Forest Hills Stadium was falling apart in 2012. Wooden benches were decaying, and weeds were growing beneath them. The old tennis court, so steeped in history, had cracks running throughout. Concrete fell from the passageways as a result of water damage.

“It was a mess,” said Bob Ingersole, the tennis director at the West Side Tennis Club, the former home of the United States Open.

This weekend, professional tennis will return to the club and its gem, the stadium, for the first time in eight years with a newly formed World TeamTennis franchise, the New York Empire. The team’s captain will be Patrick McEnroe, who once played junior events at Forest Hills and was a ball boy when the Open was played there.

“I have lots of memories running around that place,” McEnroe said. “I love the history.”

Forest Hills Stadium nearly became history in 2010, when West Side considered selling it to developers who wanted to turn the land into condominiums.