TOURNAMENT INFO
TIER: Premier
PRIZE MONEY: $710,000
SURFACE: Grass
DIRECTOR: Patrick Hughesman
The transition from clay to grass on the calendar is swift, with the Aegon Classic coming on the heels of the French Open. Many WTA stars descend upon Birmingham, Britain's most populated city outside of London, to compete for the Maud Watson Trophy and to prepare for Wimbledon. Previous winners include Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King - who was Birmingham's inaugural champion in 1982 and collected the last of her 67 Open Era singles titles here in 1983 - and more recently, Jelena Jankovic, Li Na and Maria Sharapova, who in 2004 became the only player to capture Birmingham and Wimbledon in the same year. Pam Shriver has the most titles in tournament history, having secured four consecutive from 1984 to 1987. Larisa Neiland leads in doubles with six titles. The Aegon Classic, which is being upgraded from International to Premier level in 2013, is hosted less than a mile from the Birmingham city center at the Edgbaston Priory Club, a 12-acre private members facility that includes 29 tennis courts and 10 squash courts. It is one of the country's largest and most popular racquet and leisure clubs. On top of that, the origins of the modern game of lawn tennis are believed to have started in Edgbaston as early as 1859.
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