WCT Finals explained

WCT Finals
Founded:1971
Ended:1989
Editions:19
City:Dallas, Texas
Country:United States
Venue:Moody Coliseum (1971–1979)
Reunion Arena (1980–1989)
Category:Year-end championships
Surface:Carpet / Indoor

The WCT Finals was a men's tennis tournament that served as the season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis circuit. From 1971–1989 the event was held annually in Texas on indoor carpet courts. The 1971 quarterfinals and semifinals were played in Houston, and final played at Moody Coliseum in Dallas.[1] The 1972–1979 editions were played at Moody Coliseum, and the 1980–1989 tournaments at Reunion Arena in Dallas.[2] The 1974 edition was the first tennis tournament to experiment with electronic line calling. The first edition of the WCT Finals was in November 1971, just a few days before the equivalent event of the rival Grand Prix circuit. But the second edition occurred just six months later to accommodate NBC's new tennis coverage; the tournament final between Ken Rosewall, Rod Laver is credited as "the match that made tennis in the United States" because its unprecedented domestic television audience of 23 million fueled a massive increase in the sport's popularity.[3] [4] The ensuing editions were also held in the spring. John McEnroe had the most overall success, winning a record five titles. Because of the popularity of the 1972 final, another edition, less important and with half the prize money, was held in November in Rome.The prize money offered to the winner, Arthur Ashe, was US$25,000 compared to the US$50,000 won by Ken Rosewall for the main edition in May. A decade later there were three editions of the WCT Finals; the most important one in Dallas, and the others in autumn in Naples, Italy, and in winter (in January 1983) in Detroit. The tournament was sponsored by Buick between 1985 and 1986, a brand of General Motors, and was called the "Buick WCT Finals".

Finals

YearChampionRunner-upScore
Rod Laver6–4, 1–6, 7–6(7–3), 7–6(7–4)
Rod Laver4–6, 6–0, 6–3, 6–7(3–7), 7–6(7–5)
Arthur Ashe6–3, 6–3, 4–6, 6–4
Björn Borg4–6, 6–3, 6–3, 6–2
Björn Borg3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–0
Guillermo Vilas1–6, 6–1, 7–5, 6–1
Dick Stockton6–7(5–7), 6–1, 6–4, 6–3
Eddie Dibbs6–3, 6–2, 6–1
Björn Borg7–5, 4–6, 6–2, 7–6(7–5)
John McEnroe2–6, 7–6(7–4), 6–1, 6–2
Johan Kriek6–1, 6–2, 6–4
John McEnroe6–2, 3–6, 6–3, 6–3
Ivan Lendl6–2, 4–6, 6–3, 6–7(5–7), 7–6(7–0)
Jimmy Connors6–1, 6–2, 6–3
Tim Mayotte7–6(7–4), 6–4, 6–1
Boris Becker6–7(3–7), 6–1, 6–1, 6–4
John McEnroe6–0, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2
Stefan Edberg6–4, 1–6, 7–5, 6–2
Brad Gilbert6–3, 6–3, 7–6(7–3)

Seasonal finals events

YearChampionRunner-upScore
1972 winter (Rome) Bob Lutz6–2, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 7–6
1982 fall (Naples) Wojciech Fibak6–4, 6–2, 6–1
1982 winter (Detroit)[5] Guillermo Vilas7–5, 6–2, 2–6, 6–4

Records

width=20
  1. !
Titles
5
2
Jimmy Connors
Ivan Lendl
width=20
  1. !
Finals
8 John McEnroe
4
3 Jimmy Connors
Ivan Lendl
2 Ken Rosewall
Rod Laver
Arthur Ashe
Boris Becker
width=20
  1. !
Appearances
9 John McEnroe
6 Arthur Ashe
5 Rod Laver
Björn Borg
Vitas Gerulaitis
Jimmy Connors
Ivan Lendl
width=20
  1. !
Match wins
21 John McEnroe
10 Björn Borg
Jimmy Connors
Ivan Lendl
7 Ken Rosewall
Arthur Ashe
Vitas Gerulaitis

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Lamar Hunt muses on 16 years of the WCT. D Magazine. Lamar Hunt. April 1986.
  2. Web site: George Hardie Remembers.... D Magazine. George Hardie. March 1988.
  3. Web site: 1972: The Rod Laver vs. Ken Rosewall WCT Final in Dallas. tennis.com.
  4. Only one match has since had a larger U.S. TV audience: the legendary Battle of the Sexes the following year, signifying how popular tennis had become during this boom period.
  5. held in January, 24-30, 1983