The Kooyong dilemma: points or practice?

I think it is a good indication as to why Novak Djokovic enjoys coming back to play the Hopman Cup every year. It is a far more fun environment where he guaranteed some solid matches but still knows that the points aren't really necessary as he can make those back at other tournaments during the year. The credibility of Kooyong was brought into question last year for me when Bernard Tomic won, similar to this year's Hopman Cup I guess, as I think a lot of players only treat it as an exhibition because they know it isn't worth ranking points, unless they are sacrificing some from the previous year. Compare this with the grit and determination that has been seen recently in Brisbane and Sydney by players who know this could be their last hit out before the open. I definitely think the risk outweighs the reward when choosing to play Sydney or Brisbane rather than Kooyong as, for most at least, the points are far more important to start the year and could put you in a good position to defend them next year anyway.

Tennis on grass at Kooyong was enchanting and traditional. Sadly a thing of the past nowadays. We won't see the Australian Open go anywhere, it's established at Melbourne Park at a great world class modern venue. It would be great to see grass retained as our surface of choice for all Davis Cup ties, but unfortunately our grass courts and/or complexes are disappearing or decaying which is a great shame. -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download it now [http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/the-roar/id327174726?mt=8].

scorching hot?...31 degrees?...that is a cool change in Perth...just ask the Hopman Cup players and a very mild first week of the Open forecast

clipper, yah Maccabi tennis club own half, and Hokoha club is rumoured to own the other half. I think Hakoha is setting upa social club down there too. But the thing is yes many fans will miss out, and maybe a broader audience will miss out watching matches, and places like royal sydney, and kooyong may have a limited demographic then. But sport makes most of it's money from tv ratings, like he NSL it was fun and probably didn't appeal to a broader audience, but the point is it's fun for that audience who could relate to the NSL. I knew a member at royal sydney and he helped me get tickets to watch federer , and i live locally not in west sydney , so royal sydney and white city are much more convienitant for me, and it's it;s very inconvenient for me and others to have to go out to homebush and west sydney it's a lot of travel. So keeping it at royal sydney or white city is much better for me. Commerically tv ratings are everything anyway. At memorial drive you could watch form court 2 when the players had practice matches, they would get animated and chat to the fans as they played, was very fun and intimate clipper. So maybe they could give kooyong an ever so slight make over, keep it traditional, but melbourne park lacks that suburban atmoshere that kooyong has, and you get a more local crowd at kooyong too, which is good. It very parochial and aussy centric, so it;s great for the aussiy players as they get a very parochial and aussy centric crowd cheering them on. Where as Melbourne park is more broder audience and doesn't give the aussies the edge of that home town feel. Rolland Garros is great like that , it's smaller and very French centric the crowd so a very local feel, and great for the French players playing there. Kooyong, white city, royal sydney, offers that. And less crowd trouble too, Melbourne park has had a few incidents over the years from diverse groups clashing with each the, as it attracts a very international and broad audience. Where as Kooyong never had crowd trouble as it was a very aussy centric crowd, same with Rolland Garros which i have watched the tennis, it is a smaller court smacker crowd, very French and a parochial french crowd, it's great to watch too.

Johnno - you won't get any major tennis ties down White City anytime soon - the grandstands are in disrepair (if they're still there) and it is half owned by Maccabi Tennis Club and Hokoha club is rumoured to get the other half. Royal Sydney was nice, but far too small - many people missed out on a chance to see Federer play. The Australia Open was in danger of being lost before the move to Flinders Park - now it's firmly entrenched as one of the slams, at least equal to the French or even US. I do agree that it is far better to see games in more intimate venues, but commercial realities have mostly put an end to this - even the NSW open struggles to get the top males.

Some great memories, sadly those days of Australian tennis in grass are becoming a distant memory

I love tennis at Kooyong, I wish they still played the OZ open there. It has far more atmosphere. It is a real old school cauldron energy, it has a big touch of suburbia, rolled in with the fact it's hosted elite tennis tournament in the Aussy open with the world best tennis players in the past slugging it out for australian tennis open glory. I love the old wooden seated stands , it goes quite high up too. You feel really close to the action, though at the same time, and it has a feel that you are at your local pennant tennis club. A kangaroo could run across , and it wouldn't feel out of place. So I say take the OZ open back to kooyong and the davis cup, it has more suburban atmosphere than the big Melbourne Park, which feels souless unlike kooyong. Some great matches and historic classic moments in aussy sport at kooyong. Pat Cash winning the davis cup for australia as a 17 yr old vs Sweden beating Micheal Pernfors, in the decider. And Cashy and edberg had a classic duel in 1987 at kooyong, which edberg won the aussy open in a classic match. And kooyong was grass too, loved it. They have played the odd davis cup tie there. But yes i wish tennis Australia, would play more top tennis ties, at kooyong, white city, or royal sydney golf course. And preferably on grass, . This would bring back the classic serve volley game, synonymous with Australian tennis. Newk, Cashy, Rafter , and many others. So I would not in the slightest oppose the OZ open being brought back to kooyong, unlike the behemoth that is Melbourne park, or Flinders park as it was originally known. I went to the davis cup tie at royal sydney golf course, it had far more atmosphere than the big behemoth that is Melbourne park, which i have also been too. Smaller more intimate crowds, a suburban feel to it. Tennis doesn't need big crowds, it generates it's money from tv ratings, so if many people miss out watching , the point is it doesn't matter, as they can have the tv and watch. And tennis will still bring in the tv ratings. I used to love the old milton park at Brisbane too, and memorial drive at Adeliade which i went one year to watch the rio classic, when i was a little nipper growing up. Memorial drive is great for watching tennis like kooyong. Really intimate, and old wooden stands, the players really have a good joke to with the audience , and get very animated and connected with the audience. Same with king's park tennis club at Perth. So I say more elite tennis, at Kooyong,white city, Milton Park, royal king's park perth, royal sydney, Memorial drive, it's what the fans want too. I used to go and watch the NSW open when it was down at white city, but since they moved it out sadly to that big behemoth at homebush , i don't bother now. White city was convienant for me , just down the road, so easy access for me and others in the eastern suburbs to get to, now sadly they've commercialised the NSW open, and changed it to the sydney international, and lugged it out to homebush which is difficult for me and many others to get to. So the classic Australian tennis courts, tennis australia should utilise more. When they played a davis cup tie in Mildura too, vs Zimbabwe about 15 years ago that was a hit too, watching Pat rafter play serve volley tennis, it was great. Old school grass, was good fun, ,. Tennis needs to connect with a broader and wider audience, and more atmosphere, these old tennis courts are the way to go, as they have fresh energy and athmpshere and tradition, that homebush and the Melbourne tennis centre can't buy and lack. At memorial drive and at white city you'd, be allowed to sit on the other spare court , when the players had practice matches, so your less than 5 metres away from the players . At Melbourne park, or at homebush your in a big stand not right next to the players, unlike at memorial drive or at white city, where you could just sit on the spare court which was always grass, and watch, and you could have a picnic too, and an icy-pole,and a can of mellow yellow, or shelley's, it was good fun, good times.