Tennis Programmes are excellent tennis collectibles and especially when signed by players who not only attend the event but won the event. To these we can add tennis tickets and event menus and other autograph cards which players signed fro each other or dignitaries attending major functions. The programmes provide valuable stories and event history along with player profiles and draw information. Some have hand written results which is also a nice connection to someone who loved the game as much as we do today.
Obviously, the major events create the most interest with Wimbledon at the top, Davis Cup matches involving Australia, the Australian Open, various state championship events and then the professional tours by Jack Kramer and a host of Aussies who left the amateur ranks to earn an income in the pre 1968 Open era.
These pictures are tickets belonging to an Australian tennis fan W. Riddell who we assume attended the 1888 Wimbledon Championships.
As an administrator with the MCC and an Interstate colonial player, we can only assume he help foster discussions about players in the colonies taking on some of the English cracks and may well have caught up with players such as W.V Eaves and Robert Scott ( see relevant section)
A remarkable find. The Wimbledon museum only have 1890′s tickets so these are indeed rare also. Held by State Library of Victoria.
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