The 1956 Australian Championships was a
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
tournament that took place on outdoor
Grass court
A grass court is one of the four different types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Grass courts are made of grasses in different compositions depending on the tournament.
Although grass c ...
s at the
Milton Courts,
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, Australia from 20 January to 30 January. It was the 44th edition of the Australian Championships (now known as the
Australian Open), the 4th held in Brisbane, 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 ...
tournament of the year. The singles titles were won by
Lew Hoad
Lewis Alan Hoad (23 November 1934 – 3 July 1994) was an Australian tennis player whose career ran from 1950 to 1973. Hoad won four Major singles tournaments as an amateur (the Australian Championships, French Championships and two Wimbledon ...
and
Mary Carter Reitano
Mary Carter Reitano (''née'' Carter; born 29 November 1934) is a former tennis player from Australia.
As a junior player she won the girls' singles title at the Australian Championships in 1951 and 1952.
Reitano won the singles title at th ...
.
Champions
Men's singles
Lew Hoad
Lewis Alan Hoad (23 November 1934 – 3 July 1994) was an Australian tennis player whose career ran from 1950 to 1973. Hoad won four Major singles tournaments as an amateur (the Australian Championships, French Championships and two Wimbledon ...
defeated
Ken Rosewall
Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...
6–4, 3–6, 6–4, 7–5
Women's singles
Mary Carter defeated
Thelma Coyne Long
Thelma Dorothy Coyne Long (née Coyne; 14 October 1918 – 13 April 2015) was an Australian tennis player and one of the female players who dominated Australian tennis from the mid-1930s to the 1950s. During her career she won 19 Grand Sl ...
3–6, 6–2, 9–7
Men's doubles
Lew Hoad
Lewis Alan Hoad (23 November 1934 – 3 July 1994) was an Australian tennis player whose career ran from 1950 to 1973. Hoad won four Major singles tournaments as an amateur (the Australian Championships, French Championships and two Wimbledon ...
/
Ken Rosewall
Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...
defeated
Don Candy
Don Candy (31 March 1929 – 14 June 2020) was an Australian tennis player who was mainly successful in doubles.
At the Grand Slam tournaments he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Championships singles event in 1952 and 1959. In the s ...
/
Mervyn Rose
Mervyn Gordon Rose AM (23 January 1930 – 23 July 2017) was an Australian male tennis player who won seven Grand Slam titles (singles, doubles and mixed doubles).
Rose was born in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, and turned professional in 19 ...
10–8, 13–11, 6–4
Women's doubles
Mary Bevis Hawton
Mary Renetta Hawton (née Bevis; 4 September 1924 – 18 January 1981) was a tennis player from Australia. Her career ranged from the 1940s to the 1950s.
Hawton won the women's doubles title at the Australian Championships five times. In 1958 ...
/
Thelma Coyne Long
Thelma Dorothy Coyne Long (née Coyne; 14 October 1918 – 13 April 2015) was an Australian tennis player and one of the female players who dominated Australian tennis from the mid-1930s to the 1950s. During her career she won 19 Grand Sl ...
defeated
Mary Carter /
Beryl Penrose
Beryl Penrose (22 December 1930 – 20 June 2021) was an Australian international tennis player. She competed in the Australian Open eight times, from 1950 to 1957. Penrose won the singles title in 1955 defeating compatriot Thelma Coyne Long i ...
6–2, 5–7, 9–7
Mixed doubles
Beryl Penrose
Beryl Penrose (22 December 1930 – 20 June 2021) was an Australian international tennis player. She competed in the Australian Open eight times, from 1950 to 1957. Penrose won the singles title in 1955 defeating compatriot Thelma Coyne Long i ...
/
Neale Fraser
Neale Andrew Fraser (born 3 October 1933) is a former number one amateur male tennis-player from Australia, born in Melbourne, Victoria, the son of a Victorian judge. Fraser is the last man to have completed the triple crown, i.e. having won ...
defeated
Mary Bevis Hawton
Mary Renetta Hawton (née Bevis; 4 September 1924 – 18 January 1981) was a tennis player from Australia. Her career ranged from the 1940s to the 1950s.
Hawton won the women's doubles title at the Australian Championships five times. In 1958 ...
/
Roy Emerson
Roy Stanley Emerson (born 3 November 1936) is an Australian former tennis player who won 12 Grand Slam singles titles and 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, for a total of 28 Grand Slam titles. He is the only male player to have completed a caree ...
6–2, 6–4
References
External links
Australian Open official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Championships,1956
1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, ar ...
1956 in Australian tennis
January 1956 sports events in Australia