Tennis recreational players and is also a popular worldwide spectator sport. The four Grand Slam tournaments (also referred to as the Majors) are especially popular: the Australian Open played on hard courts, the French Open played on red clay courts, Wimbledon played on grass courts, and the US Open also played on hard courts. Historians believe that the game's ancient origin lay in 12th century northern France, where a ball was struck with the palm of the hand. Louis X of France was a keen player of jeu de paume ("game of the palm"), which evolved into real tennis, and became
Hampton Court railway station Hampton Court railway station Hampton Court railway station is a suburban terminus station in East Molesey in Surrey a few metres short of Hampton Court Bridge, the midpoint of which is a boundary of Greater London. The station is down the line from . Across the river the station serves Hampton Court Palace and its adjoining park-side houses, riverside homes, hotels and boutiques in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, and is in Transport for London's Travelcard Zone 6; the station is across the River Thames from Hampton Court Park, Gardens and Bushy Park. The station is the terminus