McCartney Kessler

McCartney Kessler

Kessler at the 2024 Washington Open
Country (sports)	United States
Born	(1999-07-08) July 8, 1999 (age 25) Calhoun, Georgia, U.S.
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
College	Florida
Prize money	US$ 760,851
Singles
Career record	140–73
Career titles	2
Highest ranking	No. 47 (January 13, 2025)
Current ranking	No. 55 (February 10, 2025)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	2R (2024)
French Open	Q1 (2024)
Wimbledon	1R (2024)
US Open	1R (2024)
Doubles
Career record	28–29
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 180 (April 8, 2024)
Current ranking	No. 573 (February 10, 2025)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	1R (2025)
US Open	1R (2024)
Last updated on: February 10, 2025.

McCartney Kessler (born 8 July 1999) is an American tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of No. 47 in singles, achieved on 13 January 2025, and No. 180 in doubles, set on 8 April 2024. ^{[1] [2]} Kessler has won two WTA Tour titles.

Early life

From Calhoun, Georgia, her parents, Carl Kessler and Julie Driggers, played collegiate tennis at University of Central Florida. She has an older sister Mackenzie and an older brother McClain Kessler, who also played collegiate tennis at Florida. ^[3]

Kessler attended Calhoun High School. ^[4]

College career

Kessler signed on to the University of Florida on a tennis scholarship to play collegiate tennis for the Florida Gators in November 2017. ^{[5] [6]} At Florida, she was a three-time All-American and three-time First Team All-SEC player. She also earned the 2022 SEC Player of the Year Award, becoming the ninth player from University of Florida to earn the award. ^[7]

Career

Juniors

Kessler won the U16 doubles title at the Orange Bowl with Emma Kurtz in 2015. ^[8]

2024: Major & WTA Tour debuts, first title

Kessler made her WTA Tour debut at the Auckland Open after qualifying. ^[9] She lost in the first round to Lulu Sun. ^[10]

For her major debut, she received a wildcard at the Australian Open ^{[11] [12]} after winning the USTA's Wild Card Challenge, and reached the second round, recording her first major match win over qualifier Fiona Ferro. She lost in the second round to Linda Nosková. ^[13] In February, she won the biggest title of her career to that date at the WTA 125 in Puerto Vallarta, defeating Taylah Preston in the final. ^[14]

In March, she received a wildcard for the Indian Wells Open making there her WTA 1000 debut, ^[15] losing to Nuria Párrizas Díaz in the first round. ^[16] In April, she entered the main draw of the WTA 500 Charleston Open as a lucky loser, making her debut at this level. She lost in the first round to Caroline Wozniacki. ^[17]

Kessler qualified for the Wimbledon, making her debut at this Grand Slam tournament, ^[18] losing to ninth seed Maria Sakkari in the first round. ^[19]

Following winning the W100 title in Landisville, Pennsylvania, she reached the top 100 on 12 August 2024. ^{[20] [21] [22]}

At the Tennis in Cleveland, she reached her first WTA Tour quarterfinal by defeating fellow wildcard Katrina Scott ^{[23] [24]} and fourth seed Wang Xinyu for her first top 50 win. ^{[25] [26]} Next, she defeated Arantxa Rus in straight sets. ^{[27] [28]} Kessler reached her first final with a come-from-behind three set victory over fifth seed Anastasia Potapova, for her second top 50 win, ^{[29] [30]} and won her maiden Tour title defeating top seed Beatriz Haddad Maia. ^{[31] [32]}

She also received a wildcard for the US Open making her debut at her home slam, ^[33] losing in the first round to 19th seed Marta Kostyuk. ^[34]

2025: Second WTA Tour title, top 50

Kessler started her season at the 2025 Brisbane International, where she defeated Magda Linette, ^[35] before losing to 15th seed Yulia Putintseva in the second round. ^[36] The following week, she reached the final at the Hobart International with wins over seventh seed Rebecca Šramková, ^[37] María Lourdes Carlé ^[38] top seed Dayana Yastremska ^[39] and sixth seed Elina Avanesyan. ^{[40] [41]} In the championship match, Kessler defeated second seed Elise Mertens in three sets to secure her second career title. ^{[42] [43]} As a result, she reached the top 50 at world No. 47 in the WTA singles rankings on 13 January 2025. ^{[44] [45]}

In February, at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Kessler defeated Amanda Anisimova in the first round ^[46] and then overcame world No. 3 Coco Gauff to record her first win against a top-10 ranked player. ^{[47] [48]} She lost in the third round to Karolína Muchová in a match which went to a deciding set tiebreak. ^[49]

WTA Tour finals

Singles: 2 (2 titles)

Legend Grand Slam (0–0) WTA 1000 (0–0) WTA 500 (0–0) WTA 250 (2–0)

Finals by surface Hard (2–0) Clay (0–0) Grass (0–0)

Finals by setting Outdoor (2–0) Indoor (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Aug 2024	Tennis in the Land, United States	WTA 250	Hard	Beatriz Haddad Maia	1–6, 6–1, 7–5
Win	2–0	Jan 2025	Hobart International, Australia	WTA 250	Hard	Elise Mertens	6–4, 3–6, 6–0

WTA Challenger finals

Singles: 1 (title)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Feb 2024	Puerto Vallarta Open, Mexico	Hard	Taylah Preston	5–7, 6–3, 6–0

ITF Circuit finals

Singles: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)

Legend W100 tournaments (1–0) W60/75 tournaments (2–0) W15 tournaments (0–1)

Finals by surface Hard (3–1) Clay (0–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	0–1	Oct 2021	ITF Lubbock, United States	W15	Hard	Adriana Reami	6–7(6–8), 1–6
Win	1–1	Oct 2023	Georgia's Rome Open, US	W60	Hard (i)	Grace Min	6–2, 6–1
Win	2–1	Jan 2024	Georgia's Rome Open, US	W75	Hard (i)	Liv Hovde	6–4, 6–1
Win	3–1	Aug 2024	Landisville Tennis Challenge, US	W100	Hard	Olivia Gadecki	4–6, 6–2, 6–4

Doubles: 4 (2 titles, 2 runner–ups)

Legend W60 tournaments (2–1) W25 tournaments (0–1)

Finals by surface Hard (1–2) Clay (1–0)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1–0	Apr 2023	ITF Jackson, US	W25	Clay	Jaeda Daniel	Allura Zamarripa Maribella Zamarripa	1–6, 6–1, [10–5]
Loss	1–1	Jun 2023	ITF Sumter, US	W60	Hard	Yuliia Starodubtseva	Maria Mateas Anna Rogers	4–6, 7–6(7–3), [6–10]
Loss	1–2	Jul 2023	Evansville Classic, US	W60	Hard	Yuliia Starodubtseva	Maria Kononova Veronika Miroshnichenko	3–6, 6–2, [8–10]
Win	2–2	Sep 2023	ITF Templeton Pro, US	W60	Hard	Alana Smith	Jaeda Daniel Jessie Aney	7–5, 6–4

References

1. "McCartney Kessler". wta. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
2. "McCartney Kessler". itf. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
3. Krass, Ed. "THE KESSLER TENNIS FAMILY: AN AMERICAN SUCCESS STORY". College Tennis. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
4. McElhaney, Tori (June 11, 2017). "Calhoun's McCartney Kessler in two Open Championship tennis finals". times free press.com. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
5. "M.Kessler". Florida Gators. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
6. Farrer, Alex (November 11, 2017). "College Signing: Calhoun's Kessler signs to play tennis at Florida". apnews.com. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
7. "McCartney Kessler Earns ITA All-American Honors". Florida Gators. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
8. "Calhoun's Kessler wins Orange Bowl Tennis doubles title". allongeorgia. December 30, 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
9. "Photos: The players contesting their first WTA main draw in 2024". Women's Tennis Association.
10. "New Zealand-born Sun backs up qualifying with main-draw win in Auckland". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
11. "Saville, Kubler, McCabe among latest AO wildcards". Australian Open. 5 January 2024.
12. "Aussie Open 2024's Slam debuts: Korneeva, Seidel, Starodubtseva and more". Women's Tennis Association.
13. "Noskova holds off Kessler to advance in Melbourne". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
14. "Kessler captures WTA 125 Puerto Vallarta title". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
15. "Emma Raducanu, Paula Badosa Headline Full List of 2024 Wild Cards". bnpparibasopen.com. 1 March 2024.
16. "Indian Wells: Parrizas Diaz makes second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
17. "Caroline Wozniacki storms to straight-sets victory against McCartney Kessler in Charleston Open first round". Eurosport. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
18. "Katie Volynets, Robin Montgomery among four U.S. women to qualify at Wimbledon". tennis.com. 27 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
19. "Wimbledon: Sakkari makes second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
20. "McCartney Kessler rallies for championship at Koser Jewelers Tennis Challenge". Lancaster Online. 12 August 2024.
21. "Photos: McCartney Kessler and all the Top 100 breakthroughs of 2024". Women's Tennis Association. 12 August 2024.
22. "Rankings Watch: Anisimova back inside Top 50, Shnaider cracks Top 20". Women's Tennis Association. 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
23. "Kessler holds off Scott in Cleveland wild-card clash". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
24. "Cleveland Open: Kessler reaches second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
25. "Kessler upsets Wang Xinyu for first Top 50 win and WTA quarterfinal debut". Women's Tennis Association. 21 August 2024.
26. "WTA roundup: McCartney Kessler secures top-50 win in Cleveland". Reuters. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
27. "Cleveland Open: Kessler powers into semi-finals". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
28. "Wild card Kessler takes out Rus in Cleveland to reach first WTA semifinal". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
29. "Top seed Haddad Maia, first-time finalist Kessler to meet in Cleveland final". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
30. "Cleveland Open: Wildcard Kessler upsets Potapova to reach first WTA final". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
31. "American wild card Kessler upsets top seed Haddad Maia to win Cleveland". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
32. "Kessler defies odds, beats Haddad Maia to claim Cleveland Open title". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
33. "Past women's champions Osaka, Andreescu headline 2024 US Open wild cards". US Open. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
34. "Marta Kostyuk dominates in-form McCartney Kessler at the 2024 US Open". US Open. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
35. "Brisbane Open: Kessler makes second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
36. "Brisbane Open: Putintseva makes last 16". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
37. "Hobart International: Kessler advances to second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
38. "WTA Hobart: Kessler beats Lourdes Carle to reach quarter-finals". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
39. "Hobart International: Kessler moves into semi-finals". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
40. "Two-time champ Mertens reaches fourth Hobart final; to face Kessler". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
41. "WTA Hobart: Kessler through to second final with win over Avanesyan". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
42. "Kessler powers past Mertens in Hobart, wins second career title". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
43. "Kessler beats Mertens to win Hobart WTA title". Sportstar. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
44. "Rankings Watch: Kessler cracks Top 50; Keys, Joint move up". Women's Tennis Association. 13 January 2025.
45. "WTA Rankings Update: Aryna Sabalenka emulates Sharapova and Austin as Keys, Joint and Kessler make moves". yardbarker.com. 13 January 2025.
46. "Kessler, Uchijima topple Doha finalists Anisimova, Ostapenko in Dubai". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
47. "McCartney Kessler upsets Coco Gauff at Dubai Championships". ESPN. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
48. "Dubai takeaways: Kessler stuns Gauff for first Top 10 win". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
49. "Muchova overcomes Kessler in third-set tiebreak to make Dubai quarterfinals". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 February 2025.

External links

• McCartney Kessler at the Women's Tennis Association
• McCartney Kessler at the International Tennis Federation