Rod Laver facts for kids
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Laver in 2015
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| Full name | Rodney George Laver |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Australia |
| Residence | Carlsbad, California, U.S. |
| Born | 9 August 1938 Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia |
| Turned pro | 1963 (amateur tour from 1956) |
| Retired | 1979 |
| Plays | Left-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Prize money | US$1,565,413 |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1981 (member page) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 1689–538 (75.84%) in pre Open-Era & Open Era |
| Career titles | 198 (72 open era titles listed by ATP) |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (1961, Lance Tingay) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1960, 1962, 1969) |
| French Open | W (1962, 1969) |
| Wimbledon | W (1961, 1962, 1968, 1969) |
| US Open | W (1962, 1969) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | RR – 2nd (1970) |
| WCT Finals | F (1971, 1972) |
| Professional majors | |
| US Pro | W (1964, 1966, 1967) |
| Wembley Pro | W (1964, 1965, 1966, 1967) |
| French Pro | W (1967) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 235–77 (75.32%) |
| Career titles | 28 |
| Highest ranking | No. 11 (per ATP) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1959, 1960, 1961, 1969) |
| French Open | W (1961) |
| Wimbledon | W (1971) |
| US Open | F (1960, 1970, 1973) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | F (1959) |
| French Open | W (1961) |
| Wimbledon | W (1959, 1960) |
| Team competitions | |
| Davis Cup | W (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1973) |
Rodney George Laver (born August 9, 1938) is a famous Australian former tennis player. Many people consider him one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He was ranked the world number 1 professional player for five years in a row, from 1965 to 1969. Some sources also say he was number one in 1964 and 1970. He was also the top amateur player in 1961 and 1962. Rod Laver won an amazing 198 singles titles, which is more than any other player in history!
Laver won 11 major singles titles called Grand Slams. He also won 8 Pro major titles. He achieved the incredible feat of winning all four Grand Slam singles titles in one year, known as the Grand Slam, not once, but twice! He did this in 1962 and again in 1969. His 1969 Grand Slam is still the only time a man has done this in the Open Era of tennis. He also won the "Pro Slam" in 1967, which meant winning all three major professional tournaments in one year. Laver was great on all types of courts: grass, clay, hard, carpet, and wood. He also helped Australia win five Davis Cup titles. The Rod Laver Arena and the Laver Cup tournament are named after him.
Contents
Early Life and Tennis Beginnings
Rodney George Laver was born in Rockhampton, Australia, on August 9, 1938. He was the third of four children. His father, Roy Laver, was a cattleman and butcher.
Rod Laver left school as a teenager to focus on his tennis career. He was coached by Charlie Hollis and later by Harry Hopman, who was the captain of Australia's Davis Cup team. Hopman gave Laver the nickname "Rocket."
Rod Laver's Amazing Career
Amateur Years (1956–1962)
In 1957, Laver became both the Australian and US Junior champion. He became well-known in 1959 when he reached three finals at Wimbledon. He won the mixed doubles title with Darlene Hard. In 1960, he won his first major singles title at the Australian Championships. He beat Neale Fraser in a tough five-set final.
In 1961, Laver won his first Wimbledon singles title. He beat Chuck McKinley in a very quick match that lasted only 53 minutes. This was one of the shortest men's singles Wimbledon finals ever. Laver was ranked the world's number one amateur player in 1961.
In 1962, Laver made history by becoming the first male player since Don Budge in 1938 to win all four Grand Slam singles titles in the same year. This amazing achievement is called a Grand Slam. He won 18 other titles that year, making his total for the season 22. This included the Italian Championships and the German Championships. Winning these three clay court titles (Paris, Rome, and Hamburg) was a rare feat.
At the Australian Championships, Laver beat Roy Emerson in the final. The hardest part of his Grand Slam journey was the French Championships on slow clay courts. There, he won three tough five-set matches in a row. At Wimbledon, his path was much easier. He lost only one set during the entire tournament. At the US Championships, Laver also had an easy time, losing only two sets. He defeated Emerson again in the final. Laver was ranked the world's number one amateur for 1962.
Professional Tennis (1963–1976)
Before the Open Era (1963–1968)
In December 1962, Laver became a professional player. This meant he could no longer play in the Grand Slam tournaments for a while. He quickly became one of the top professional players. He competed against stars like Ken Rosewall, Lew Hoad, and Andrés Gimeno. He also played against Pancho Gonzales when Gonzales returned to full-time play.
Over the next seven years, Laver won the U.S. Pro Tennis Championships five times. This included four wins in a row starting in 1966. In 1964, Laver won 17 out of 24 matches against Rosewall. He also won two very important titles: the US Pro Championships and the Wembley Championships. Many believe his win at Wembley, where he came back from behind, marked the start of his long time as world number one.
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In 1965, Laver was clearly the top professional player. He won 17 titles and beat Rosewall in 13 of their 18 matches. In 1967, Laver won 19 titles. This included the Wimbledon Pro, the US Pro Championships, the Wembley Pro Championships, and the French Pro Championship. Winning all four of these major professional titles in one year is known as a "Professional Grand Slam." The Wimbledon Pro tournament in 1967 was the only professional event ever held on Wimbledon's Centre Court before the Open Era began.
During the Open Era (1968–1976)
The Open Era of tennis began in 1968. This meant professional players could finally compete in Grand Slam events again. Laver became Wimbledon's first Open Era champion in 1968. He beat Arthur Ashe and Tony Roche to win the title.
In 1969, Laver achieved his second calendar-year Grand Slam. He won all four Grand Slam tournaments again! He sealed this amazing feat with a win over Roche in the US Open final. He won 18 of the 32 singles tournaments he entered that year. This is still the Open Era record for most titles in a single year. He also had a fantastic win-loss record of 106 wins and only 16 losses.
Laver won the Wimbledon title for the fourth time in a row that he entered the tournament. He also set a record of 31 consecutive match victories at Wimbledon. Unlike his first Grand Slam in 1962, Laver in 1969 played against all the best professional and amateur players in the world. He showed how versatile he was by winning Grand Slams on grass and clay. He also won important hard court and indoor tournaments.
In the early 1970s, Laver played fewer Grand Slam tournaments. This was partly due to his contracts with different tennis tours. However, he remained a top player on the WCT tours and earned a lot of prize money. In 1971, Laver won seven titles, including the Italian Open. He also became the first tennis player to earn over US$1 million in career prize money.
In 1973, Laver helped Australia win the Davis Cup again. He won all six of his matches in the semifinals and final. In 1974, Laver won six titles and finished the year as the World No. 4. At 36 years old, he was the oldest player in the Open Era to be in the top five at the end of the year.
Laver mostly retired from the main tour in 1976. Despite turning 30 just after the Open Era began, Laver had incredible success. He won 74 singles titles in the Open Era. He also won 37 doubles titles. His career earnings were about $1,540,000.
Key Rivalries
Rod Laver had many exciting matches against other great players.
- Ken Rosewall: Laver had a long and friendly rivalry with Ken Rosewall from 1963 to 1976. They played over 130 matches, with Laver winning more of them.
- Pancho Gonzales: Against the older Pancho Gonzales, Laver won 43 out of 65 matches.
- Roy Emerson: Laver also had a long rivalry with his fellow Australian, Roy Emerson. They first met in 1958. Laver won 49 out of 67 matches against Emerson.
- Arthur Ashe: Laver had a strong record against Arthur Ashe, winning 21 out of 24 matches. Ashe's first win against Laver came in 1974, when Laver was 35 years old.
- John Newcombe: Laver also had many battles with John Newcombe, winning 16 out of their 21 matches.
Davis Cup Success
Rod Laver was a key player for Australia in the Davis Cup. He helped Australia win the Davis Cup four years in a row, from 1959 to 1962. In 1973, professional players were allowed to play in the Davis Cup for the first time. Laver was part of the winning team for the fifth time. He won two singles matches and one doubles match in the final. Australia beat the United States 5–0. Australia won the Davis Cup every year Laver played in the competition. He won 16 out of 20 singles matches and all four of his doubles matches in the Davis Cup.
How Rod Laver Played Tennis
Even though Rod Laver was of average height, he had a very complete tennis game. He was known for his "serve-and-volley" style, where he would serve and then quickly run to the net to hit the next shot. He also hit powerful groundstrokes (shots from the back of the court). People described his technique as "technically faultless."
Laver was left-handed, and his serve was hard to read. He hit his groundstrokes with topspin, which made the ball dip and bounce high. He also used an attacking topspin lob, which became a strong weapon. He was very fast and had a strong left forearm. This strength allowed him to hit powerful winning shots even when he was running and stretching far out of reach. At the net, he hit strong volleys. He was also hard to lob over because he was so agile.
When he first became a professional, Laver learned to control his exciting, risky shots. He learned to play smarter, more consistent tennis. In his best years, he could change his style to fit any court surface or weather condition. Laver was also very good in long, five-set matches, often finding ways to win by changing his tactics.
Rod Laver's Legacy in Tennis
Many people believe Rod Laver is the greatest tennis player ever. He was ranked the world's number one amateur in 1961 and 1962. He was also the number one professional player from 1965 to 1969.
Some tennis experts, like Jack Kramer, had different opinions. However, many others, including Dan Maskell, John Barrett, and Tony Trabert, believe Laver is the best of all time. Trabert said, "Rod Laver is the best player who ever played the game because he's done something no one has ever done... he won the Grand Slam as an amateur and he won the Grand Slam as a pro."
Other experts point out that Laver won a record 184 singles titles in his career. He also holds the record for most titles won in a single year in the amateur era (22 in 1962), the professional era (19 in 1967), and the Open Era (18 in 1969). In 1967, he won a "Professional Grand Slam" by winning all four major professional tournaments.
In 1986, a poll of 37 experts ranked Laver first among all-time great players. In 2000, the Associated Press voted Laver "The Male Tennis Player of the Century." In 2017, tennis star Roger Federer called Rod Laver the greatest of all time.
Laver's 11 Grand Slam singles titles place him among the top players in history. He is the only player to have won all four Grand Slam singles tournaments in the same year twice. This is an incredible achievement! Because hard courts were not used for Grand Slams in his time, he never won a Grand Slam on that surface. Today, half of the Grand Slams are played on hard courts.
Many people argue that Laver would have won even more Grand Slam titles if he hadn't been banned from competing in them between 1963 and 1968, when he was a professional.
Awards and Recognition
Rod Laver has received many honors for his amazing tennis career:
- In 2000, the main court at Melbourne Park, where the Australian Open is held, was named the Rod Laver Arena in his honor.
- In 2016, he was given the high honor of being appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia.
- The Rod Laver Hall in Wandal, where he played as a child, was named after him in 1963.
- He won the ABC Sports Award of the Year and the BBC Sports Personality World Sport Star of the Year in 1969.
- He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1981.
- He is also an Australian Living Treasure.
- In 1998, he received the Philippe Chatrier Award, the highest award from the International Tennis Federation.
- In 2005, he was named a Queensland Great.
- Bronze statues of Laver have been placed at Melbourne Park and in his hometown of Rockhampton.
Personal Life
On July 27, 1998, Rod Laver had a stroke while being interviewed. He spent a month in the hospital and had some trouble with his memory and speech, but he recovered well.
In 1966, Laver married Mary Benson. She was a divorcee with three children and ten years older than him. They had one son named Rick. Mary Laver passed away in 2012 at the age of 84. Since 2018, he has been living with his partner Susan Johnson.
Laver lives in Carlsbad, California.
Images for kids
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Rod Laver signing autographs at the Dutch Championships in July 1962
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Rod Laver playing in Noordwijk in 1964
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Laver during the Top Tennis Tournament in Amsterdam in May 1969
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Rod Laver at the 1976 ABN World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam
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Laver reaches for a backhand volley against Jovanović during their singles semifinal match in the 1962 Italian Open.
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Bust of Laver at the Pat Rafter Arena, in Queensland.
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Sculpture depicting Rod Laver outside the Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne.
