Kooyong Stadium
Kooyong Stadium is the centre court located at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club which was established in 1892 and has a long and outstanding history as one of the world's most prestigious tennis clubs. Once the home of the Australian Open, the club is now referred to as the spiritual home of tennis in Australia. Kooyong's centre court opened in 1927 and has hosted both the Davis Cup from 1946 and the Australian Open. It continues to host the Kooyong Classic each year in the lead-up to the AO, while Davis Cup tennis returned to the venue in 2016 and 2017.
The stadium opened in 1927 and hosted the Australian Open from that year until 1986, when Melbourne Park (then known as Flinders Park) opened in the heart of Melbourne. The stadium has undergone several renovations throughout its history and was last redeveloped in 2019/20, with the majority of the upper grandstand sections removed to open up the arena and allow for other facilities at the centre to be built including an extension of the clubhouse and car parking. At its peak, the stadium could host up to 15,000 spectators with temporary grandstands boosting this even further, but in more recent times had a 8,500 capacity, which was reduced to 4,500 following the redevelopment. The Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club comprises 26 grass courts, 22 fully lit all-weather en tout cas courts and 3 plexicushion courts.
