The four Grand Slams explained
Where and when the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open are played, and what a "Grand Slam" means.
The four Grand Slams, also called the majors, are the biggest tournaments in tennis. They carry the most ranking points and prize money, and the men's matches are best-of-five sets.
- Australian Open: January, hard court, Melbourne Park, Melbourne.
- Roland Garros (French Open): late May to early June, clay court, Paris.
- Wimbledon: late June to July, grass court, London.
- US Open: late August to September, hard court, New York.
Career and calendar Slams
Winning all four majors during a career is called a career Grand Slam. Carlos Alcaraz completed it at the 2026 Australian Open, and Novak Djokovic has won all four many times over on the way to 24 titles.
Winning all four in the same calendar year is far rarer. Only five players have done it in singles: Don Budge (1938), Maureen Connolly (1953), Rod Laver (1962 and 1969), Margaret Court (1970) and Steffi Graf (1988).
You can see every champion since 2000 on the event pages for the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open.
Sources: ITF; Grand Slam tournament websites.
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