The spaghetti racket scandal began in May of 1977 when the Swiss Tennis Federation (STF) inquired of the ITF as to the legality of the unusual racket. When a 40 year-old Australian, Barry Phillips-Moore, well past his tennis prime, made it to the round of 16 at the Belgium Open in 1977 with the spaghetti strings, the innovation and not Phillips-Moore’s talents were cited as the reason for his success. Similar success stories, such as Georges Goven reaching the French Open semifinals, led to the STF prohibiting the racket at its closed tournaments, players refusing to compete against the technology, increasing vocal and public concern, and the ITF evaluating racket technology.