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
Jeu de paume called "jeu de courte paume" or just "courte paume" ("short palm") to distinguish it from the outdoor version, "longue paume" ("long palm"), played on a field of variable length. Jeu de paume at the 1908 Summer Olympics was a medal event; American Jay Gould II won the Gold medal. Since 1740, jeu de paume has been the subject of an amateur world championship, held each year in September. It is the oldest active trophy in international sport. Various other forms of handball may be related to one degree or another; this is generally difficult to ascertain with certainty, and some,