All eyes in the tennis world are on Paris, where the French Open wraps up this week.
After that, it's a mad dash to the UK for Wimbledon, then on to New York for the last of the four Majors, the U.S. Open. Each of the four matches offer players the possibility of winning most prestigious prize in tennis - the Grand Slam - and it all begins in Australia.
Hosted every January during Melbourne's summer, the Australian Open is the first stop of the Majors; a win here means a sweep of all four in the same calendar year - and the Grand Slam title - is possible.
Swiss boy, Roger Federer, had a 2010 Grand Slam dream that began in Melbourne, but was dashed this week when Robin Soderling of Sweden beat him in the French Open quarterfinals. The last player with any hope of winning a 2010 Slam, American Serena Williams, was also defeated by Australia's own Samantha Stosur. Headlines everywhere read: Smokin' Sam Downs Serena. Ace!
Winning four Slams in one calendar year is quite a feat. Only two players in history have ever done it: John Donald "Don" Budge (1938) and Rod Laver (1969). It's no coincidence that the Australian open is played in the Rod Laver Arena, but whether it was the Rockhampton, Queensland native's success that inspired the passion or something else tennis is "all the go" in Australia. In fact, the country has the highest tennis participation rate in the world.
More than 700 courts have been built or resurfaced in Australia in the last two years and more than $134 million has been spent on new tennis facilities. The resurfacing idea is an attempt to move to something more cushioned and less likely to retain heat; the new the blue surface even looks cool. Oddly enough, the Australian Open is the only one of the four Grand Slam venues to have adopted an extreme heat policy - even though temperatures at the U.S. Open are likely to get as high as, or higher than, Melbourne's in January. Australia is also one of the few tournaments with indoor play when it's hot.
So, if you're heading Down Under, bring your racket and have a go at tennis - Aussie style. You're bound to find some competition. After all, three of the 25 top youngest male players in the world with an ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) ranking are Australian.
Locum tennis, anyone?