Major professional tennis tournaments before the Open Era

The U.S. Pro Tennis Championship, also known as the US Pro, was an annual tournament, later known as MFS Pro Championships. It was first organized by player Vinnie Richards when promoter C. C. Pyle withdrew interest in the project. It was first played on the Notlek courts located at 119th Street and Riverside Drive, Manhattan. The tournament was held at various locations in several states until 1964, when it moved to the Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.[1]

The French Pro Championship was first held in 1930, held by the "Association Française des Professeurs de Tennis (AFPT)", entitled "Championnat International de France Professionnel" (French Pro Championships) on June 18–22, 1930.[7] From 1930 the French Pro Championship was 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.

The Wembley Championship, also known as the Wembley Pro, was held at the Wembley Arena, in London. This professional event ran from 1934 to 1967 and was originally played on a wood surface placed over the top of a drained pool. It was officially known as the "London Indoor Professional Championships" from 1951 through 1967.[8]

Sometimes labelled "Professional Championships of France" this tournament was held on the French Riviera at Menton, at Cannes.

List of Bristol Cup winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1920	Romeo Acquarone	Joseph Negro	3–6, 7–5, 5–7, 6–2, 6–3[35]
1921	John C. S. Rendall	A. Page	6–3, 6–4, 4–6, 7–5[36]
1922	John C. S. Rendall	Joseph Negro	6–1, 0–6, 6–4, 6–2 (or 6–1, 0–6, 6–4, 6–1)
1923	John C. S. Rendall	Joseph Negro	6–2, 6–3, 7–5
1924	Albert Burke	Roman Najuch	7–5, 1–6, 6–4, 6–1
1925	Albert Burke	Roman Najuch	0–6, 4–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–1
1926	Karel Koželuh	Albert Burke	3–6, 6–1, 6–2, 6–0
1927	Not held
1928	Karel Koželuh	Roman Najuch	6–3, 6–2, 6–4
1929	Karel Koželuh	Albert Burke	6–3, 6–1, 6–0
1930	Karel Koželuh	Roman Najuch	6–3, 6–3, 6–4 (or 6–3, 6–4, 6–4)
1931	Karel Koželuh	Albert Burke	6–3, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4
1932	Karel Koželuh	Martin Plaa	6–1, 6–4, 1–6, 6–0

This event was held in October on Clay courts, at the Queen's Club in London. In 1928 Myers of the Daily Telegraph wrote that "this was the best pro tournament ever held in England."

List of Queen's Club Pro winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1927	Dan Maskell	Charles R Read	6–3, 6–3, 6–4
1928	Robert Ramillon	Edmund Burke	6–1, 6–3, 5–7, 6–4

The World Pro Championship were held in 1932 and 1933 in Berlin at the Rot-Weiss club, on clay. It had a very large participation (over 80 players). According to Ray Bowers in the History of the Pro Tennis Wars Chapter IV (cited lower down), this tournament at the time was regarded as the most prestigious professional tournament in the world.

List of World Pro winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up
1932	Martin Plaa	Bill Tilden
1933	Hans Nüsslein	Bill Tilden

This was a team tournament created by Bill Tilden and modeled on the Davis Cup format. In 1935, early rounds in France were hoped to be played at Roland Garros, but the French Tennis Association would not allow the event to be played at the stadium.[37]

Year	Champions
1935	France
1936	United States
1937	France

The International Pro Championship of Britain (also known as the Southport Pro, as well as the Southport Dunlop Cup for sponsorship purposes) was a professional tennis tournament held at Victoria Park in Southport between 1935 and 1939. It was open to professional players only, amateurs were not allowed to compete. The tournament was held on outdoor En-tout-cas, "all-weather" artificial clay.

List of International Pro Championship of Britain winners:

Singles

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1935	Ellsworth Vines	Bill Tilden	6–1, 6–8, 4–6, 6–2, 6–2 [38]
1936	Hans Nüsslein	Henri Cochet	(Round Robin) [39]
1937	Hans Nüsslein	Robert Ramillon	6–4, 6–3, 2–6, 6–4 [40]
1938	Hans Nüsslein	Bill Tilden	(Round Robin) [41]
1939	Hans Nüsslein	Bill Tilden	6–2, 7–5, 6–4 [42]

Doubles

Year	Champions	Runners-up	Score
1935	Bill Tilden Ellsworth Vines	Martin Plaa Robert Ramillon	7–5, 6–8, 5–7, 6–1, 6–3
1936	Henri Cochet Robert Ramillon	Lester Stoefen Bill Tilden	(Round Robin)
1937	Lester Stoefen Bill Tilden	Martin Plaa Robert Ramillon	8–6, 17–15, 8–6
1939	Don Budge Ellsworth Vines	Lester Stoefen Bill Tilden	6–2, 7–9, 7–5, 8–6

In LA; the only significant pro tournament of the last year of World War II.

Year	Champion
1945	Bobby Riggs
1946	Bobby Riggs

List of Australian Pro winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1954 [43]	Frank Sedgman	Pancho Segura	5–7, 6–3, 6–4 [44]

The Tournament of Champions was a professional tennis tournament between 1957 and 1959. The tournament was held on the grass-courts of Forest Hills, New York, between 1957 and 1959, and an Australian version of the Tournament of Champions was held on grass at White City, Sydney in 1957 and 1959, and at Kooyong Stadium in Melbourne in 1958. The 1957 and 1958 Forest Hills tournaments had a round robin format, while the 1959 Forest Hills was an elimination tournament with 10 players. The Sydney version was an elimination event, while the 1958 Kooyong event was a round robin format.

The Forest Hills Tournament of Champions was broadcast nationally in the U.S.A. on the CBS television network, the only professional tennis tournament in the U.S.A. to achieve this status.

The 1958 Kooyong Tournament of Champions was the richest tournament of the era, with a prize money of 10,000 Australian pounds (US$24,000).

In 1968, the tournament was picked up again for a one off tournament during the open era and called Jack Kramer's Tournament of Champions held at Wembley Arena.

List of Tournament of Champions winners:

Forest Hills

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1957	Pancho Gonzales [45]	Frank Sedgman	(Round Robin)
1958	Pancho Gonzales [46]	Ken Rosewall	(Round Robin)
1959	Lew Hoad [47]	Pancho Gonzales	6–1, 5–7, 6–2, 6–1

Sydney White City and Melbourne Kooyong

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1957	Pancho Segura	Frank Sedgman	7–5, 6–0, 6–4
1958	Lew Hoad [48]	Frank Sedgman	(Round Robin)
1959	Pancho Gonzales	Lew Hoad	11–9, 6–1, 6–1

London

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1968	Ken Rosewall	John Newcombe	6–4, 4–6, 7–5, 6–4

Round Robin in Los Angeles, held from 1956 to 1960, and again in 1964, 1965, and 1967. The Ampol Masters Pro was held at White City in Sydney in 1958.

Masters Pro winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1956	Pancho Gonzales	Frank Sedgman	(Round Robin)
1957	Pancho Gonzales	Frank Sedgman	(Round Robin)
1958	Pancho Segura	Pancho Gonzales	(Round Robin)
1958	Frank Sedgman	Tony Trabert	3-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4
1959	Pancho Gonzales	Lew Hoad	(Round Robin)
1960	Ken Rosewall
1964	Ken Rosewall	Frank Sedgman	6–2, 6–4
1965	Rod Laver	Pancho Gonzales	3–6, 6–3, 7–5
1967	Ken Rosewall

A team format tournament.

Year	Champions
1961	Australia
1962	Australia
1963	Australia

Madison Square Garden Pro winners:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1954	Pancho Gonzales	Pancho Segura	7–9, 6–4, 6–4
1966	Ken Rosewall	Rod Laver	6–3, 6–3
1967	Rod Laver	Ken Rosewall	6–4, 6–4
1968	Tony Roche	Pancho Gonzales	6–3, 6–4
1969	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson	6–2, 4–6, 6–1

The Forest Hills Pro was held in June 1966 on the grass courts of the West Side Tennis Club using the VASSS Scoring System

Forest Hills Pro winner:

Year	Champion
1966	Rod Laver

The Wimbledon World Professional Championship, also known as the Wimbledon Pro, was held in August 1967. The tournament was sponsored and broadcast by the BBC to mark the invention of colour television. It was first time that professional tennis players played at Wimbledon.

Wimbledon Pro winner:

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1967	Rod Laver	Ken Rosewall	6–2, 6–2, 12–10