Here we have two smaller events on the ATP 500 tour. The events are played in the capital city of Vienna and Doha. They are among my favorite events to attend because of attendance size and the big names that they draw.  So, if you are in Vienna in fall, skip Oktoberfest and head over to the Marx Halle to see great tennis and perhaps, meet a player!

Ah the French crowd! The biggest supporter of the underdog. The bane of most players who are not French who happen to be drawn against their country man or woman. And finally, the best crowd with quick slogans or simply, "La Marseillaise".  You gotta love em! Well, that is if you are not Martina Hinggis who was reduced to tears at the 1999 finals of the French Open!

This is where it all started for me - at the US Open! Of the majors, it is perhaps the loudest and most exciting. It also seems to draw the biggest names in entertainment and government.  You do not have to look hard to find a familiar face in the crowd who just dropped in to catch one of the top-seeded players at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Certainly, the oldest of the grand slams and the most prestigious in terms of tradition, grounds and player's consensus. Wimbledon is finally catching up to the use of modern technology for line calling as well as play on the middle Sunday. Nevertheless, it still maintains that air of elitism in the tennis world and sports in general.