1978 WTA Tour

1978 WTA Tour
	Martina Navratilova finished the year as world No. 1 for the first time in her career. She won eleven singles tournaments during the season, including a major at the Wimbledon Championships, as well as the Virginia Slims Championships.
Details
Duration	14 November 1977 – 18 December 1978
Edition	6th
Tournaments	47
Categories	Grand Slam (4); WTA Championships (3); Virginia Slims Circuit (11); Colgate International Series (23); Non-tour events (4)
Achievements (singles)
Most tournament titles	Martina Navratilova (11)
Most tournament finals	Martina Navratilova (15)
Prize money leader	Chris Evert ($454,486)
Points leader	Martina Navratilova (15.660)
Awards
Player of the year	Martina Navratilova
Doubles team of the year	Billie Jean King ; Martina Navratilova
Most improved ; player of the year	Virginia Ruzici
Newcomer of the year	Pam Shriver
	← 1977 1979 →

Last updated May 01, 2024

The 1978 WTA Tour consisted of a number of tennis tournaments for female tennis players. It was composed of the newly streamlined version of the Virginia Slims Circuit (which was now an 11-week tour of the US) and the Colgate Series.^[1]^[2] The tour was administered by the Women's International Professional Tennis Council.

Schedule

This is a calendar of all events which were part of either the Virginia Slims circuit or the Colgate Series in the year 1978, with player progression documented from the quarterfinals stage. Also included are the Grand Slam tournaments, the 1978 Virginia Slims Championships, the 1978 Federation Cup and a number of events not affiliated with either tour.^[1]

Key

Grand Slam tournaments
Virginia Slims/Colgate Series championships
Virginia Slims Circuit
Colgate International Series
Non-tour events
Team events

November (1977)

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
14 Nov	Colgate International of Australia Sydney, Australia Colgate Series (AAAA) $100,000 – grass Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–1, 6–3	Kerry Reid	Dianne Fromholtz Greer Stevens	Terry Holladay Pam Teeguarden Jeanne Evert Betty Stöve
14 Nov		Kerry Reid / Greer Stevens vs. Evonne Goolagong Cawley / Betty Stöve Cancelled		Dianne Fromholtz Greer Stevens	Terry Holladay Pam Teeguarden Jeanne Evert Betty Stöve
21 Nov	Toyota Classic Melbourne, Australia Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – grass Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–4, 6–1	Wendy Turnbull	Sue Barker Betty Stöve	Pam Whytcross Kerry Melville Dianne Fromholtz Helen Gourlay Cawley
21 Nov		Evonne Goolagong Cawley Betty Stöve 6–3, 6–0	Patricia Bostrom Kym Ruddell	Sue Barker Betty Stöve
28 Novr	South African Open Johannesburg, South Africa Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Linky Boshoff 6–4, 6–1	Brigitte Cuypers	Yvonne Vermaak Sharon Walsh	Niekle Scheepers Jeanne Evert Marise Kruger Alison McDade
28 Novr		Linky Boshoff Ilana Kloss 5–7, 6–3, 6–3	Brigitte Cuypers Marise Kruger	Yvonne Vermaak Sharon Walsh	Niekle Scheepers Jeanne Evert Marise Kruger Alison McDade

December (1977)

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
5 Dec	Bremar Cup London, Great Britain Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–1	Virginia Wade	Betty Stöve Virginia Ruzici	Tanya Harford Sharon Walsh Florența Mihai Renáta Tomanová
5 Dec		Billie Jean King Renáta Tomanová 6–2, 6–3	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Betty Stöve Virginia Ruzici	Tanya Harford Sharon Walsh Florența Mihai Renáta Tomanová
12 Dec	Marlboro NSW Open Sydney, Australia Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – grass Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–2, 6–3	Sue Barker	Kerry Reid Regina Maršíková
12 Dec		Evonne Goolagong Cawley Helen Gourlay Cawley 6–0, 6–0	Mona Guerrant Kerry Reid	Kerry Reid Regina Maršíková
19 Dec 26 Dec	Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam (A) Grass – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–3, 6–0	Helen Gourlay Cawley	Kerry Reid Sue Barker	Judy Dalton Kathleen Harter Mona Guerrant Rayni Fox
19 Dec 26 Dec		Evonne Goolagong Cawley / Helen Gourlay Cawley vs. Mona Guerrant / Kerry Reid Cancelled due to Rain		Kerry Reid Sue Barker	Judy Dalton Kathleen Harter Mona Guerrant Rayni Fox

January

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
2 Jan	Virginia Slims of Washington Washington, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 7–5, 6–4	Betty Stöve	Dianne Fromholtz JoAnne Russell	Greer Stevens Kathy May Virginia Ruzici Nancy Richey
2 Jan		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–3, 7–5	Betty Stöve Wendy Turnbull	Dianne Fromholtz JoAnne Russell	Greer Stevens Kathy May Virginia Ruzici Nancy Richey
9 Jan	Virginia Slims of Hollywood Hollywood, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–2, 6–3	Wendy Turnbull	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Tracy Austin Marita Redondo Nancy Richey Kathy Teacher
9 Jan		Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull 6–2, 6–4	Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Tracy Austin Marita Redondo Nancy Richey Kathy Teacher
16 Jan	Virginia Slims of Houston Houston, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 1–6, 6–2, 6–2	Billie Jean King	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Yvonne Vermaak Sue Barker Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull
16 Jan		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 7–6^(5–4), 4–6, 7–6^(5–4)	Greer Stevens Mona Guerrant	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Yvonne Vermaak Sue Barker Rosie Casals Wendy Turnbull
23 Jan	Virginia Slims of Los Angeles Los Angeles, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–2	Rosie Casals	Marise Kruger Greer Stevens	Yvonne Vermaak Sue Barker Virginia Wade Tracy Austin
23 Jan		Betty Stöve Virginia Wade 6–3, 6–2	Pam Teeguarden Greer Stevens	Marise Kruger Greer Stevens	Yvonne Vermaak Sue Barker Virginia Wade Tracy Austin
30 Jan	Virginia Slims of Chicago Chicago, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–7^(4–5), 6–2, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong Cawley	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Kerry Reid Sue Barker Wendy Turnbull Rosie Casals
30 Jan		Betty Stöve Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–1, 6–4	Rosie Casals JoAnne Russell	Betty Stöve Virginia Wade	Kerry Reid Sue Barker Wendy Turnbull Rosie Casals

February

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Feb	Virginia Slims of Seattle Seattle, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/15D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–1, 1–6, 6–1	Betty Stöve	Wendy Turnbull Marita Redondo	Kathy May Rosie Casals Kerry Reid JoAnne Russell
6 Feb		Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull 6–2, 6–3	Patricia Bostrom Marita Redondo	Wendy Turnbull Marita Redondo	Kathy May Rosie Casals Kerry Reid JoAnne Russell
20 Feb	Virginia Slims of Detroit Detroit, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–2	Dianne Fromholtz	Virginia Wade Billie Jean King	Kerry Reid Greer Stevens Sharon Walsh Evonne Goolagong Cawley
20 Feb		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–4	Kerry Melville Wendy Turnbull	Virginia Wade Billie Jean King
27 Feb	Virginia Slims of Kansas Kansas, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 34S/16D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 7–5, 2–6, 6–3	Billie Jean King	Virginia Wade Wendy Turnbull	Kerry Reid Brigitte Cuypers Rosie Casals Evonne Goolagong Cawley
27 Feb		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–4, 6–4	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull	Virginia Wade Wendy Turnbull

March

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Mar	Virginia Slims of Dallas Dallas, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/14D Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 4–6, 6–0, 6–2	Tracy Austin	Pam Shriver (3rd) Anne Smith (4th)	Martina Navratilova Marise Kruger Kerry Reid Rosie Casals
6 Mar		Martina Navratilova Anne Smith 6–3, 7–6^(5–2)	Evonne Goolagong Cawley Betty Stöve	Pam Shriver (3rd) Anne Smith (4th)	Martina Navratilova Marise Kruger Kerry Reid Rosie Casals
13 Mar	Virginia Slims of Boston Boston, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 33S/14D Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 4–6, 6–1, 6–4	Chris Evert	Martina Navratilova Billie Jean King	Kerry Reid Marise Kruger Marita Redondo Rosie Casals
13 Mar		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong Cawley Betty Stöve	Martina Navratilova Billie Jean King	Kerry Reid Marise Kruger Marita Redondo Rosie Casals
20 Mar	Virginia Slims of Philadelphia Philadelphia, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $100,000 – 32S/1D Singles – Double	Chris Evert 6–0, 6–4	Billie Jean King	Virginia Wade Virginia Ruzici	Wendy Turnbull Tracy Austin Betty Stöve Kerry Melville
20 Mar		Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull 6–3, 7–5	Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade	Virginia Wade Virginia Ruzici	Wendy Turnbull Tracy Austin Betty Stöve Kerry Melville
27 Mar	Virginia Slims Championships Los Angeles, United States Season-end championships Carpet (i) – $150,000 – 16S (8RR) Single – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 7–6^(5–0), 6–4	Evonne Goolagong Cawley	Wendy Turnbull Rosie Casals 4th	Round robin Virginia Wade Billie Jean King Betty Stöve Kerry Reid
27 Mar		Martina Navratilova 7–6^(5–0), 6–4	Evonne Goolagong Cawley

April

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
3 Apr	Bridgestone Doubles Championships Salt Lake City, United States $100,000 – Carpet (i) – 8D Doubles	Martina Navratilova Billie Jean King 6–4, 6–4	Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade	Stöve / Goolagong Cawley Reid / Turnbull	Stevens / Schallau Bostrom / Redondo Casals / Russell Kemmer / Newberry
10 Apr	Family Circle Cup Hilton Head Island, United States Colgate Series (AAA) Clay – $125,000 – 30S/16D Singles – Doubles	Chris Evert 6–2, 6–0	Kerry Reid	JoAnne Russell Tracy Austin	Martina Navratilova Jeanne DuVall Rosie Casals Renée Richards
10 Apr		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–3, 7–5	Mona Guerrant Greer Stevens	JoAnne Russell Tracy Austin

May

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
15 May	German Open Hamburg, West Germany Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – clay – 64S/16D Singles – Doubles	Mima Jaušovec 6–2, 6–3	Virginia Ruzici	Regina Maršíková Sylvia Hanika	Renáta Tomanová Viviana González Kathy May Laura duPont
15 May		Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici 6–4, 5–7, 6–0	Katja Ebbinghaus Helga Niessen Masthoff	Regina Maršíková Sylvia Hanika	Renáta Tomanová Viviana González Kathy May Laura duPont
22 May	Italian Open Rome, Italy Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – clay Singles – Doubles	Regina Maršíková 7–5, 7–5	Virginia Ruzici	Janet Newberry Michelle Tyler	Mima Jaušovec Betsy Nagelsen Katja Ebbinghaus Renáta Tomanová
		Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici 6–2, 2–6, 7–6	Florența Mihai Betsy Nagelsen	Janet Newberry Michelle Tyler
	Surrey Grass Courts Guildford, Great Britain Non-tour event Grass	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–1, 6–1	Winnie Wooldridge
29 May 5 June	French Open Paris, France Grand Slam (AA) $337,000 – Clay (red) – 64S/64Q/32D/24X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Virginia Ruzici 6–2, 6–2	Mima Jaušovec	Regina Maršíková Brigitte Simon	Kathy May Helga Niessen Masthoff Mirka Bendlová Fiorella Bonicelli
		Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici 5–7, 6–4, 8–6	Lesley Turner Bowrey Gail Sherriff Chanfreau
		Renáta Tomanová Pavel Složil 7–6 ret	Virginia Ruzici Patrice Dominguez

June

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
5 Jun	Kent Championships Beckenham, Great Britain Non-tour event Hard Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–4, 6–2	Laura duPont
12 Jun	Keith Prowse International Chichester, Great Britain Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – grass – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–4, 6–4	Pam Teeguarden	Janet Wright Sharon Walsh	Barbara Potter Diane Desfor Cynthia Doerner Tracy Austin
12 Jun		Janet Wright Pam Shriver 3–6, 6–3, 6–4	Michelle Tyler Yvonne Vermaak	Janet Wright Sharon Walsh	Barbara Potter Diane Desfor Cynthia Doerner Tracy Austin
19 Jun	Colgate International Eastbourne, Great Britain Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – grass – 64S/32D Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–4, 4–6, 9–7	Chris Evert	Wendy Turnbull Billie Jean King	Anne Hobbs Virginia Wade Betty Stöve Michelle Tyler
19 Jun		Chris Evert Betty Stöve 6–4, 6–7, 7–5	Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova	Wendy Turnbull Billie Jean King	Anne Hobbs Virginia Wade Betty Stöve Michelle Tyler
26 Jun 3 Jul	Wimbledon Championships London, Great Britain Grand Slam (AAAA) Grass – 96S/48D/64X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Martina Navratilova 2–6, 6–4, 7–5	Chris Evert	Virginia Wade Evonne Goolagong Cawley	Billie Jean King Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici Marise Kruger
		Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull 4–6, 9–8^(12–10), 6–3	Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici
		Betty Stöve Frew McMillan 6–2, 6-2	Billie Jean King Ray Ruffels

July

No tournaments this month

August

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
7 Aug	US Clay Court Championships Indianapolis, United States Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – clay – 48S/24D Singles – Doubles	Dana Gilbert 6–2, 6–3	Viviana González	Janet Wright Jeanne Evert	Kate Latham Caroline Stoll Valerie Ziegenfuss Jeanne DuVall
7 Aug		Helena Anliot Helle Sparre-Viragh 6–1, 6–3	Barbara Hallquist Sheila McInerney	Janet Wright Jeanne Evert	Kate Latham Caroline Stoll Valerie Ziegenfuss Jeanne DuVall
14 August	Rothmans Canadian Open Toronto, Canada Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Regina Maršíková 7–5, 6–7^(9–11), 6–2	Virginia Ruzici	Diane Desfor Zenda Liess	Mima Jaušovec Yvonne Vermaak Viviana González Lesley Hunt
14 August		Regina Maršíková Pam Teeguarden 5–7, 6–4, 6–2	Chris O'Neil Paula Smith	Diane Desfor Zenda Liess	Mima Jaušovec Yvonne Vermaak Viviana González Lesley Hunt
21 Aug	Bergen County Classic Mahwah, United States Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Virginia Wade 1–6, 6–1, 6–4	Kerry Reid	Regina Maršíková Tracy Austin	Mareen Louie Harper Lesley Hunt Betsy Nagelsen Caroline Stoll
21 Aug		Ilana Kloss Marise Kruger 6–3, 6–1	Barbara Potter Pam Whytcross	Regina Maršíková Tracy Austin
28 Aug 4 Sep	US Open New York City, United States Grand Slam (AAAA) $260,000 – Hard – 96S/32D/32X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Chris Evert 7–5, 6–4	Pam Shriver	Martina Navratilova Wendy Turnbull	Virginia Ruzici Lesley Hunt Kathy May Tracy Austin
		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 7–6, 6–4	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull
		Betty Stöve Frew McMillan 6–2, 3–6, 6–3	Billie Jean King Ray Ruffels

September

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
11 Sep	Toray Sillook Open Tokyo, Japan Colgate Series (AAA) $75,000 – carpet (i) – 32S	Virginia Wade 6–4, 7–6^(7–2)	Betty Stöve	Marita Redondo Wendy Turnbull	Jeanne DuVall Michelle Tyler Virginia Ruzici Carrie Meyer
	Women in Tennis International San Antonio, United States Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – hard – 32S/16D Singles – Doubles	Stacy Margolin 7–5, 6–1	Yvonne Vermaak	Laura duPont Anna-Maria Fernandez	Ilana Kloss Barbara Hallquist Patricia Medrado Cynthia Doerner
		Ilana Kloss Marise Kruger 6–1, 6–4	Laura duPont Françoise Dürr	Laura duPont Anna-Maria Fernandez
18 Sep	World Tennis Classic Montreal, Canada Colgate Series (A) $40,000 – clay – 32S/18D Singles – Doubles	Caroline Stoll 6–3, 6–2	Françoise Dürr	Laura duPont Yvonne Vermaak	Dana Gilbert Glynis Coles Diane Desfor Michelle Tyler
18 Sep		Julie Anthony Billie Jean King 6–4, 6–4	Ilana Kloss Marise Kruger	Laura duPont Yvonne Vermaak	Dana Gilbert Glynis Coles Diane Desfor Michelle Tyler
25 Sep	Wyler's Classic Atlanta, United States Colgate Series (AAA) $100,000 – carpet (i) Singles – Doubles	Chris Evert 7–6^(7–3), 0–6, 6–3	Martina Navratilova	Virginia Wade Betty Stöve	Carrie Meyer Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull Zenda Liess
25 Sep		Françoise Dürr Virginia Wade 4–6, 6–2, 6–4	Martina Navratilova Anne Smith	Virginia Wade Betty Stöve	Carrie Meyer Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull Zenda Liess

October

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
2 Oct	Thunderbird Classic Phoenix, United States Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – hard – 32S/16S Singles – Doubles	Martina Navratilova 6–4, 6–2	Tracy Austin	Kerry Reid Virginia Wade	Anne Smith Anna-Maria Fernandez Ann Kiyomura Jeanne DuVall
2 Oct		Tracy Austin Betty Stöve 6–4, 6–7, 6–2	Martina Navratilova Anne Smith	Kerry Reid Virginia Wade	Anne Smith Anna-Maria Fernandez Ann Kiyomura Jeanne DuVall
9 Oct	US Indoors Championships Minneapolis, United States Colgate Series (AAAA) $100,000 – carpet (i) Singles – Doubles	Chris Evert 6–7, 6–2, 6–4	Virginia Wade	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull	Barbara Potter Betty Stöve Tracy Austin Virginia Ruzici
9 Oct		Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull 6–3, 6–3	Lesley Hunt Ilana Kloss	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull	Barbara Potter Betty Stöve Tracy Austin Virginia Ruzici
16 Oct	BMW Challenge Brighton, Great Britain Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – carpet (i) Singles – Doubles	Virginia Ruzici 5–7, 6–2, 7–5	Betty Stöve	Chris Evert Kerry Reid	Sylvia Hanika Mima Jaušovec Nina Bohm Virginia Wade
16 Oct		Betty Stöve Virginia Wade 6–0, 7–6	Ilana Kloss JoAnne Russell	Chris Evert Kerry Reid	Sylvia Hanika Mima Jaušovec Nina Bohm Virginia Wade
23 Oct	Porsche Tennis Grand Prix Filderstadt, West Germany Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – carpet (i) Singles – Doubles	Tracy Austin 6–3, 6–3	Betty Stöve	Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici	Sabina Simmonds Lesley Hunt Nina Bohm Heidi Eisterlehner
23 Oct		Tracy Austin Betty Stöve 6–3, 6–2	Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici	Mima Jaušovec Virginia Ruzici	Sabina Simmonds Lesley Hunt Nina Bohm Heidi Eisterlehner
30 Oct	Rio de La Plata Championships Buenos Aires, Argentina Colgate Series (A) $35,000 – clay Singles – Doubles	Caroline Stoll 6–3, 6–1	Emilse Raponi	Regina Maršíková Ivanna Madruga	Cynthia Doerner Françoise Dürr Elly Vessies Liliana Giussani
		Françoise Dürr Valerie Ziegenfuss 1–6, 6–4, 6–3	Laura duPont Regina Maršíková	Regina Maršíková Ivanna Madruga
	Wightman Cup London, United Kingdom Hard (i) Team event	Great Britain 4–3	United States
	Wightman Cup London, United Kingdom Hard (i) Team event

November

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Nov	Florida Federal Open Oldsmar, United States Colgate Series (AA) $75,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Virginia Wade 6–4, 7–6^(7–1)	Anna-Maria Fernandez	Regina Maršíková Wendy Turnbull	Martina Navratilova Kerry Reid Renee Blount Anne White
6 Nov		Martina Navratilova Anne Smith 7–6^(7–4), 6–3	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull	Regina Maršíková Wendy Turnbull	Martina Navratilova Kerry Reid Renee Blount Anne White
13 Nov	Colgate Series Championships Palm Springs, United States Colgate Series championships $250,000 – hard Singles – Doubles	Chris Evert 6–3, 6–3	Martina Navratilova	Virginia Wade Virginia Ruzici	Round robin Regina Maršíková Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull Betty Stöve
13 Nov		Billie Jean King Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–4	Kerry Reid Wendy Turnbull	Virginia Wade Virginia Ruzici
20 Nov	Gunze Invitational Tokyo, Japan Non-tour event Hard (i)	Tracy Austin 6–1, 6–1	Martina Navratilova
20 Nov	Gunze Invitational Tokyo, Japan Non-tour event Hard (i)	Martina Navratilova Betty Stöve 4–6, 7–6, 6–3	Tracy Austin Kathy May
27 Nov	Federation Cup Melbourne, Australia Grass – 32 teams knockout	United States 2–1	Australia	Great Britain Soviet Union	France Czechoslovakia Romania Netherlands

December

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
11 Dec	Emeron Cup Tokyo, Japan Non-tour event Carpet (i) – $200,000 – 4S	Chris Evert 7–5, 6–2	Martina Navratilova	Virginia Wade Evonne Goolagong Cawley

Colgate Series

Draw and seeding

Draw Size	Min. Direct Acceptances	Min. Qualifiers	Min. Wild Cards	Seeds
16	13	2	1	4
32	26	4	1^{[lower-alpha 1]}	8
48	42	4	2	8
64	52	8	4	16
96	82	8	6	16
128	112	8	8	16

Wild cards for the tournament had to be given to either local players or players who had won Wimbledon, the US Open, the Virginia Slims or Colgate Series championships or were previous winners of the tournament. All tournaments used a seeded draw with the number of seeds depending on the draw size.

Points system

The tournaments of the Colgate Series were divided into four groups – AAAA, AAA, AA and A – based on prize money. Points were allocated based on these groups and the finishing position of a player in a tournament.^[3] The points allocation – with doubles points listed in brackets – was:

**Group AAAA**
Prize money at least $150,000 Champion: 160 (32) Runner-up: 120 (24) Semifinalist: 80 (16) Quarterfinalist: 40 (8) Round of 16: 20 (4) Round of 32: 15 (3) Round of 64: 10

**Group AAA**
Prize money at least $100,000 Champion: 120 (24) Runner-up: 90 (18) Semifinalist: 60 (12) Quarterfinalist: 30 (6) Round of 16: 15 (3) Round of 32: 10 (2)

**Group AA**
Prize money at least $75,000 Champion: 80 (16) Runner-up: 60 (12) Semifinalist: 40 (8) Quarterfinalist: 20 (4) Round of 16: 10 (2) Round of 32: 5

**Group A**
Prize money at least $35,000 Champion: 40 (8) Runner-up: 30 (6) Semifinalist: 20 (4) Quarterfinalist: 10 (2) Round of 16: 5

Points standings and bonus pool

No.	Player name	Points Singles	Bonus Singles	Points Doubles	Bonus Doubles	Total Bonus
1	Chris Evert (USA)	740	$100,000	–	–	$100,000
2	Virginia Wade (GBR)	635	$65,000	100	$7,500	$72,500
3	Kerry Reid (AUS)	560	$45,000	201	$22,000	$67,000
4	Martina Navratilova (USA)	540	$35,000	146	$13,000	$48,000
5	Virginia Ruzici (ROU)	470	$30,000	92	$6,000	$36,000
6	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (AUS)	450	$25,000	75	$3,800	$28,800
7	Betty Stöve (NED)	445	$22,500	142	$11,500	$34,000
8	Wendy Turnbull (AUS)	430	$20,000	168	$16,000	$36,000
9	Regina Maršíková (TCH)	370	$19,000	55	$2,500	$21,500
10	Tracy Austin (USA)	310	$17,000	–	–	$17,000

The total bonus pool for the Colgate Series was $675,000, an increase of $75,000 compared to the previous year, and was divided over singles ($540,000) and doubles ($135,000). The 35 highest points ranking singles players and the top 20 in doubles qualified to receive a share of the bonus pool. The distribution ranged from $100,000 for the first placed singles player to $3,000 for the 35th placed player. The first placed doubles player received $22,000 bonus while the 20th placed player received $2,000. In order to be eligible for a share of the respective bonus pools players had to a) participate in a minimum of seven singles or three doubles tournaments and b) accept invitation for the series championships if qualified based on merit. Players who ended on equal points were ranked in order of the number of tournaments played.^[3]^[4]

Virginia Slims Circuit

Points standings and prize money

No.	Player name	T	Points	Point avg.
1	Martina Navratilova (USA)	9	1,635	181.66
2	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (AUS)	6	910	151.66
3	Betty Stöve (NED)	7	753	107.57
4	Virginia Wade (GBR)	9	745	82.77
5	Billie Jean King (USA)	9	686	76.22
6	Wendy Turnbull (USA)	9	623	69.22
7	Rosemary Casals (USA)	10	608	60.80
8	Kerry Reid (AUS)	7	455	65.00
9	Chris Evert (USA)	2	360	180.00
10	Tracy Austin (USA)	4	345	86.25

No.	Player name	T	Prize money
1	Martina Navratilova (USA)	9	$214,350
2	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (AUS)	6	$114,450
3	Billie Jean King (USA)	9	$68,025
4	Betty Stöve (NED)	7	$67,000
5	Wendy Turnbull (USA)	9	$63,300
6	Virginia Wade (GBR)	9	$58,900
7	Rosemary Casals (USA)	10	$52,300
8	Kerry Reid (AUS)	7	$36,700
9	Chris Evert (USA)	2	$30,500
10	Dianne Fromholtz (AUS)	8	$22,450

Combined prize money for singles and doubles events. The points, named 'Silver Ginny Points', were allocated as follows:

Winner: 210
Runner-up: 150
Third: 110
Semifinalist: 100
Quarterfinalist: 65
Round of 16: 30
Round of 32: 8

WTA Tour

Year-end rankings

Below are the 1978 WTA year-end rankings (December 10, 1978) in both singles and doubles competition:

Singles Year-end Ranking^[5]
No.	Player Name	T	M	Points	1977	Change
1	Martina Navratilova (USA)	18	87	15.660	3	2
2	Chris Evert (USA)	10	56	15.192	1	1
3	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (AUS)	11	48	11.688	NR	NR
4	Virginia Wade (GBR)	22	92	9.879	4
5	Billie Jean King (USA)	10	35	9.183	2	3
6	Tracy Austin (USA)	14	64	8.531	12	6
7	Wendy Turnbull (AUS)	22	79	8.171	9	2
8	Betty Stöve (NED)	21	72	7.336	7	1
9	Kerry Reid (AUS)	21	79	7.111	10	1
10	Dianne Fromholtz (AUS)	14	39	7.032	8	2
11	Rosie Casals (USA)	14	38	6.295	6	5
12	Virginia Ruzici (ROU)	28	90	6.095	16	4
13	Pam Shriver (USA)	12	45	5.967	NR	NR
14	Regina Maršíková (TCH)	32	91	5.559	20	6
15	Kathy May (USA)	16	38	4.706	21	6
16	Marita Redondo (USA)	17	46	4.649	NR	NR
17	Greer Stevens (RSA)	7	15	4.628	13	4
18	Marise Kruger (RSA)	17	31	4.559	25	7
19	Mima Jaušovec (YUG)	20	48	4.527	11	8
20	Anne Smith (USA)	8	28	4.161	NR	NR

Prize money leaders

No.	Player Name	Prize money
1	Chris Evert (USA)	$454,486
2	Martina Navratilova (USA)	$450,757
3	Virginia Wade (GBR)	$300,027
4	Kerry Reid (AUS)	$208,766
5	Wendy Turnbull (AUS)	$189,583
6	Evonne Goolagong Cawley (AUS)	$180,844
7	Betty Stöve (NED)	$177,243
8	Virginia Ruzici (ROU)	$151,379
9	Billie Jean King (USA)	$149,492
10	Regina Maršíková (TCH)	$88,840

Notes

↑ Two wild cards for tournaments organized outside the United States.

Related Research Articles

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The 1979 WTA Tour consisted of a number of tennis tournaments for female tennis players. It was composed of the newly streamlined version of the Avon Championships and the Colgate Series. The year 1979 also saw the creation of the first official ranking system and these rankings were used to determine acceptance into the tournaments.

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References

1 2 "WTA Tour Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2012-07-14.
↑ "About the WTA". www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2012-07-14.
1 2 John Barrett, ed. (1978). World of Tennis 1978 : a BP yearbook. London: Macdonald and Janes. pp. 139, 142–143. ISBN 9780354090391.
↑ John Dolan (2011). Women's Tennis 1968–84: the Ultimate Guide. Remous. p. 511.
↑ "Womens International Computer Rankings" (PDF). Women's Tennis Association (WTA). 10 December 1978.

External links

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Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[wildcards-3] Two wild cards for tournaments organized outside the United States.

[WTACalendar1978-1] 1 2 "WTA Tour Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2012-07-14.

[2] "About the WTA". www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2012-07-14.

[wot1978-4] 1 2 John Barrett, ed. (1978). World of Tennis 1978 : a BP yearbook. London: Macdonald and Janes. pp. 139, 142–143. ISBN 9780354090391.

[dolan2011-5] John Dolan (2011). Women's Tennis 1968–84: the Ultimate Guide. Remous. p. 511.

[6] "Womens International Computer Rankings" (PDF). Women's Tennis Association (WTA). 10 December 1978.

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v t e Women's tennis seasons
Seasons (1881-1912) ILTF World Circuit (1913-72)	1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
ILTF Independent Circuit	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
ILTF Grand Prix Circuit	1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976
Virginia Slims Circuit	1971 1972 1973 1974 1975
Virginia Slims/Colgate Series	1976 1977 1978
Avon/Colgate Series	1979 1980
Avon/Toyota Series	1981 1982
Virginia Slims World Championship Series	1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
WTA Tour	1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

v t e 1978 WTA Tour « 1977 1979 »
Grand Slam events	French Open (S, D, X) Wimbledon (S, D, X) US Open (S, D, X) Australian Open (S, D)
Virginia Slims Circuit	Washington (S, D) Hollywood (S, D) Houston (S, D) Los Angeles (S, D) Chicago (S, D) Seattle (S, D) Detroit (S, D) Kansas (S, D) Dallas (S, D) Boston (S, D) Philadelphia (S, D)
Colgate Series	Sydney 1 (S, D) Melbourne (S, D) Johannesburg (S, D) London (S, D) Sydney 2 (S, D) Hilton Head Island (S, D) Hamburg (S, D) Rome (S, D) Chichester (S, D) Eastbourne (S, D) Indianapolis (S, D) Toronto (S, D) Mahwah (S, D) Tokyo 1 (S) San Antonio (S, D) Montreal (S, D) Atlanta (S, D) Phoenix (S, D) Minneapolis (S, D) Brighton (S, D) Filderstadt (S, D) Buenos Aires (S, D) Oldsmar (S, D)
Non-Tour Events	Surbiton (S, D) Beckenham (S, D) Tokyo 2 (S, D) Tokyo 3 (S, D)
Team events	Fed Cup Wightman Cup
Virginia Slims Championships (S, D) Bridgestone Doubles Championships (D) Colgate Series Championships (S, D)