The United States Open Tennis Championships began on Wednesday, August 29th, at Forest Hills in the suburbs of New York City.

Both the joint top male seeds, Ston Smith of the U.S.A. and llie Nastase of Rumania, had comfortable wins. Smith beat the Frenchman, Patrick Proisy, who was forced to retire in the second set. Nastase defeated Humphrey Jose from Venezuela, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3.

In other matches on the first day, Bjorn Borg of Sweden beat the Australian Ray Barth, 3-6, 6-7 6-4, 6-1, 6-2, and Tom Okker of the Netherlands best the 45-year-old Pancho Gonzales of the U.S., 6-7, 6-3, 6-1, 6-4.

On Thursday, the women play their first matches. The reigning champion, Mrs. Billie Jean King plays an unknown U.S. qualifier Peggy Michel of California.

SYNOPSIS: The major tennis tournament in the United States, the U.S. Open at Forest Hills in New York, began on Wednesday August 29th. None of 16 male seeds lost their first round matches, but three games were postponed because of bed light.

Both the top seeds had comfortable wins.

Ilie Nastase of Rumania, who has already won the Italian and French Open Titles, played Humphrey Jose from Venezuela. He had little trouble in beating him and won in straight sets.

The other joint-top seed in the men's singles, Stan Smith from the United States, played the top French seed, Patrick Proisy. Smith won 6-4, 5-0, after the Frenchman was forced to retire because of an injury to his right arm, caused by a fall in the first set.

In the other games, the young Swede who made such an impact on the British Open this year Bjorn Borg, played the Australian, Ray Barth. Borg won 3-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2.

While Barth was losing to Borg, the seeded payers were winning through to the second round. And the veteran United States player, 45-year-old Pancho Gonzales, was being beaten, in four sets, by Tom Okker of the Netherlands, who last week won the Canadian Open. Okker the number 7 seed won 6-7, 6-3, 6-1, 6-4.

Other players to win included Arther Ashe, Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall and Manuel Orantes.