The Great Steffi Graf

[britbox]

Steffi Graf turns 50 today. One, if not the greatest player of all time.

22 Grand Slams
107 Career Titles
377 weeks #1
Winner of all four majors at least four times
Golden Slam Winner 1988

Hail Steffi!

 

[Horsa]

Steffi Graf turns 50 today. One, if not the greatest player of all time.

22 Grand Slams
107 Career Titles
377 weeks #1
Winner of all four majors at least four times
Golden Slam Winner 1988

Hail Steffi!

Gosh! Doesn't time fly? I just can't believe she's that old & that many years have gone by since she was a regular player. I remember it like it was yesterday. I loved watching her as a girl & learnt quite a bit about playing the game from watching her play.

Happy Birthday, Steffi Graf!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

My favorite all time female tennis player......I remember many years ago someone nicknamed her 'the silent assassin'.....a gracious sportswomen......Have a Great Birthday Steffi!

 

[Moxie]

Jon Wertheim noted the other day that she'd won all 4 Majors 4 times, and he considered it the most under-appreciated achievement in tennis. I also think it's worth emphasizing the 1988 Golden Slam. Not to be confused with the Golden Career Slam. In 1988, Steffi won the CYGS, and the Olympic Gold Medal. In one year. An amazing player. All hail, indeed.

 

[tented]

In 1988, Steffi won the CYGS, and the Olympic Gold Medal. In one year. An amazing player. All hail, indeed.

I highly doubt that will ever happen again.

 

[Moxie]

I highly doubt that will ever happen again.

As sports fans, we tend to believe that all records are there to be broken...eventually. But given how rare the CYGS is, and that it has to coincide with an Olympic year, I think you could be right.

 

[tented]

As sports fans, we tend to believe that all records are there to be broken...eventually. But given how rare the CYGS is, and that it has to coincide with an Olympic year, I think you could be right.

Precisely — the opportunity is only there once every four years, and the player needs to have already won the AO, RG, and Wimbledon before going to the Olympics.

The CYGS, itself, is practically a unicorn. Not even Serena, Roger, or Rafa have managed to do it since Steffi accomplished it three decades ago. I think you have to go back to Laver’s 1969 CYGS to find the only other time it has been done in the Open Era.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Precisely — the opportunity is only there once every four years, and the player needs to have already won the AO, RG, and Wimbledon before going to the Olympics.

The CYGS, itself, is practically a unicorn. Not even Serena, Roger, or Rafa have managed to do it since Steffi accomplished it three decades ago. I think you have to go back to Laver’s 1969 CYGS to find the only other time it has been done in the Open Era.

Margaret Court did it in 1970 and it is open era.

 

[Moxie]

Precisely — the opportunity is only there once every four years, and the player needs to have already won the AO, RG, and Wimbledon before going to the Olympics.

The CYGS, itself, is practically a unicorn. Not even Serena, Roger, or Rafa have managed to do it since Steffi accomplished it three decades ago. I think you have to go back to Laver’s 1969 CYGS to find the only other time it has been done in the Open Era.

To me, the fact that Serena got within two matches of it in 2015 and couldn't pull it off further proves the point. Given the elite players that can't even manage the CYGS, ATP or WTA, what are the chances that we see a real Golden Slam again? Poor.

 

[Moxie]

Margaret Court did it in 1970 and it is open era.

She did in 1970, good point. But they didn't play Olympics then. Anyway, we still have to reach back to 1970.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Even including the old era, CYGS has been done only six times:

Men: Don Budge 1938, Laver 1962 and 1969

Women: Maureen Connoly 1953, Margaret Court 1970 and Steffi Graf 1988.

Some may not know that the term "Grand Slam" was used in tennis only since 1933 when Jack Crawford tried to
do it, but failed at the US Open to Fred Perry. The term "Grand Slam" actually comes from the card game Bridge
(which I play at tournament level) and refers to taking all 13 tricks in a bridge hand.

Just like "Golden Slam" refers to achieving CYGS and the Olympics Gold in the same year, the term
"Super Slam" refers to achieving CYGS and WTF in the same year. Not sure which of the above six
achieved Super Slam. Also, in old times WTF might not even have existed. Need to look up. However,
WTF existed in 1988 and Steffi failed to win it. Gabriela Sebatini won the event.
Actually Steffi lost in the semifinals to Pam Shriver.

"Super Golden Slam" would refer to achieving CYGS, Olympics Gold and WTF in the same year.

 

[Moxie]

I never heard of a "Super Slam."

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I never heard of a "Super Slam."

………….probably because nobody did it.

 

[Moxie]

………….probably because nobody did it.

So who invented the concept? You?

 

[GameSetAndMath]

So who invented the concept? You?

No, I don't think it is attributed to any specific person, just like Golden Slam.

But the term "Grand Slam" was coined by American Journalist Kieran (no, not our Kieran) who was a bridge enthusiast in 1933.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Neither "Golden Slam" nor "Super Slam" are terms associated with the game of Bridge. There is a term "Small Slam" in Bridge and it refers to taking all but one trick in a bridge hand (12 of the 13 possible). That term actually could be used in tennis also to refer to situations when a player won three of the four slams in the same year.

The "Small Slam" is achieved by Roger three times (04,06 and 07), by Novak twice (11 and 15) and by Ralph once (10).

Beware that I just introduced the term and it is not a standard term used in tennis.

Incidentally, in the days of Crawford and Perry, the term "Grand Slam" always referred to CYGS and there was no need to say explicitly calendar year. At that time (and now as well) individual events were called Majors. Nowadays, we use the term "Grand Slam" when we really mean "Major".

 

[Moxie]

Neither "Golden Slam" nor "Super Slam" are terms associated with the game of Bridge. There is a term "Small Slam" in Bridge and it refers to taking all but one trick in a bridge hand (12 of the 13 possible). That term actually could be used in tennis also to refer to situations when a player won three of the four slams in the same year.

The "Small Slam" is achieved by Roger three times (04,06 and 07), by Novak twice (11 and 15) and by Ralph once (10).

Beware that I just introduced the term and it is not a standard term used in tennis.

Incidentally, in the days of Crawford and Perry, the term "Grand Slam" always referred to CYGS and there was no need to say explicitly calendar year. At that time (and now as well) individual events were called Majors. Nowadays, we use the term "Grand Slam" when we really mean "Major".

Our friend @britbox has always been rather meticulous about this. There was a long time he wouldn't refer to the 4 Majors as anything other than that. Those of us who care know what the Grand Slam really means. And why it's so difficult to achieve. As to all of your bridge variations....Lol.

 

[britbox]

Our friend @britbox has always been rather meticulous about this. There was a long time he wouldn't refer to the 4 Majors as anything other than that. Those of us who care know what the Grand Slam really means. And why it's so difficult to achieve. As to all of your bridge variations....Lol.

Absolutely. There is only one Grand Slam and it requires winning all four in one year. Everything else is a media creation and dilutes the real thing.