Rodney George Laver is an Australian former tennis player. Laver was ranked the world number 1 professional player indisputably for five years from 1965 to 1969 and by some sources also in 1964 and 1970. He was also ranked as the number 1 amateur in 1961 and 1962. Laver won 198 singles titles which is the most won by a player in history.
Kenneth Robert Rosewall is an Australian former world top-ranking professional tennis player. Rosewall won 147 singles titles, including a record 15 Pro Majors and 8 Grand Slam titles for a total 23 titles at pro and amateur majors. He also won 15 Pro Majors in doubles and 9 Grand Slam doubles titles. Rosewall achieved a Pro Slam in singles in 1963 by winning the three Pro Majors in one year and he completed the Career Grand Slam in doubles.
Rod Laver defeated Andrés Gimeno in the final, 6–3, 6–4, 7–5 to win the men's singles tennis title at the 1969 Australian Open. It was his eighth Grand Slam tournament singles title, and the first step in an eventual Grand Slam for Laver. This was the first edition of the Australian Open to be open to professional players, marking a period in tennis history known as the Open Era.
The 1972 U.S. Professional Indoor was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was played at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States that was part of the 1972 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was the fifth edition of the tournament and was held from February 8 through February 13, 1972. Total attendance for the tournament was 57,282. First-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title, his third at the event after 1969 and 1970.
The 1973 Australian Indoor Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia. It was part of the 1973 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix as a Group B category tournament. It was the inaugural edition of the tournament and was held from 4 November through 11 November 1973. Rod Laver won the singles title and the accompanying $10,000 first-prize money.
The 1970 Queen's Club Championships, also known by its sponsored name Rothmans Open London Grass Court Championships, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on grass courts at the Queen's Club in London in the United Kingdom. It was a non-tour event, i.e. not part of the 1970 Pepsi-Cola Grand Prix or 1970 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was the 71st edition of the tournament and was held from 15 June through 20 June 1970. First-seeded Rod Laver and Margaret Court won the singles titles. In the final Court was 2–6, 0–5 and 0–15 down against Winnie Shaw but recovered by winning 14 of the last 17 games.
The 1974 Japan Open Tennis Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on hard courts and took place in Tokyo, Japan. The men's events were part of the 1974 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix while the women's tournament was a non-tour event. The tournament was held from 7 October through 13 October 1974. First-seeded John Newcombe won the men's singles title and the accompanying $15,000 first prize money and Maria Bueno won the women's singles event.
The 1970 season of the World Championship Tennis (WCT) circuit was one of the two rival professional male tennis circuits of 1970. It was organized by World Championship Tennis (WCT).
The 1970 U.S. Pro Tennis Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at the Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. It was classified as a Class 1 category tournament and was part of the 1970 Grand Prix circuit. It was the 43rd edition of the tournament and was held from August 3 through August 9, 1970. Fourth-seeded Tony Roche won the singles title and the accompanying $12,000 first prize money.
The 1969 U.S. Pro Tennis Championships was a men's professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at the Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts in the United States. The existing grass courts at Longwood were replaced for the tournament with a slower and higher bouncing green synthetic hardcourt (Uniturf)). It was the 42nd edition of the tournament, the second edition of the Open Era, and was held from July 9 through July 15, 1969. First-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title, his fourth consecutive title at the event and fifth in total, and earned $8,000 first-prize money.
The 1969 British Hard Court Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at The West Hants Club in Bournemouth in England. It was the 40th edition of the tournament and the second edition in the Open Era of tennis. The tournament was held from 28 April through 3 May 1969. John Newcombe, seeded first, and Margaret Court won the first open singles titles while the men's team of Bob Hewitt and Frew McMillan and the women's team of Margaret Court and Judy Tegart won the doubles titles. The poor state of the courts led to a protest by a number of players. The tournament made a financial loss due to higher expenses compared to the previous edition and poor weather during the final two days.
The 1969 New South Wales Open was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on grass courts at the White City Stadium in Sydney, Australia. The tournament was held from 13 January through 19 January 1969. It was the 77th edition of the event and the first one in the Open era of tennis. The singles titles were won by Margaret Court and fourth-seeded Tony Roche. It was Roche's second singles title after 1967 and he won AUS$3,594 first-prize money. Court earned AUS$1,537 for her singles win which was her sixth singles title at the tournament.
The 1970 New South Wales Open, also known by its sponsored name Dunlop Open, was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor grass courts at the White City Stadium in Sydney, Australia. The tournament was held from 16 March through 22 March 1970. It was the 78th edition of the event and the second held in the Open era of tennis. The men's event consisted of a singles and doubles competition while the women only played a singles competition. The singles titles were won by Billie Jean King and Rod Laver who were both seeded first. It was Laver's second singles title after 1961 and he won AUS$5,000 first-prize money.
The 1969 Wills Open British Covered Court Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the second edition of the British Indoor Championships in the Open era. The tournament took place at the Queens Club and Wembley Arena in London, England and ran from 17 November through 22 November 1969.
The 1971 First National Tennis Classic, also known as the Louisville WCT, was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at the Louisville Tennis Center in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It was the second edition of the tournament and was held from July 19 through July 25, 1971. The tournament was part of the 1971 World Championship Tennis circuit and offered total prize money of $50,000. The singles final was won by Tom Okker who earned $10,000 first-prize money.
The 1972 Fidelity WCT Tournament, also known as the Richmond WCT, was a men's professional tennis tournament that was part of the Group A of the 1972 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was held on indoor carpet courts at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia in the United States. It was the seventh edition of the tournament and was held from February 2 through February 6, 1972. First-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title and earned $10,000 first-prize money.
The 1970 First National Tennis Classic – Singles was an event of the 1970 First National Tennis Classic men's tennis tournament and was played at the Louisville Tennis Center in Louisville, Kentucky in the United States from July 29 through August 3, 1970. The draw consisted of 16 players. Rod Laver won the singles title, defeating John Newcombe in the final, 6–3, 6–3.
The 1970 First National Tennis Classic – Doubles was an event of the 1970 First National Tennis Classic men's tennis tournament and was played at the Louisville Tennis Center in Louisville, Kentucky in the United States from July 29 through August 3, 1970. The draw consisted of eight teams. John Newcombe and Tony Roche won the singles title, defeating Roy Emerson and Rod Laver in the final, 8–6, 5–7, 6–4.
The 1970 Rawlings Tennis Classic, also known as the St. Louis WCT, was a men's professional tennis tournament that was part of the 1970 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was held on outdoor hard courts at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center in Forest Park in St. Louis, Missouri in the United States. It was the inaugural edition of the tournament and was scheduled from May 25 through June 1, 1970 but both finals were delayed due to a power outage on the day before the finals and rain on the day of the finals. The singles finalists then had to travel to New York to compete in the Tennis Champions Classic before returning. Due to persistent bad weather the singles final was played indoor at the Washington University Field House on June 4, 1970. First-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title and earned $8,000 first-prize money. The doubles finalists Andrés Gimeno and John Newcombe had to travel to Casablanca, Morocco for the Moroccan Pro Championships and their final was rescheduled and played on August 24, 1970. This was followed by a Rawlings Challenge Cup match between tournament winner Rod Laver and Wimbledon champion John Newcombe which was won by Laver 6–3, 8–6.
The 1971 Rothmans Open, also known as the Italian International Open and Bologna WCT, was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts that was part of the 1971 World Championship Tennis circuit and took place in Bologna, Italy. It was the first edition of the tournament and was held from 8 November through 14 November 1971. Rod Laver won the singles title and earned $10,000 first prize money.
Rod Laver [1]