ITF 

tournament and a men’s ATP Challenger. As well 

as its 12 grass courts, the club has a new clubhouse 

and fitness suite, opened last year as part of a £2.5 

million investment programme. Ilkley also won 

Bradford Metropolitan Event of the Year for 2016. 

“Established in 1880, the club occupies a unique 

location by the River Wharfe in very picturesque 

surroundings looking up to the panoramic 

backdrop of the world-famous Ilkley Moor,” 

states the LTA website. “Ilkley is a jewel of the 

North, situated on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales 

AEGON TROPHY SERIES 

“We want to jump-start the important 

summer season of participation by 

trying to own the month of June,” says 

Michael Downey, CEO of the Lawn Tennis 

Association. “[There is] an extensive and 

high-quality series of major tennis events to 

help inspire more people to pick up a racket 

and play tennis.” 

June 3-11 

Aegon Surbiton Trophy (men’s and women’s) 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club, Surbiton, 

KT5 8JT 

June 11-18 

Aegon Manchester Trophy (women’s) 

The Northern Lawn Tennis Club, West 

Didsbury, M20 3YA 

June 10-18 

Aegon Open Nottingham (men’s) 

Nottingham Tennis Centre, Nottingham, NG7 

2QH 

June 17-25 

Aegon Ilkley Trophy (men’s and women’s) 

Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club, Ilkley, 

LS29 9BG 

June 27-30 

Aegon Southsea Trophy (women’s) 

Canoe Lake Leisure, Southsea, PO4 9RG 

National Park. If you think Wimbledon village and 

put it on the edge of beautiful countryside with 

a true Yorkshire welcome, you will be imagining 

Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club.” 

The final series tournament, staged the week 

before Wimbledon starts, is the Aegon Southsea 

Trophy. It’s an ITF women’s event at a new venue 

in the Hampshire town of Southsea called Canoe 

Lake Leisure. There are 10 new grass courts here, 

as well as a brand new pavilion. Unlike the other 

four tournaments in the series, Southsea is free for 

spectators to attend. Ticket sales across the series 

as a whole are very healthy. Last year saw 5,200 

ticket sales, and Donnelly says that this year will 

substantially eclipse that figure. 

“I’m excited about the interest these events are 

having on a local level,” he says. “I’m confident of 

sell-out days at a number of events.” 

For information, visit www.lta.org.uk/ 

major-events/aegon-trophy-series 


different eras 

The 1949/1950 British 

Champion Joan Hughesman. 

Different 

strokes, 


If you stepped back in time, to Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club 

as it was around the time of WWII, the sport would be almost 

unrecognisable. Technically, tactically, physiologically, financially 

and culturally, it is radically different. Here, players from the 1940s 

have their tennis lives contrasted with modern professionals. 

Words: Dominic Bliss 


“In the 1940s the Americans 

used to bring their own steaks 

over because you couldn’t 

get them here because of 

rationing. They’d put the meat 

in the deep freeze at the hotel.” 

1947 Wimbledon doubles finalist 

Tony Mottram (left) 

Tony Mottram 

he rackets were wooden, the balls were white, 

T the clothing was modest, and the prize 

money was non-existent. Life for top players before 

tennis went professional in 1968 was radically 

different to today in just about every aspect you 

can think of: training methods, travel, prize 

money, diet, equipment, clothing… you name it. 

Here we compare the lot of modern pros to two 

players who competed in the 1940s – the 1947 

Wimbledon doubles finalist Tony Mottram (who 

sadly passed away last year) and the 1949/1950 

British champion Joan Hughesman. 

Training 

Modern pros spend almost as much time in the 

gym as they do on the court. Then there’s all 

the stretching, ice baths, massages and sports 

psychology. Many among the game’s elite travel 

with a full-time fitness expert. 

Andy Murray, whose fitness trainer is Matt Little, 

is one of the most athletic players in the world 

right now. His strength workout includes back 

squats, box jumps, lunges, split jumps, pull-ups, 

medicine-ball throws and core stability exercises. 

On the running track he does gruelling 400-metre 

sessions. “By the end your legs are like jelly,” 

he says. 

And his post-match ice baths are now legendary. 

“It’s always chilled to the right temperature, about 

eight degrees,” he told BBC Sport. “I do eight 

minutes straight. The water is moving inside the 

ice bath because otherwise your body starts to heat 

it up. I might be used to it after all this time but it’s 

still not nice, believe me.” 

Back in the days of amateur tennis, players rarely 

saw the inside of a gym. “In comparison to today, 

we did nothing. General jogging but no weights,” 

says Tony Mottram, the 1947 Wimbledon doubles 

finalist. 

Joan Hughesman was British champion in 1949 

and 1950. She says she did “no physical training at 

all.” “But I lived three miles away from our courts 

and I used to walk or run there every day,” she 

adds. “That kept me fit.” 

Match preparation 

Early nights, no drinking, and plenty of beauty 

sleep. For most top pros, life on the tour can be 

monastic, to say the least. Back in the 1940s, 

however, even at tournaments, it was quite normal 

to prop up the club bar until the early hours of the 

morning. 

“Tennis was very social,” says Mottram who 

reached the quarter-finals of Wimbledon singles 

in 1948. “When you packed your case you made 

sure you had your tennis rackets and then the next 

most important thing was your dinner jacket. We 

were expected to socialise and we did.” 

“If you liked parties, there were plenty of 

parties,” Hughesman remembers. “Some of the 

male players drank and gambled a lot. Especially 

on the French Riviera.” 



Prize money 

Since he turned professional in 1998, Roger 

Federer has won over US$104 million in prize 

money and much, much more in endorsements 

and sponsorship. Forbes magazine estimates that 

in 2016 alone he banked $60 million thanks to 

various deals with Nike, Rolex, Wilson, Mercedes- 

Benz, Moet & Chandon, Netjets, Lindt and Credit 

Suisse. 

Compare that to Rod Laver who won all four 

Grand Slams in 1962 and, for his efforts, received 

total prize money of exactly… zero. Yes, zero, 

because it was before the arrival of professional 

tennis. 

In 1947, after reaching the final of the 

Wimbledon doubles, Mottram was awarded a £10 

Harrods gift voucher. “But you had to spend it on 

sports clothing or luxury goods,” he remembers. 

“You couldn’t buy food with it.” 

For her two victories in the British 

Championships, Hughesman received a £5 gift 

voucher each time. “It was redeemable in several 

shops,” she says. “Sometimes tournaments would 

give us money to pay hotel bills. So we’d stay in 

really small hotels and keep the spare money.” 

Anti-doping 

Last year the International Tennis Federation 

carried out just under 5,000 anti-doping tests, 

around 2,600 of them on urine and 2,300 on blood. 

But drug testing didn’t exist in tennis until 

1993. Back in the 1940s, the only illegal substances 

players had to worry about was when they tried to 

get through customs with an extra bottle of booze 

and more than their allocated amount of Golden 

Virginia. 

Diet and drink 

Glycogen stores, vitamin 

supplements, amino acids, 

glycaemic indices, protein shakes, 

urine colour charts… modern 

athletes take sports nutrition more 

seriously than ever before. 

Rewind the clock to the years after 

World War II, however, and rationing 

in Britain was so tight that athletes 

would happily eat anything they could 

get their hands on. 

“It was a question of getting what 

“We left Heathrow on a 

Stratocruiser. It was two 

hours to Gander in Ireland; 

11 to Halifax in Newfoundland; 

and another six and a half 

hours to New York.” 

1947 Wimbledon doubles finalist 

Tony Mottram 

food was available,” says Mottram. “There was still 

rationing into the 1950s. It was very plain food. In 

the 1940s the Americans used to bring their own 

steaks over because you couldn’t get them here 

then. They’d put the meat in the deep freeze at the 

hotel.” 

Hydration during play was barely a 

consideration. “It was considered bad if you drank 

water during matches because it might give you 

a stitch,” explains Mottram. “All we did was wet 

our mouths with a tiny bit of water. Our Davis 

Cup captain was a qualified doctor and we never 

questioned that.” 

Travel 

The carbon footprint of professional 

tennis is enormous. With the ATP and 

WTA staging almost 130 main-tour 

tournaments on six continents, it’s 

impossible for players not to rack 

up the air miles. “By the end of 

your career you’ve lost thousands 

and thousands of days of your life 

travelling,” Spanish player Tommy 

Robredo once said. 


“I lived three miles away 

from our courts and I used to 

walk or run there every day. 

That kept me fit.” 

1949 & 1950 British champion Joan 

Hughesman 

Marat Safin 

In the era before commercial jets, travelling to 

tournaments took even longer. In the 1940s, for 

example, if a British player wanted to compete in 

the Australian Open, that required a five-week boat 

trip. 

“In 1948 I was a member of the first team to 

fly the Atlantic to play in the States,” Mottram 

remembers. “We left Heathrow on a Stratocruiser. 

It was two hours to Gander in Ireland; 11 to Halifax 

in Newfoundland; and another six and a half hours 

to New York.” 

Hughesman remembers how, in her day, the 

Australian Champion didn’t come over to Europe 

“because she couldn’t afford the boat fare”. 

Media commitments 

Compulsory press conferences, photo shoots, 

magazine interviews, TV appearances, radio 

broadcasts, websites, social media… modern 

players can’t pick their noses without it 

being reported worldwide. 

Back in the amateur days, though, 

all that was required was a quick chat 

with a couple of newspaper reporters. 

“Everyone would use the clubhouse 

facilities so the media would just 

go up to players and ask questions,” 

Hughesman explains. “There were no 

organised press conferences.” 

To help pay his travel expenses, Tony Mottram 

even became a tennis correspondent himself. 

“After matches I was up ‘til midnight most nights 

typing away on a portable typewriter. But you 

weren’t allowed to write about a tournament 

when you were still in it.” 

Equipment 

Modern pros regularly walk onto court with six 

or eight rackets in their bag, in case of multiple 

string breaks. And you can guarantee they’re being 

paid handsomely to use them. Russian player 

Marat Safin had such a good relationship with 

his racket sponsor that they didn’t mind the fact 

that he smashed almost 100 of them every year in 

anger. 

Compare this to the situation in the 1940s. 

“Rackets were like gold dust after the War.” 

Mottram remembers. “I originally had a deal 

with Dunlop where they charged me £10 a season 

for rackets and restrings. But once I’d played at 

Wimbledon I got them free.” 

Clothing 

The world’s top tennis clothing manufacturers pay 

millions for players to be their clothes horses. Not 

surprising when you think how many hours they 

appear on TV sporting logos from head to toe. 

No such sponsorship back in the 1940s 

when players were very much left to their 

own devices. After the War, Mottram 

persuaded a friend who was flying 

freight to India to buy plimsolls from a 

market stall there. “They were a bit too 

big and really flimsy, but I used them 

at Wimbledon because I didn’t have 

anything else. The soles were completely 

smooth – great on grass when it was dry 

but if there was the slightest bit of moisture 

you’d slip.” 

During matches he wore his old gym vests and 

shorts from his days in the RAF. “We looked a 

real motley lot.” 

Hughesman remembers how sports clothing 

was so scarce that, early in her career, she had to 

make her own. 

In memory of Tony Mottram, the 1947 

Wimbledon doubles finalist, who sadly 

passed away last year at the age of 96. 


quiz 

Grass court 

tennis quiz 

The players are changing ends and you’ve run out of bananas. 

Don’t panic. Try our tennis quiz instead. 

1) What was the original name of Surbiton 

Racket & Fitness Club when it was founded in 

1881? 

a) Surbiton Lawn Tennis, Croquet & Bowls Club 

b) Tolworth Lawn Tennis Club 

c) Berrylands Lawn Tennis Club 

2) Which American player won the Surrey Grass 

Court Championships three times on the trot in 

the late 1950s 

a) Maureen Connolly 

b) Doris Hart 

c) Althea Gibson 

3) Which Spanish player originally coined the 

phrase “Grass is for cows”? 

a) Manuel Santana 

b) Manuel Orantes 

c) Andres Gimeno 

4) Which British tennis player released a pop 

single called Wimbledon Lawns? 

a) Annabel Croft 

b) Sam Smith 

c) Jo Durie 

5) Which is the only Grand Slam never to have 

been played on grass? 

a) US Open 

b) Australian Open 

c) French Open 

6) How much prize money did Wimbledon’s 

very first professional female singles champion 

win in 1968? 

a) £750 

b) £800 

c) £1,000 

7) Which Welshman is generally credited with 

inventing lawn tennis by patenting an early 

form of the game called Sphairistike? 

a) Lord Leavy of Leamington 

b) Major Thomas Henry Gem 

c) Major Walter Clopton Wingfield 

8) What year did Surbiton Member Judy Dalton 

(nee Tegart) reach the Wimbledon Final? 

a) 1969 

b) 1973 

c) 1979 


Summer 

Home of the 

Tennis Camps 

2017 

24th July – 25th August 

Tots tennis camp, for pre-schoolers, is a 

great introduction to tennis. Players learn 

movement and co-ordination skills in an 

exciting and fun session 

The mini tennis camp is for ages 5-9 years. 

Players play in a red or orange group 

dependant on age as recommended by 

the LTA Mini Tennis framework 

Green/full court for players aged 10+ with 

groups suitable for all levels 

Sign up for 

the week 

and get one 

day free! 

All coaches LTA qualified and licenced 

Sibling discounts: 10% off 2nd child, 

15% off 3rd child 

Low player to coach ratios 

Please provide drinks and snacks for 

breaks throughout the afternoon 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club, Berrylands, Surbiton, Surrey, KT5 8JT 

T: 020 8399 1594 | E: info@surbiton.org | www.surbiton.org 


quiz 

9) What was the nationality of last year’s Aegon 

Surbiton trophy singles champion Yen-Hsun Lu? 

a) Chinese 

b) Taiwanese 

c) South Korean 

10) What was the nationality of last year’s 

Aegon Surbiton Trophy doubles champion 

Matthew Ebden? 

a) South African 

b) Australian 

c) American 

11) Which British player has won more 

Wimbledon singles titles than anyone else? 

a) William Renshaw 

b) Fred Perry 

c) Lawrence Doherty 

12) As of May 2017, how many Twitter followers 

did Maria Sharapova have? 

a) 1.89 million 

b) 3.28 million 

c) 5.67 million 

13) What do the following Wimbledon 

champions have in common: Boris Becker, John 

McEnroe, Michael Stich? 

a) They were all born in Germany 

b) They were all naturally left-handed 

c) They all won Wimbledon singles titles in fiveset 

finals. 

14) Which British doubles player was the 

body double for Paul Bettany in the 2004 film 

Wimbledon? 

a) Jamie Murray 

b) Alex Bogdanovic 

c) Dominic Inglot 

15) How many squash courts are there at 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club? 

a) 5 

b) 3 

c) 4 

16) Which British player who won the Surrey 

Grass Court Championships in 1963 and 1967 

was later a member of a group of professional 

players known as ‘The Handsome Eight’? 

a) Roger Taylor 

b) Gerald Battrick 

c) Mark Cox 

17) In which year did Roger Federer lose 

in the semi-finals of the Surrey Grass Court 

Championships? 

a) 1997 

b) 1999 

c) 2001 

18) Which Surbiton club captain went on to 

become LTA President? 

a) Derek Howorth 

b) Cathie Sabin 

c) Martin Corrie 

19) How many left-handed men have won the 

singles at Wimbledon? 

a) 8 

b) 12 

c) 17 

20) Which British band released a single called 

Anyone For Tennis in 1968? 

a) The Kinks 

b) Cream 

c) The Who 

Answers: 1) c; 2) c; 3) a; 4) c; 5) c; 6) a; 7) c; 8) a; 9) b; 10) b; 11) a; 12) c; 13) a; 14) c; 15) c; 16) a; 17) b; 18) a; 19) a; 20) b. 


crosshead 


Come and enjoy a great range of activities including: 

TENNIS 

• 6 all-weather, 

3 artificial clay and 

11 grass tennis courts 

• Indoor courts 

(October – March) 

• Floodlit courts 

• Junior and adult 

coaching 

• Social tennis 

• Leagues and teams 

SQUASH 

• 4 heated and 

air-conditioned 

squash courts 

• Junior and adult 

coaching 

• Social sessions 

• Leagues and teams 

FITNESS 

• Life Fitness gym and 

studio 

• Free weights 

• Weight resistance 

machines 

• Studio and classes 

• Free induction and 

programme advice 

For a FREE one-day guest pass, text ‘Surbiton’ followed 

by your name and email address to 85500 

(Normal text rates apply) 

Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club, Berrylands, Surbiton, Surrey, KT5 8JT 

T: 020 8399 1594 | E: info@surbiton.org | www.surbiton.org

Surbiton_Trophy_Programme_2017

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