Davis was appointed as the U.S. Public Parks Commissioner in 1911 and later became the Philippines’ Governor-General in 1929. Davis was instrumental in the development of tennis in the Philippines when he built tennis courts and sports facilities in almost every municipality of the country. His influence in the game is evidently shown with the construction of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in 1936, where three stadiums were built originally for tennis. The Philippines joined the Davis Cup Competition in 1926, to play Japan in San Francisco. In the 1920’s and 1930’s, tennis in Asia meant the Philippines, India and Japan led by Gil Fargas, Emilio Bolano, Johnny Ladaw, Francisco & Guillermo Aragon, Leonardo & Juanito Gavia, Felix Ampon, Amado Sanchez, Manuel Barredo and Lope Yngayo. Yngayo was the country’s first Davis Cup match winner.

Since the early days of the Cup competition, tennis has grown to accommodate a record of 115 nations in 1995 and it continues to expand with the encouragement of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). Tennis attracts sell-out crowds and worldwide television interest wherever it is staged. The exciting activity in tennis throughout the world is attributable to a national desire for sports participation because tennis adapts itself admirably to all ages.

With the growth of Davis Cup came many changes in its original concept. The competition came under the jurisdiction of the Davis Cup nations until 1978 when the ITF Annual Meeting approved the merger of the ITF and Davis Cup Nations. 1981 was a huge turning point for the competition when Nippon Electric Corporation of Japan (later to become NEC) agreed to sponsor the Davis Cup for a period of three years with the sum of US$1,000.00. Public interest in the competition was regenerated and commitment from the top players secured the Cup’s prestige and confirmed its position as the most valuable trophy in international team competition. NEC remains the Cup’s principal sponsor.

PHILIPPINE AMATEUR ATHLETIC FEDERATION (EST. 1911)

With the proliferation of sports in 1909, some of the athletic stars were thinking of cashing in on their talents and fame. This became the period of "shamateurism" when amateur sports was taken for granted thereby creating an abnormal situation. Many sports leaders including government officials decided to do something about the menace of professionalism to sports in the Philippines. Through the efforts of Elwood S. Brown, then physical director of YMCA, a general controlling organization was created to confron the erosion of pure sports in November, 1910. The committee assigned to prepare a blueprint for such a controlling body came out with a report and was duly approved thereby establishing the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation in January, 1911. The first elected officers were the following: U.S. Governor General W. Cameron Forbeds, President, Dr. Murray Bartlett, First Vice-President, Mr. Leonard Dyson, Second Vice-President and Mr. Elwood S. Brown, Secretary General.