[4][5] During Wimbledon in 1966, Jack Kramer was doing radio commentary for the BBC when Wimbledon's working chairman Herman David came to the broadcast booth and talked to Kramer and BBC tennis exec Bryan Cowgill about the possibility of making the tournament "open" to both amateurs and pros.

Total prize money was US$35,000 for singles and US$10,000 for doubles, making it the largest prize-money event in tennis history at that time.

[8][9] Most of the players had won honours at Wimbledon in their amateur days but had forfeited the right to play there on turning professional.

In December 1967, the Annual Meeting of the British Lawn Tennis Association voted overwhelmingly to admit players of all categories for the 1968 Wimbledon Championships and other future tournaments in Britain.

Faced with a fait accompli, the ILTF yielded and allowed each nation to determine its own legislation regarding amateur and professional players.