The US Open Tennis Championships, held annually on acrylic hardcourts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York City, is the fourth and final Grand Slam event of the year, typically starting on the Sunday before the last Monday of August. Originally known as the U.S. National Championships, it began in 1881 on grass courts in Newport, Rhode Island, and holds the distinction of being the only Grand Slam never cancelled due to the World Wars or the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament features five primary championships—men's and women's singles and doubles, plus mixed doubles—alongside junior, wheelchair, and senior events, and has been played at its current Flushing Meadows location since 1978. In a significant rule change, since 2022 the final set (third for women, fifth for men) is decided by an extended 10-point tiebreaker if it reaches six-all, standardizing play across all four majors and addressing player fatigue. The first men's champion was Richard Sears, who won seven consecutive titles, while the first women's champion in 1887 was 17-year-old Ellen Hansell, marking the tournament's long and storied history.