A TENNIS tournament, which once played host to Andy and Judy Murray, is once again celebrating after serving up an ace at the LTA Tennis Awards.

The East Lothian Open is Scotland’s biggest tournament in the sport, attracting about 500 players of all ages and abilities to its courts every July.

Held in North Berwick, it is an event that players from across the UK circle in their diaries first, a challenge which Scotland’s famous sporting family took up when Andy was just a junior.

Many years on and the East Lothian Open has returned to the spotlight, named Scotland’s Competition of the Year by tennis’ national governing body, the LTA.

“People tend to come back from all over the country on an annual basis and there is always a good vibe around the event,” said Stuart Rye, North Berwick Tennis Club, with the club celebrating its centenary year this year.

“We have six courts that are used from 9am-10pm for the tournament and the finals are played here on the Saturday.

“Last year, there were more than 440 competitors entering multiple events and around a thousand matches are played over the week.

“There’s always food and drink available all day at North Berwick and a number of side events to keep competitors entertained.

“It’s always been well attended across the years and Andy even gives it a mention in his book!”

Successful regional winners will now progress through to the LTA’s national finals in each of their respective categories, with East Lothian’s accomplishments to be judged alongside the best in the country.

Scott Lloyd, LTA chief executive, said: “These awards acknowledge the extraordinary contribution of the individuals and venues that help us open tennis up, bringing new fans and players to our sport.

“Now more than ever, it is important we celebrate their contributions and hope that tennis can rally together to get through this very challenging time.”

Launched in 2015, the LTA Tennis Awards serve to acknowledge the many thousands of individuals involved in tennis – from the 25,000 volunteers, to the 4,400 coaches and 940 officials, as well as the 20,000 schools, 2,700 clubs and over 9,700 LTA approved tournaments across the country.

The future of this year’s East Lothian Open is unclear.

It is still scheduled to take place this July as all LTA-approved competitions are cancelled until May 31 only but that deadline could be extended in the weeks to come. Organisers would consider a reduced format.

For more information about the work the LTA is doing to grow tennis in Britain, go to www.LTA.org.uk