Phoenix Thunderbird Open (tennis)

The Phoenix Thunderbird Open[1] was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament founded in 1952 as Phoenix Thunderbird Championships Invitational.[2] Also known as the Phoenix Thunderbird Invitational it continued as a joint event until 1970 when the men's event was discontinued.[3] In 1971 the women's tournament was re branded as the Virginia Slims Thunderbird Classic that event continued until 1980.

This article is about the men's ILTF Grand Prix Circuit/Phoenix Thunderbird Open. For the women's event, see Thunderbird Classic (tennis).
Phoenix Thunderbird Open
Defunct tennis tournament
TourILTF World Circuit (1952–69)
ILTF Grand Prix Circuit (1970)
Founded1952
Abolished1970
Editions18
LocationPhoenix, United States
VenuePhoenix Country Club
SurfaceHard / indoor (1952–65)
Hard / outdoor (1966–70)

The tournament was part of the ILTF North America Circuit a regional sub circuit of the ILTF World Circuit from 1952 to 1969. In 1970 it became ILTF Grand Prix Circuit for that year only.

History

The tournament was founded in 1952,[4] as the Phoenix Thunderbird Championships a joint men's and women's tennis tournament played at the Phoenix Country Club, Phoenix, Arizona, United States. In 1953 the word 'championships' was dropped from the tournaments title becoming the Phoenix Thunderbird Invitational. In 1969 the tournament went open under the brand name the Thunderbird Invitational.[5] In 1970 the tournament was re branded as the Phoenix Thunderbird Open,[6] and was the final year as a combined event when the men's tournament was discontinued. In 1971 women's event became part of the Virginia Slims Circuit and was known as the Virginia Slims Thunderbird Classic, that event carried on till 1980 when it was last known as the Thunderbird Classic before it too was abolished. The tournament was originally played on indoor hard courts from 1953 to 1965, then outdoor hard courts from 1966 to 1970. The event was originally played at the end February annually, then moved to mid to late March. It was only in 1970 that it's scheduling was moved to October that year, however the women's event carried on with the new dates.

The current successor tennis event for men played at the same venue is the Arizona Tennis Classic.[7]

Finals
Stan Smith in 2009, won 3 T.Bird singles titles.

Singles

Included:[8]

Year Champions Runners-up Score
Phoenix Thunderbird Invitational
1952United States Tony TrabertUnited States Bob Perry6–1, 6–2, 8–6
1953United States Tony TrabertUnited States Bob Perry6–1, 6–2, 8–6
1954United States Arthur LarsenUnited States Tom Brown6–2, 6–4, 6–2
1955United States Arthur Larsen (2)United States Herbert Flam6–4, 6–1
1956United States Tom BrownUnited States Gardnar Mulloy6–4, 8–6
1957Peru Alex OlmedoUnited States Noel Brown6–3, 6–2
1958United States Gilbert SheaUnited States Myron Franks7–5, 11–9
1959United States Hugh StewartUnited States Tom Brown3–6, 6–4, 6–4
1960United States Tom Brown (2)United States Whitney Reed4–6, 6–4, 6–2
1961United States Whitney ReedUnited States Jon Douglas6–4, 6–3
Phoenix Thunderbird Invitation
1962United States Tut BartzenUnited States Allen Fox6–4,6–4
1963United States Charlie PasarellUnited States Allen Fox2–6, 6–3, 6–2
1964United States Charlie Pasarell (2)United States Dennis Ralston6–3, 3–6, 6–4
1965United States Chuck McKinleyUnited States Arthur Ashe8–10, 6–4, 10–8
1966United States Arthur AsheUnited States Jim Osborne3–6, 6–3, 6–2
1967United States Stan SmithUnited States Allen Fox7–5, 6–3
1968United States Stan Smith (2)United States Bob Lutz4–6, 6–2, 6–1
↓  Open Era  ↓
1969 [9]United States Cliff RicheySpain Manuel Santana6–4, 6–4
Phoenix Thunderbird Open
1970United States Stan Smith (3)United States Jim Osborne6–3, 6–7, 6–1

Doubles
Year Champions Runners-up Score
1970Australia Dick Crealy
Australia Ray Ruffels		Czech Republic Jan Kodeš
United States Charlie Pasarell		7–6, 6–3

See also


References
  1. Barrett, John; Tingay, Lance; West, Peter (1971). "US Tournaments". World of Tennis 1971 : a BP yearbook. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 243. ISBN 978-0-362-00091-7.
  2. "USLTA Tournaments: Arizona". American Lawn Tennis. New York City: Rea Publications. 1952. p. 20.
  3. Archives, Tennis (2017). "Thunderbird Invitation". www.tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  4. "T-Bird Tennis Titles Taken by Richey's". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona: The Wikipedia Library - newspapers.com. 24 Mar 1969. p. 8. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  5. "Spanish ace heads T-Bird tennis tourney". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona: The Wikipedia Library - newspapers.com. 16 Mar 1969. p. 75. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  6. World of Tennis 1971
  7. "Phoenix: Overview". ATP Tour. ATP. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  8. Archives, Tennis (2017). "Thunderbird Invitation". www.tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  9. The Arizona Republic (1969)

Sources
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.