French Pro Championship
In 1930 the "Association Française des Professeurs de Tennis (AFPT)" held its first pro tournament, titled "Championnat International de France Professionnel" (French Pro Championships) June 18–22, 1930,[1] and is considered as a part of the professional grand slam from 1927 to 1967 till the advent of Open Era. The tournament only had a men's draw.
French Pro Championships | |
---|---|
Defunct tennis tournament | |
Founded | 1930 |
Abolished | 1968 |
Location | Paris, France |
Venue | Stade Roland Garros (1930–39,1956–1962,1968) Palais des Sports (1950–1953) Stade Pierre de Coubertin (1963–67) |
Surface | Clay, Hard, Wood |
From 1930 the French Pro Championship were always played at Paris, on outdoor clay at Roland Garros except from 1963 to 1967 where it was held at Stade Pierre de Coubertin on indoor wood. Ken Rosewall holds the record for 8 wins overall and 7 consecutive wins.
There was a tournament played on indoor cement in 1953 at the Palais des Sports. It is listed in the table below, but there is no suggestion that it was seen as a French Pro.
Champions
Year | Champion | Runner-up | Score | Venue | Surface |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Professional Era | |||||
1930 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–1, 6–2, 6–1 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1931 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–1, 3–6, 6–2 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1932 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–4, 3–6, 8–6, 6–4 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1933[lower-alpha 1] | Not held | ||||
1934 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 6–4, 7–5 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1935 | ![]() | ![]() | 10–8, 6–4, 3–6, 6–1 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1936 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–1, 6–1 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1937 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 8–6, 6–3 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1938 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–0, 6–1, 6–2 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1939 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 7–5, 6–3 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1940–1949 | Not held | ||||
1950[lower-alpha 2] | ![]() | ![]() | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) | |
1951–1952 | Not held | ||||
1953[lower-alpha 2] | ![]() | ![]() | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) | |
1954–1955 | Not held | ||||
1956 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 4–6, 5–7, 8–6, 6–2 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1957 | Not held | ||||
1958 | ![]() | ![]() | 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–0 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1959 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1960 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 2–6, 6–2, 6–1 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1961 | ![]() | ![]() | 2–6, 6–4, 6–3, 8–6 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1962 | ![]() | ![]() | 3–6, 6–2, 7–5, 6–2 [2] | Roland Garros | Clay |
1963 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–8, 6–4, 5–7, 6–3, 6–4 [2] | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
1964 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 7–5, 3–6, 6–3 [2] | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
1965 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–2, 6–4 [2] | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
1966 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–2, 14–12 [2] | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
1967 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–4, 8–6, 4–6, 6–2 [2] | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
Open Era | |||||
1968 | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 6–2, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
Notes:
- In History of the Pro Tennis Wars[3] Ray Bowers gives a detailed account of the first twenty years of the professional tennis tours, from a modest beginning in 1926 with Suzanne Lenglen and Vincent Richards as the main attractions, on through 1945. No mention is made of a French Pro tournament in 1933. The only professional competition played that year at Roland Garros was a USA-France meeting, September 22–24, in the Davis Cup format won by the USA 4–1 where Cochet overcame Bruce Barnes, Tilden defeated Plaa and Cochet, Barnes beat Plaa, and Americans then closed out the doubles. Many sources, probably incorrectly, considered the Tilden-Cochet match as a final of a supposed French Pro.[4]
- In 1953, from Saturday November 21 to Sunday November 22, a 4-man (Sedgman winner, Gonzales runner-up, Segura 3rd and Budge 4th) professional tournament was held in Paris on indoor red cement at the Palais des Sports but there is no mention that this tournament was a French Pro: in particular in the January 1954 edition of Tennis de France, the French magazine, run by Philippe Chatrier (future president of the ILTF) who made the report of this tournament by interviewing the winner Frank Sedgman. Joe McCauley included this tournament in his list of French Pro tournaments but in the precis to his book History of Professional Tennis mentions that it may not have been considered at the time as an official French Pro. In January 1950 at the same site Pancho Segura defeated Jack Kramer.
Bristol Cup
Before 1930 some tournaments were sometimes labelled "Professional Championships of France": the Bristol Cup (held from 1920 to 1932), the most important pro tournament in the world in the 1920s, was sometimes referred as the French Pro[5] as well as the World Pro tournament held at Deauville in 1925.[6] Therefore, two different tournaments were both considered as French Pro Championships in 1925 (World Pro at Deauville and Bristol Cup at Cannes) and from 1930 to 1932 (Roland Garros and Bristol Cup at Beaulieu).[7]
Date | City | Champion | Runner-up | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|
20–26 December 1920 | Cannes | ![]() | ![]() | 3–6, 7–5, 5–7, 6–2, 6–3[8] |
12–18 December 1921 | Cannes | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–4, 4–6, 7–5[9] |
19–23 December 1922 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–1, 0–6, 6–4, 6–2 (or 6–1, 0–6, 6–4, 6–1) |
17–23 December 1923 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–2, 6–3, 7–5 |
15–21 December 1924 | Cannes (Métropole) | ![]() | ![]() | 7–5, 1–6, 6–4, 6–1 |
21–27 December 1925 | Cannes (Métropole) | ![]() | ![]() | 0–6, 4–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–1 |
13–19 December 1926 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 3–6, 6–1, 6–2, 6–0 |
1927 | Not held | |||
9–15 January 1928 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–2, 6–4 |
7–13 January 1929 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–1, 6–0 |
13–19 January 1930 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–3, 6–4 (or 6–3, 6–4, 6–4) |
12–18 January 1931 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–3, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4 |
4–10 January 1932 | Menton | ![]() | ![]() | 6–1, 6–4, 1–6, 6–0 |
See also
- French Professional Championship Draws – Professional Era (1930–1967)
- U.S. Pro Tennis Championships
- Wembley Championships
- Major professional tennis tournaments before the Open Era
Records
Men's singles
Source: French Pro Championships, (1930–68): The Tennisbase included [10]
Most titles | ![]() |
8 |
---|---|---|
Most finals | ![]() |
8 |
Most consecutive titles | ![]() |
7 |
Most consecutive finals | ![]() |
7 |
Most matches played | ![]() |
32 |
Most matches won | ![]() |
30 |
Most consecutive matches won | ![]() |
25 |
Most editions played | ![]() |
11 |
Best winning % | ![]() |
93.75% |
Title won with the fewest games lost | ![]() |
20 (1930) |
Youngest champion | ![]() |
23y, 7m, 14d (1939) |
Oldest champion | ![]() |
41y, 7m, 7d (1934) |
Longest final | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1963 (55 games) | |||||
![]() |
6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
![]() |
8 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 4 |
Shortest final | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1938 (21 games) | |||||
![]() |
6 | 6 | 6 | ||
![]() |
0 | 1 | 2 |
References
- Le Tennis en France 1875–1955
- "French Pro Championships". www.tennis.co.nf. Archived from the original on 2017-09-03. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
- "Tennis Server - Between The Lines - Archive 2004 - 2015". tennisserver.com. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
- "Cochet as professional". The Courier-mail (25). 25 September 1933. p. 9 – via National Library of Australia.
- Lowe's Lawn Tennis Annual
- Ayres' Lawn Tennis Almanack 1925
- Alan, Little (2014). The Golden Days of Tennis on the French Riviera 1874–1939. London: Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum. p. 452. ISBN 9780906741542.
- "Bristol Cup 1920". Retrieved 13 June 2016.
- "Bristol Cup 1921". Retrieved 13 June 2016.
- Garcia, Gabriel. "Tournament Records: French Pro Championships". thetennisbase.com. Madrid, Spain: Tennismem SL. Retrieved 14 December 2017.