The 1878 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the

All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, also known as the All England Club, based at Church Road, Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London, England, is a Gentlemen's club, private members' club. It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon ...

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The tournament ran from 15 July until 20 July. It was the 2nd staging of the

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...

, and the first

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

tennis event of 1878. There were 34 competitors, excluding Spencer Gore who as champion was not required to participate until the best of the challengers had won the All comers' final. The winner of the All Comers' final was

Frank Hadow Patrick Francis "Frank" Hadow (2 January 1855 – 29 June 1946) was an English tennis player, who won the Wimbledon championship in 1878. Personal life Born 2 January 1855 Regent's Park, his father was Patrick Douglas Hadow who was educated at ...

, a planter from

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

who was on leave in Britain. He defeated

Robert Erskine Robert Erskine (1735–1780) was a Scottish inventor and engineer who came to the British colonial Province of New Jersey in 1771 to run the ironworks at Ringwood, New Jersey. He subsequently became sympathetic to the movement for independenc ...

, a friend of the family who had enticed him to participate in the championship, in straight sets 6–4, 6–4, 6–4. On 18 July 1878 Hadow defeated reigning champion Spencer Gore in three sets, 7–5, 6–1, 9–7 before a crowd of about 700 spectators. Hadow effectively introduced the tactic of lobbing to counter Gore's volleying game. The height of the net was reduced from at the posts and in the middle to at the posts and in the middle. The distance of the service line from the net was reduced from to .

Arthur Myers Sir Arthur Mielziner Myers (19 May 1868 – 9 October 1926) was a New Zealand politician. He was Mayor of Auckland City from 1905 to 1909, Member of the House of Representatives from 1910 to 1921, and a Cabinet Minister. Today he is remembered ...

was the first player to serve over hand.

Gentlemen's singles

Final

defeated Spencer Gore, 7–5, 6–1, 9–7 *This was Hadow's first and only Major.

All Comers' Final

defeated

, 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 100 Years of Wimbledon, by Lance Tingay (Guinness Superlatives Ltd. 1977)

References

External links

Official Wimbledon Championships website
{{Wimbledon championships

Wimbledon Championship The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is play ...

1878 in sports July 1878 events