Paris Pro Championships

Tennis tournament

Paris Pro Championships

Defunct tennis tournament
Tour| Pro Tennis Tour
NTL Pro Tour
Founded| 1898; 126 years ago (1898)
Abolished| 1968; 56 years ago (1968)
Location| Paris, France
Venue| Palais des Sports
Tennis Club de Paris
Stade Pierre de Coubertin
Surface| Clay / outdoor
Wood / indoor

The Paris Pro Championships[1] was a professional tennis tournament first held in April 1898.[2] Also called the NTL Paris Pro Championships.[3] It was first played at the Tennis Club de Paris, Paris, France until 1968.[2]

## History

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The Paris Pro Championships were first held in March 1898 at the Tennis Club de Paris, Paris, France.[4] This was the first known pro tournament to held, and inaugural winner of this Round Robin Event was Irish player Thomas P. Burke who won 2 out 2 matches, Irish player George James Kerr was placed second with a 1-1 match record.[5][2] The tournament was not held on a semi permanent basis, until the late 1960s, 1960s.[2]

## Finals

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Year  | Champions  | Runners-up  | Score

|
|
|

1898[6] |  Thomas P. Burke (1st) |  George James Kerr (2nd)[7] | Round Robin.[2]
1952 |  Pancho Segura (1st) |  Jack Kramer (2nd) | Round Robin.[2]
1953[a] |  Frank Sedgman |  Pancho Gonzales | 3–6, 6–3, 6–1, 6–1.[2]
1967[8] |  Rod Laver |  Ken Rosewall | 6–0, 10–8, 10–8.[1]
1968 |  Ken Rosewall |  Andrés Gimeno | 6–3, 6–4.[1]

## Event names

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* Paris Professional Championship (1898)
* Paris Professional Tennis Championships (1952-1953)
* Paris Pro Championships (1967)
* NTL Paris Pro Championships (1968)

## Notes

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1. ^ In 1953, from Saturday November 21 to Sunday November 22, a 4-man (Sedgman winner, Gonzales runner-up, Segura 3rd and Budge 4th) professional tournament was held in Paris on indoor red cement at the Palais des Sports but there is no mention that this tournament was a French Pro: in particular in the January 1954 edition of Tennis de France, the French magazine, run by Philippe Chatrier (future president of the ILTF) who made the report of this tournament by interviewing the winner Frank Sedgman. Joe McCauley included this tournament in his list of French Pro tournaments but in the precis to his book History of Professional Tennis he mentions that it may not have been considered at the time as an official French Pro, more likely the Paris Pro.

## References

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1. ^ a b c McCauley, Joe (2003). The History of Professional Tennis. Windsor, Berkshire, England: Short Run Book Company. pp. 246, 251. ASIN B001EOVE56.
2. ^ a b c d e f g "Tournaments: Paris Pro Championships". The Tennis Base. Madrid, Spain: Tennismem SL. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
3. ^ McCauley
4. ^ "PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP AT PARIS ... PARIS PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP BURKE (DUBLIN) BEATS GEORGE KERR (FITZWILLLAM). The professional covered court lawn tennis tournament promoted by the Paris L T C has just been concluded". Irish Independent. Dublin, Republic of Ireland: British Newspaper Archive. 26 April 1898. p. 7. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
5. ^ Irish Independent (1898)
6. ^ Irish Independent (1898)
7. ^ "George Kerr - Biographical information". www.olympedia.org. Olympedia. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
8. ^ "Laver Captures Tennis Tourney". Courier-Post. Camden, New Jersey: newspapers.com. 10 Apr 1967. p. 30. Retrieved 19 January 2024.