1973 Grand Prix (tennis) explained

1973 Grand Prix circuit
Duration:	3 January 1973 – 26 December 1973
Edition:	4th
Tournaments:	72
Most Tournament Titles:	Ilie Năstase (14)
Most Tournament Finals:	Ilie Năstase (17)
Previous:	1972
Next:	1974

The 1973 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix was a tennis circuit administered by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) which served as a forerunner to the current Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.^[1] The circuit consisted of the four modern Grand Slam tournaments and open tournaments recognised by the ILTF. Bonus points were awarded to players who were nominated to play in certain 1973 Davis Cup ties and who miss tournaments through competing in those ties.^[2] The Commercial Union Assurance Masters is included in this calendar but did not count towards the Grand Prix.

Schedule

Key

AA events

Grand Prix Masters

A events

B events

C events

Team events

December 1972

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
26 Dec		John Newcombe 6–3, 6–7, 7–5, 6–1			Wanaro N'Godrella Alex Metreveli John Cooper Bob Carmichael
		Mal Anderson John Newcombe 6–3, 6–4, 7–6	John Alexander Phil Dent

May

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
7 May	Rothmans British Hard Court Championships Bournemouth, Great Britain Group B Clay – 64S/32D/32XD	Adriano Panatta 6–8, 7–5, 6–3, 8–6			Geoff Masters Buster Mottram François Jauffret Patrice Dominguez
		Juan Gisbert Sr. Ilie Năstase 6–4, 8–6	Adriano Panatta Ion Țiriac
		Virginia Wade Frew McMillan 6–2, 6–3	Ilana Kloss Bernard Mitton
21 May	French Open Paris, France Grand Slam – Group AA Clay – 128S/64D/32XD Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Ilie Năstase 6–3, 6–3, 6–0			Tom Okker Paolo Bertolucci Jan Kodeš Roger Taylor
		John Newcombe Tom Okker 6–1, 3–6, 6–3, 5–7, 6–4	Jimmy Connors Ilie Năstase
		Françoise Dürr Jean-Claude Barclay 6–1, 6–4	Betty Stöve Patrice Dominguez

June

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
4 Jun	Italian Open Rome, Italy Group A Clay – $101,600 – 96S/48D	Ilie Năstase 6–1, 6–1, 6–1			Stan Smith Péter Szőke Jiří Hřebec Jan Kodeš
		John Newcombe Tom Okker 6–3, 6–2, 6–4	Ross Case Geoff Masters
	Berlin Open Berlin, West Germany Group C Clay – 32S/16D	Hans-Jürgen Pohmann 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 6–3			Attila Korpás Ulrich Pinner Harald Elschenbroich Bernard Mignot
		Jürgen Fassbender Hans-Jürgen Pohmann 4–6, 6–4, 6–4	Raúl Ramírez Joaquín Loyo-Mayo
11 Jun	German Open Hamburg, West Germany Group B Clay – 62S/28D	Eddie Dibbs 6–1, 3–6, 7–6, 6–3			Paul Gerken Harald Elschenbroich Jiří Hřebec Martin Mulligan
		Jürgen Fassbender Hans-Jürgen Pohmann 7–6, 7–6, 7–6	Manuel Orantes Ion Țiriac
	John Player Open Nottingham, Great Britain Group B Grass – 40S/21D	Erik van Dillen 3–6, 6–1, 6–1			Jaidip Mukerjea Mark Cox Dick Stockton Stephen Warboys
		Tom Gorman Erik van Dillen 6–4, 6–4	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
18 Jun		Ilie Năstase 9–8, 6–3			Ismail El Shafei Jürgen Fassbender John Newcombe Cliff Drysdale
		Tom Okker Marty Riessen 6–4, 7–5	Ray Keldie Raymond Moore
	Rothmans South of England Championships Eastbourne, Great Britain Group B Grass – 32S/16D	Mark Cox 6–2, 2–6, 6–3			Paul Gerken Andrés Gimeno Ian Fletcher Graham Stilwell
		Ove Bengtson Jim McManus 6–4, 4–6, 7–5	Manuel Orantes Ion Țiriac
25 Jun		Jan Kodeš 6–1, 9–8^(7–5), 6–3			Jürgen Fassbender Jimmy Connors Björn Borg Vijay Amritraj
		Jimmy Connors Ilie Năstase 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 8–9^(3–7), 6–1	John Cooper Neale Fraser
		Billie Jean King Owen Davidson 6–3, 6–2	Janet Newberry Raúl Ramírez

July

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
9 Jul		Stan Smith 6–4, 6–2, 7–6			Martin Mulligan Jaime Pinto Bravo Bob Carmichael Antonio Zugarelli
		Nikola Pilić Stan Smith 2–6, 6–4, 6–4	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
	Swiss Open Gstaad, Switzerland Group B Clay – 32S	Ilie Năstase 6–4, 6–3, 6–3			Brian Fairlie Allan Stone Sandy Mayer Tom Okker
	Green Shield Welsh Open Newport, Great Britain Group C Grass – 64S/32D	Roger Taylor 9–8, 8–6			Terry Ryan John Bartlett Byron Bertram Dick Bohrnstedt
		Title shared.	Bertram / Lloyd Giltinan / Keldie
16 Jul		Jimmy Connors 6–3, 4–6, 6–4, 3–6, 6–2			Dick Stockton Marty Riessen John Alexander Roscoe Tanner
	Austrian Open Kitzbühel, Austria Group C Clay – 32S/17D	Title shared.			Vladimír Zedník José Edison Mandarino Barry Phillips-Moore Vladimir Korotkov
		Jim McManus Raúl Ramírez 6–2, 6–2, 6–3	José Edison Mandarino Tito Vázquez
		Tom Okker 2–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–7, 6–3			Wanaro N'Godrella Attila Korpás Ian Fletcher Iván Molina
		Iván Molina Allan Stone 4–6, 7–6, 6–4	Andrés Gimeno Antonio Muñoz
23 Jul	Washington Star International Washington, United States Group A Clay – $75,000 – 64S/32D	Arthur Ashe 6–4, 6–2			Paul Gerken Marty Riessen Nikola Pilić Dick Stockton
		Ross Case Geoff Masters 2–6, 6–4, 6–4	Dick Crealy Andrew Pattison
		Vijay Amritraj 7–5, 2–6, 7–5			Bob Carmichael Gerald Battrick Tom Edlefsen Rod Laver
		Rod Laver Fred Stolle 7–6, 4–6, 7–5	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
30 Jul	First National Bank Classic Louisville, United States Group A Clay – $75,000 – 64S/32D	Manuel Orantes 3–6, 6–3, 6–4			Dick Crealy Ross Case Nikola Pilić Antonio Muñoz
		Manuel Orantes Ion Țiriac 0–6, 6–4, 6–3	Clark Graebner John Newcombe
	Buckeye Championships Columbus, United States Group C Hard – $25,000 – 32S/16D	Jimmy Connors 3–6, 6–3, 6–3			Pancho Gonzales Andrew Pattison Colin Dibley Brian Gottfried
		Gerald Battrick Graham Stilwell 6–4, 7–6	Colin Dibley Charlie Pasarell

August

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Aug	Western Championships Cincinnati, United States Group B Clay – $50,000 – 32S/16D	Ilie Năstase 5–7, 6–3, 6–4			John Alexander Guillermo Vilas Roscoe Tanner Patrick Proisy
		John Alexander Phil Dent 1–6, 7–6, 7–6	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez
	Tanglewood International Tennis Classic Clemmons, United States Group C Clay – 32S/16D	Jaime Fillol 6–2, 6–4			Ross Case Brian Fairlie Georges Goven Frew McMillan
		Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan 6–3, 6–4	Brian Fairlie Ismail El Shafei
13 Aug	U.S. Clay Court Championships Indianapolis, United States Group B Clay – $90,000 – 50S/22D	Manuel Orantes 6–4, 6–1, 6–4			Brian Gottfried Roscoe Tanner Patrick Proisy Paolo Bertolucci
		Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan 6–3, 6–4	Manuel Orantes Ion Țiriac
	Pennsylvania Championships Merion, United States Group C Grass – 64S/32D	Mike Estep 7–5, 3–6, 7–6, 3–6, 7–5			Brian Teacher Ian Fletcher Anand Amritraj Jean-Baptiste Chanfreau
		Colin Dibley Allan Stone 7–6, 6–3	Jeff Austin Fred McNair
20 Aug	Canadian Open Toronto, Ontario, Canada Group A Hard – $100,000 – 64S/32D Singles – Doubles	Tom Okker 6–3, 6–2, 6–1			Paolo Bertolucci Björn Borg John Newcombe Arthur Ashe
		Rod Laver Ken Rosewall 7–5, 7–6	Owen Davidson John Newcombe
	Eastern Championships South Orange, United States Group C Grass – 32S/16D	Colin Dibley 6–4, 6–7, 6–4			Paul Gerken Dick Stockton Ion Țiriac Onny Parun
		Jimmy Connors Ilie Năstase 6–7, 6–3, 6–2	Pancho Gonzales Tom Gorman
27 Aug		John Newcombe 6–4, 1–6, 4–6, 6–2, 6–3			Onny Parun Nikola Pilić Vijay Amritraj Jimmy Connors
		Owen Davidson John Newcombe 7–5, 2–6, 7–5, 7–5	Rod Laver Ken Rosewall
		Billie Jean King Owen Davidson 6–3, 3–6, 7–6	Margaret Court Marty Riessen

September

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
10 Sep	U.S. Hard Court Championships Aptos, United States Group C Hard – 32S/16D	Jeff Austin 7–6, 6–4			Tom Edlefsen Erik van Dillen John Lloyd Mike Machette
		Jeff Austin Fred McNair 6–2, 6–1	Raymond Moore Onny Parun
		Tom Okker 7–5, 6–4			Torben Ulrich Mark Cox Brian Gottfried Arthur Ashe
		Tom Gorman Tom Okker 2–6, 6–4, 7–6	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
17 Sep		Jimmy Connors 7–5, 7–6^(11–9)			Stan Smith Charlie Pasarell Ken Rosewall Raymond Moore
		Jan Kodeš Vladimír Zedník 6–2, 6–4	Jimmy Connors Ilie Năstase
24 Sep		Roy Emerson 5–7, 6–1, 6–4			Stan Smith Tom Gorman Roscoe Tanner John Alexander
		Roy Emerson Stan Smith 6–2, 6–1	Ove Bengtson Jim McManus
	Tam International Chicago, United States Group B Carpet (i) – 32S/16D	Tom Okker 3–6, 7–6, 6–3			Graham Stilwell Gerald Battrick Eddie Dibbs Brian Gottfried
		Owen Davidson John Newcombe 6–7, 7–6, 7–6	Gerald Battrick Graham Stilwell

October

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
1 Oct	Fort Worth Open Fort Worth, United States Group B Hard – 32S/16D	Eddie Dibbs 7–5, 6–2, 6–4			Phil Dent Harold Solomon Andrew Pattison John Newcombe
		Brian Gottfried Dick Stockton 7–6, 6–4	Owen Davidson John Newcombe
	Quebec Open Quebec, Canada Group B 32S/16D	Jimmy Connors 6–1, 6–1, 6–7, 6–0			Onny Parun Raymond Moore Clark Graebner Tenny Svensson
		Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan 6–2, 7–6	Jimmy Connors Marty Riessen
	Osaka Open Osaka, Japan Group C Hard – 32S/16D	Ken Rosewall 6–2, 6–4			Jun Kuki Milan Holeček Paul Kronk Sherwood Stewart
		Jeff Borowiak Tom Gorman 6–4, 7–6	Jun Kamiwazumi Ken Rosewall
8 Oct	Trofeo Conde de Godó Barcelona, Spain Group A Clay – 58S/32D Singles – Doubles	Ilie Năstase 2–6, 6–1, 8–6, 6–4			José Higueras Barry Phillips-Moore Andrew Pattison Buster Mottram
		Ilie Năstase Tom Okker 4–6, 6–3, 6–2	Antonio Muñoz Manuel Orantes
	Japan Open Tennis Championships Tokyo, Japan Group B 48S/24D	Ken Rosewall 6–1, 6–4			Colin Dibley Brian Gottfried Jeff Borowiak Kim Warwick
	Mal Anderson Ken Rosewall 7–5, 7–5	Colin Dibley Allan Stone
15 Oct	Trofeo Melia Madrid, Spain Group A Clay – 64S/31D	Tom Okker 4–6, 6–3, 6–3, 7–5			Nikola Pilić José Higueras Rod Laver Pierre Barthès
		Ilie Năstase Tom Okker 6–3, 6–0	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
	Indian Open New Delhi, India Group B 32S/16D	Vijay Amritraj 6–4, 5–7, 8–9, 6–3, 11–9			Ian Fletcher Fred Stolle Paul Gerken Jasjit Singh
	Jim McManus Raúl Ramírez 6–2, 6–4	Anand Amritraj Vijay Amritraj
	Milo International Tennis Classic Manila, the Philippines Group C 32S/16D	Ross Case 6–1, 6–0			Milan Holeček Jürgen Fassbender Hans-Jürgen Pohmann Allan Stone
	Marcelo Lara Sherwood Stewart 4–6, 7–5, 7–6	Jürgen Fassbender Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
22 Oct	Aryamehr Cup Tehran, Iran Group A Clay – 48S/21D	Raúl Ramírez 6–7, 6–1, 7–5, 6–3			Ilie Năstase Syd Ball Hans-Jürgen Pohmann Bob Giltinan
		Rod Laver John Newcombe 7–6, 6–2	Ross Case Geoff Masters
	Czechoslovakian Championships Prague, Czechoslovakia Group C Clay – 32S/16D	Jiří Hřebec 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–0, 7–5			Vladimír Zedník František Pála Barry Phillips-Moore Kjell Johansson
	Jan Kodeš Vladimír Zedník 7–6, 7–6	Róbert Machán Balázs Taróczy
29 Oct		Ilie Năstase 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–0, 6–2			Jean-Baptiste Chanfreau Arthur Ashe Roscoe Tanner Leif Johansson
		Juan Gisbert Sr. Ilie Năstase 6–4, 6–4	Arthur Ashe Roscoe Tanner
	Indonesia Open Jakarta, Indonesia Group C 32S/16D	John Newcombe 7–6, 7–6, 6–3			Marcelo Lara Ray Keldie Gondo Widjojo Allan Stone
	Mike Estep Ian Fletcher 7–5, 6–4	John Newcombe Allan Stone
		Rod Laver 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2			Paul Gerken Mal Anderson Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez
		Colin Dibley Rod Laver 6–3, 5–7, 17–15	Paul Gerken Brian Gottfried

November

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
5 Nov	Stockholm Open Stockholm, Sweden Group A Hard (i) – 48S/24D Singles – Doubles	Tom Gorman 6–3, 4–6, 7–6^(7–5)			Stan Smith Arthur Ashe Manuel Orantes Nikola Pilić
		Jimmy Connors Ilie Năstase 6–3, 6–7, 6–2	Bob Carmichael Frew McMillan
	Australian Indoor Championships Sydney, Australia Group B Hard (i) – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Rod Laver 3–6, 7–5, 6–3, 3–6, 6–4			Geoff Masters Ross Case Sherwood Stewart Raúl Ramírez
		Rod Laver John Newcombe 7–6, 6–2	Mal Anderson Ken Rosewall
12 Nov	Dewar Cup London, Great Britain Group B Carpet (i) – 32S/16D	Tom Okker 6–3, 6–4			Raymond Moore Patrick Proisy Tom Gorman Ion Țiriac
		Mark Cox Owen Davidson 6–4, 8–6	Gerald Battrick Graham Stilwell
	Benson & Hedges Classic Christchurch, New Zealand Group C 29S/12D	Fred Stolle 7–6, 6–4, 6–1			Allan Stone Dick Dell Mike Estep Jim McManus
		Anand Amritraj Fred McNair Walkover	Jürgen Fassbender Jeff Simpson
19 Nov	South African Championships^[3] Johannesburg, South Africa Group A Hard – 32S/16D/16XD	Jimmy Connors 6–4, 7–6, 6–3			Byron Bertram Bob Hewitt Jaime Fillol Mark Cox
	Arthur Ashe Tom Okker 6–2, 4–6, 6–2, 6–4	Lew Hoad Bob Maud
	Evonne Goolagong Jürgen Fassbender 6–3, 6–2	Ilana Kloss Bernard Mitton
	South American Championships Buenos Aires, Argentina Group B Clay – 32S/4D Singles	Guillermo Vilas 3–6, 6–7, 6–4, 6–6^(5–5) ret.			Ion Țiriac Željko Franulović Toma Ovici Jaime Pinto Bravo
		Ricardo Cano Guillermo Vilas 7–6, 6–2	Patricio Cornejo Iván Molina
26 Nov	Davis Cup Final Cleveland, United States – carpet	5–0

December

Grand Prix points system

The tournaments listed above were divided into four groups. Group AA consisted of the Triple Crown – the French Open, the Wimbledon Championships and the US Open – while the other tournaments were divided into Groups A, B and C by prize money and draw size. Points were allocated based on these groups and the finishing position of a player in a tournament. No points were awarded to first round losers and ties were settled by the number of tournaments played. The points allocation is listed below:

• Champion: 100
• Runner-up: 75
• Semifinalist: 50
• Quarterfinalist: 25
• Fourth Round: 12
• Third Round: 6
• Second Round: 3

• Champion: 60
• Runner-up: 40
• Semifinalist: 30
• Quarterfinalist: 15
• 9th – 16th: 7
• 17th – 32nd: 3
• 33rd – 64th: 1

• Champion: 40
• Runner-up: 30
• Semifinalist: 20
• 5th – 8th: 10
• 9th – 16th: 5
• 17th – 32nd: 2

• Champion: 20
• Runner-up: 15
• Semifinalist: 10
• 5th – 8th: 5
• 9th – 16th: 3
• 17th – 32nd: 1

Grand Prix rankings

1) Ilie Năstase 610 points, 2) John Newcombe 512.5 points, 3) Tom Okker 498 points, 4) Jimmy Connors 383 points, 5) Manuel Orantes 358.5 points, 6) Jan Kodeš 315 points, 7) Stan Smith 274 points, 8) Tom Gorman 270 points, 9) Björn Borg 240 points, 10) Arthur Ashe 236 points, 11) Rod Laver 230 points, 12) Nikki Pilic 210 points, 13) Jaime Fillol 203 points, 14) Raúl Ramírez 186.5 points, 15) Onny Parun 177 points, 16) Vijay Amritraj 169.5 points, 17) Ken Rosewall 169 points, 18) Eddie Dibbs 155 points, 19) Karl Meiler 155 points, 20) Marty Riessen 141 points, 21) Alex Metreveli 141 points, 22) Jiří Hřebec 131 points, 23) Ross Case 126 points, 24) Roger Taylor 126 points, 25) Guillermo Vilas 121 points, 26) Adriano Panatta 119 points, 27) Brian Gottfried 118 points, 28) Mark Cox 118 points, 29) Jürgen Fassbender 115 points, 30) Charles Pasarell 112 points, 31) Cliff Drysdale 112 points, 32) Paolo Bertolucci 104 points, 33) Geoff Masters 100 points, 34) Ray Moore 98 points, 35) John Alexander 98 points^[4]

ATP rankings

On 23 August 1973 the Association of Tennis Professionals published its first list of computer rankings, using points averages rather than points totals in their calculations. These are the ATP rankings of the top twenty singles players in the first list^[5] and at the end of the 1973 season,^[6] with numbers of ranking points, points averages, numbers of tournaments played, year-end rankings in 1973, highest and lowest positions during the season and number of spots gained or lost from the first rankings to the year-end rankings.

As of 23 August 1973^[7]
Rk	Name
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

Year-end rankings 1973 (14 December 1973)^[8]
Rk	Name	Points	Average	High	Low	Change
1				1		=
2				2	7	5
3				3	10	7
4				4	9	5
5				3	5	2
6				6	7	=
7				2	7	5
8				5	10	3
9				5	11	2
10				4	10	6
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

See also

• 1973 World Championship Tennis circuit
• 1973 WTA Tour
• 1973 USLTA Indoor Circuit

External links

• ATP Archive 1973: Commercial Union Grand Prix tournaments
• History Mens Professional Tours

Further reading

• Book: Collins, Bud. The Bud Collins History of Tennis: An Authoritative Encyclopedia and Record Book. Bud Collins . New Chapter Press . New York . 2nd . 2010. 978-0-942257-70-0.

Notes and References

1. Web site: How it All Began. Association of Tennis Professional (ATP).
2. Book: World of Tennis '74. 1974. Queen Anne Press. London. 9780362001686. 30–32. John Barrett. John Barrett (tennis).
3. The tournament started on 14 November.
4. Book: World of Tennis '74. 1974. Queen Anne Press. London. 9780362001686. 32. John Barrett. John Barrett (tennis).
5. Web site: atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc.. ATP Rankings (singles) as of August 23, 1973. 23 August 1973. 2012-01-09.
6. Web site: atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc.. ATP Rankings (singles) as of December 14, 1973.
7. Web site: ATP rankings 23 Aug 1973. ATP . 14 September 2023.
8. Web site: ATP Year-end top 20 . ATP . 14 September 2023.