"Tennis bracelets" are so named because of a 1987 incident involving what athlete?

Tennis bracelets are 20th century inventions that use small diamonds to create a single bracelet. They weren't called "tennis" bracelets until after a tennis star's jewelry malfunction. The attractive bracelets, sometimes also known as eternity or inline bracelets, can cost hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the style, size and stone.

In the 1987 U.S. Open, tennis star Chris Evert was playing a vigorous match. In the middle of the game, she asked the officials to stop the game because her diamond bracelet had come unclasped and fallen on the court. She asked for time to search for and retrieve her bracelet. Since that time, the bracelet has been referred to as a "tennis bracelet."

The form of a tennis or an eternity bracelet makes it ideal for sporty women whose active lifestyle doesn't lend itself to the wearing of bangles or heavy jewelry. The bracelet is lightweight and flexible, making it less likely to get banged or dinged when playing a sport such as tennis.