1968 Men's National Tennis League
The 1968 Men's National Tennis League (NTL) [1] was the inaugural series of professional tennis tournaments founded by George McCall, among others: Rod Laver, Roy Emerson, Ken Rosewall, Andrés Gimeno, Pancho Gonzales and Fred Stolle.
Laver won most title's this year | |
Details | |
---|---|
Duration | 19 March – 2 August |
Edition | 1st |
Tournaments | 13 |
Categories | (Pro) |
Achievements (singles) | |
Most tournament titles | Rod Laver (5) |
Most tournament finals | Rod Laver (6) |
1969 → |
History
In 1967 two new professional tennis organizations were formed: the National Tennis League,[2] organized by former U.S. Davis Cup captain George MacCall, and World Championship Tennis (WCT), which was founded by New Orleans promoter Dave Dixon and funded by Dallas oil and football tycoon Lamar Hunt. At the time the two professional tours signed a significant number of the world’s top players, professional and amateur.
In 1968 the first NTL Tour began in March with the opening tournament held in Sao Paulo, Brazil that was won by Rod Laver and ended with the final tournament held in Lima, Peru in August that was won by Fred Stolle.
Legend
Pro tour |
Key
- Q = Qualifier
- WC = Wild Card
- LL = Lucky Loser
- Alt = Alternate
- SE = Special Exempt
- PR = Protected Ranking
- ITF = ITF entry
- JE = Junior Exempt
- w/o = Walkover
- r = Retired
- d = Defaulted
Calendar
This is the complete schedule of events on the 1968 National Tennis League, with player progression partially documented until the quarterfinals stage.
January
No events
February
No events
March
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
19 March | NTL Sao Paulo Pro Championships 1968[3] San Paulo, Brasil Clay (i) Singles | Rod Laver Round Robin | Pancho Gonzales Fred Stolle Andrés Gimeno | ||
25 March | NTL Buenos Aires Pro Championships 1968[4] Buenos Aires, Argentina Clay Singles | Rod Laver Round Robin | Pancho Gonzales Fred Stolle Andrés Gimeno |
April
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 April | Bogota Pro Championships 1968[5] Bogotà, Colombia Singles - Doubles | Andrés Gimeno 11-13 6–3 6–4 | Fred Stolle | Rod Laver Pancho Gonzales | |
Rod Laver Fred Stolle 10-5 | Andrés Gimeno Pancho Gonzales | ||||
15 April | Cannes Pro Championship 1968[6] Cannes, France Clay Singles | Andrés Gimeno 6–4 2–6 7–5 | Fred Stolle | ||
18 April [7] | BBC2 World Pro Invitation 1968 Wembley, Great Britain Wood (i) Singles | Rod Laver 6–3 10-8 | Ken Rosewall | Roy Emerson Pancho Gonzales | |
20 April | NTL Paris Pro Championships 1968[8] Paris, France Singles - Doubles | Ken Rosewall 6–3 6–4 | Andrés Gimeno | Pancho Gonzales Rod Laver | Fred Stolle Roy Emerson |
May
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
29 April-5 May [9] | National Tennis League Professional Championships 1968[10] Wembley, Great Britain Wood (i) Singles - Doubles | Rod Laver 6–0, 6–1, 6–0 | Ken Rosewall | ||
Rod Laver Roy Emerson 12-10 6–4 | Andrés Gimeno Pancho Gonzales | ||||
18 May | NTL Madison Square Garden Fields Pro Championships 1968 New York City, United States Carpet (i) Singles - Doubles | Rod Laver 4–6, 6–3, 9–7, 6–4 | Ken Rosewall | Roy Emerson 6–2, 6–2 Andrés Gimeno 8–10, 6–3, 7–5 | Lew Hoad 6–3, 6–1 Pancho Gonzales 15-13, 6–4 Alex Olmedo 6–3, 6–4 Fred Stolle 6–3, 6–3 |
June
No events
July
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 July | NTL Los Angeles Pro Championships 1968[11] Los Angeles, United States Carpet (i)[12] Singles - Doubles | Pancho Gonzales 1–6 6–3 6–4 | Rod Laver | ||
August
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 August | NTL Oakland Pro Championships 1968[13] Oakland, United States Singles - Doubles | Fred Stolle 7–5, 6–3 | Pancho Gonzales | ||
September
No events
October
No events
November
Date | Tournament | Winner | Finalist | Semi Finalist | Quarter Finalist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
3 November[14] | NTL La Paz Pro Round Robin Championships 1968 La Paz, Bolivia Clay Singles | Rod Laver 6–4 3–6 7–5 | Andrés Gimeno | Fred Stolle Roy Emerson | |
8 November[15] | NTL Sao Paulo Round Robin Championships 1968 Sao Paulo, Brasil Clay (i) Singles | Rod Laver 7–5 5-7 6–4 | Pancho Gonzales | Andrés Gimeno Fred Stolle Roy Emerson | |
16 November[16] | NTL Lima Pro Round Robin Championships 1968 Lima, Perù Singles | Fred Stolle 2–6 6–2 6–3 | Andrés Gimeno | Rod Laver Roy Emerson |
December
No events
References
- Gitlin, Marty (2011). Billie Jean King: Tennis Star & Social Activist: Tennis Star & Social Activist. ABDO. p. 46. ISBN 9781617149467.
National Tennis league 1968.
- Robertson, max (1974). Encyclopaedia of Tennis. Allen & Unwin. p. 74. ISBN 9780047960420.
- Archives, Tennis. "Sao Paulo Pro Championships 1968". www.tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives, 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- Archives, Tennis. "Buenos Aires Pro Championships 1968". www.tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017.
- Archives, Tennis. "Bogota Pro Championships 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- Archives, Tennis. "Cannes Pro Championships 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- "BBC2 PRO Tournament Draw". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base.
- Archives, Tennis. "Paris Pro Championships 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- "NTL Wembley Pro Champs Invitation: Tournament Draw". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- Archives, Tennis. "Wembley Invitation 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- Archives, Tennis. "Los Angeles Professional Championships 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- "Gonzales whips Stolle". Los Angeles Times. 18 July 1968. pp. Sports page 1.
- Archives, Tennis. "Oakland Pros 1968". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- "NTL LA PAZ PRO CH. Tournament Roll of honour". thetennisbase.com. The Tennis Base. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- "SAO PAULO PRO Tournament Roll of honour". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- "NTL LIMA PRO CH. Tournament Roll of honour". thetennisbase.com. The Tennis Base. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
Sources
- McCauley, Joe; Trabert, Tony; Collins, Bud (2000). The History of Professional Tennis. The Short Run Book Company Limited. Exeter. England.
- Robertson, Max (1974). Encyclopaedia of Tennis. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 9780047960420.