Rodney George Laver is an Australian former tennis player. Laver was the world number 1 ranked professional in some sources in 1964, in all sources from 1965 to 1969 and in some sources in 1970, spanning four years before and three years after the start of the Open Era in 1968. He was also ranked the world number 1 amateur in 1961 by Lance Tingay and 1962 by Tingay and Ned Potter.
Kenneth Robert Rosewall is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record 15 Pro Slam titles. Rosewall also won a record 24 major men's doubles titles, with nine Grand Slam titles and 15 Pro Slam men's doubles titles. Rosewall had a renowned backhand and enjoyed a long career at the highest levels from the early 1950s to the early 1970s. Rosewall was ranked as the world No. 1 tennis player by multiple sources from 1961 to 1964, multiple sources in 1970 and Rino Tommasi in 1971 and 1972. Rosewall was first ranked in the top 20 in 1952 and last ranked in the top 20 in 1977. Rosewall is the only player to have simultaneously held Pro Grand Slam titles on three different surfaces (1962–1963). At the 1971 Australian Open, he became the first man during the Open Era to win a Grand Slam tournament without dropping a set. Rosewall won world professional championship tours in 1963, 1964, and the WCT titles in 1971 and 1972. A natural left-hander, Rosewall was taught by his father to play right-handed. He developed a powerful, effective backhand but never had anything more than an accurate but relatively soft serve. He was 1.70 m tall, weighed 67 kg (148 lb) and sarcastically was nicknamed "Muscles" by his fellow-players because of his lack of them. He was, however, fast, agile, and tireless, with a deadly volley. Now a father of two and grandfather of five, Rosewall lives in northern Sydney.
World Championship Tennis (WCT) was a tour for professional male tennis players established in 1968 and lasted until the emergence of the ATP Tour in 1990. A number of tennis tournaments around the world were affiliated with WCT and players were ranked in a special WCT ranking according to their results in those tournaments.
The WCT Finals was a men's tennis tournament that served as the season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis circuit. From 1971–1989 the event was held annually in Texas on indoor carpet courts. The 1971 quarterfinals and semifinals were played in Houston, and final played at Moody Coliseum in Dallas. The 1972–1979 editions were played at Moody Coliseum, and the 1980–1989 tournaments at Reunion Arena in Dallas. The 1974 edition was the first tennis tournament to experiment with electronic line calling. The first edition of the WCT Finals was in November 1971, just a few days before the equivalent event of the rival Grand Prix circuit. But the second edition occurred just six months later to accommodate NBC's new tennis coverage; the tournament final between Ken Rosewall and Rod Laver is credited as "the match that made tennis in the United States" because its unprecedented domestic television audience of 23 million fueled a massive increase in the sport's popularity. The ensuing editions were also held in the spring. John McEnroe had the most overall success, winning a record five titles. Because of the popularity of the 1972 final, another edition, less important and with half the prize money, was held in November in Rome. The prize money offered to the winner, Arthur Ashe, was US$25,000 compared to the US$50,000 won by Ken Rosewall for the main edition in May. A decade later there were three editions of the WCT Finals; the most important one in Dallas, and the others in autumn in Naples, Italy, and in winter in Detroit. The tournament was sponsored by Buick between 1985 and 1986, a brand of General Motors, and was called the "Buick WCT Finals".
The 1972 Rotterdam Indoors was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the inaugural edition of the event known that year as the Rotterdam Indoors, and was part of the 1972 World Championship Tennis circuit. It took place at the Rotterdam Ahoy indoor sporting arena in Rotterdam, Netherlands, from 12 November through 18 November 1972. Second-seeded Arthur Ashe won the singles title.
The 1970 Pepsi-Cola Masters was a tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan. It was the first edition of the year-end Masters Grand Prix and was held from December 9 through December 15, 1970. The event included a singles and doubles draw, both of which were held in a round robin format. Stan Smith won the first singles title and then partnered Arthur Ashe to the doubles title as well.
The 1969 U.S. Professional Indoor was a men's WCT tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was played at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It was the second edition of the tournament and was held from February 5 through February 9, 1969. Total attendance for the five-day event was 44,538. First-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title.
The 1970 U.S. Professional Indoor was a WCT tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was played at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from February 2 through February 8, 1970. First-seeded Rod Laver won his second consecutive singles title at the event.
The 1973 U.S. Professional Indoor was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States that was part of the 1973 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was the sixth edition of the tournament and was held from February 6 through February 11, 1973. Third-seeded Stan Smith won the singles title.
The 1974 U.S. Professional Indoor was a men's tennis tournament that was part of the WCT circuit and played on indoor carpet courts at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It was the seventh edition of the tournament and was held from January 21 through January 27, 1974. Sixth-seeded Rod Laver won the singles title, his fourth at the event after 1969, 1970 and 1972.
The 1971 World Championship Tennis Finals was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor Sportface carpet courts. It was the first edition of the WCT Finals and the concluding event of the 1971 World Championship Tennis circuit. The eight top players in points qualified for the event. The quarterfinals and semifinals were played at the Hofheinz Pavilion in Houston, Texas from November 19 through November 21 while the final, watched by 8,200 spectators, was played at the Memorial Auditorium in Dallas, Texas, United States on November 26. Ken Rosewall win the event and the accompanying $50,000 first-prize money. Neil Armstrong presented the prizes.
The 1972 World Championship Tennis Finals was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the 2nd edition of the WCT Finals and was the season-ending tournament of the 1972 World Championship Tennis circuit. The top eight points winners of the circuit qualified for the tournament which was played at the Moody Coliseum in Dallas, Texas in the United States and ran from May 8 through May 14, 1972. Ken Rosewall won the singles title and the $50,000 first prize. The final was broadcast live in the United States by NBC and watched by an estimated 21.3 million viewers. In his book, The Education of a Tennis Player, finalist Rod Laver commented "I think if one match can be said to have made tennis in the United States, this was it.".
In the 1972 World Championship Tennis Finals - Singles, Ken Rosewall was the defending champion, having previously won the tennis competition, and won in the final 4–6, 6–0, 6–3, 6–7(3–7), 7–6(7–5) against Rod Laver. Of particular note, the final is credited as the "match that made tennis in the United States" because its unprecedented domestic television audience of 23 million fueled a massive increase in the sport's popularity.
The 1972 World Championship Tennis Winter Finals was a tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the 1st edition of the WCT Winter Finals and was part of the 1972 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was played in the EUR district of Rome in Italy and began on November 26, 1972.
The 1981 World Championship Tennis Finals was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the 11th edition of the WCT Finals and was part of the 1981 Volvo Grand Prix. The tournament was played at the Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas in the United States and was held from April 27 through May 3, 1981. The winners of the eight WCT tournaments that were part of the 1981 Grand Prix circuit qualified for the tournament augmented by the next best performers in the WCT points standings. Guillermo Vilas qualified by winning the last tournament held just before the WCT Finals, the River Oaks Tournament in Houston, but was unavailable to play. Jimmy Connors withdrew before the tournament due to gastroenteritis and Yannick Noah could not participate due to a shoulder injury. They were replaced by Sandy Mayer and Sam Giammalva respectively. First-seeded John McEnroe won the title and $100,000 prize money.
The 1972 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix was a professional tennis circuit held that year and organized by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF). It consisted of 33 Grand Prix tournaments in different categories including three of the four Grand Slam tournaments and was followed by a season-ending Masters tournament. The circuit ran from February through November.
The 1971 Pepsi Cola Grand Prix was a professional tennis circuit held that year. It incorporated three of the four grand slam tournaments, the Grand Prix tournaments. It was the second edition of the Grand Prix circuit and was run by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ITLF). In addition to regular tournament prize money a bonus prize money pool of £60,000 ($150,000) was available to be divided among the 20 highest ranking players after the last tournament. To be eligible for a share of the bonus pool a player had to compete in a minimum of nine tournaments. The circuit culminated in a Masters event in Paris, France for the seven highest point scoring players. Stan Smith was the winner of the circuit with 187 ranking points and four tournament victories.
Second-seeded Ken Rosewall won the men's singles title at the 1972 Charlotte Tennis Classic tennis tournament.
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 1971 Rothmans International Vancouver, also known as the Vancouver WCT, was a men's professional tennis tournament that was part of the 1971 World Championship Tennis circuit. It was held on indoor carpet courts at the PNE Agrodome in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. It was the second edition of the tournament and was held from 3 October through 11 October 1971. Fourth-seeded Ken Rosewall won the singles title and earned $10,000 first-prize money.
Rod Laver [2] 
Arthur Ashe /