Sunday Scroll: A thunder Down Under

The first iteration of the Australian Open dates back more than a century — the first tournament for men was held in 1905 and the first for women in 1922, both run by the Lawn Tennis Association of Australasia.

• In 1927, the tournament was renamed the Australian Championships, before becoming the Australian Open in 1969. Initially played across multiple major Aussie cities, Melbourne was eventually named the lone annual host in 1972.

The Open struggled to find its footing in the early years. Because Australia is just so far away, many international players resisted competing Down Under. While the other three major tourneys — Wimbledon, the French Open, and the U.S. Open — had distinct, long-standing identities, the Aussie Open’s renaissance really began in the 1990s.

• Then-director Paul McNamee made it his mission to put the event on equal footing with its Northern Hemisphere counterparts, saying, “We needed to be ourselves, which was a sun-drenched nation that needs to have a big casual outdoor party.”

• And party they did. The Aussie Open now draws in the biggest names in tennis and the largest attendance of all the Grand Slams. Swiss legend Roger Federer even nicknamed the tournament the “Happy Slam.” You can’t help but smile.

Now for the nitty gritty. On Thursday, 256 combined men’s and women’s singles players and 128 combined doubles pairs were drawn. Those athletes will play four single-elimination opening rounds leading up to the quarter-finals which begin on January 20th.

• Then, it all comes down to the women’s singles finals on January 25th and men’s singles on the 26th, local time.

As for the playing surface, while the Open was originally played on grass, it’s been held on hardcourts since 1988 and on Melbourne Park’s signature Australian Open True Blue since 2008.

Let’s talk money. The Aussie Open’s total prize pot comes in at a record $96.5M Australian dollars (about $59.9M USD), up nearly 12% from last year. Each singles champion (Grand Slams provide equal pay for men and women) will walk home with a cool $3.5M Australian dollars (about $2.17M USD). Not too shabby.

The Open first-round action continues this morning and resumes tonight. If you’re watching from North America, tune in to ESPN in the U.S. and TSN in Canada.

• And if your 2025 resolution was to read more, you can browse all the live updates here. Game, set, match.