1972 ILTF Women's Tennis Circuit
The 1972 ILTF Women's Tennis Circuit was 58th season since the founding of the International Lawn Tennis Association and was the final season to be solely administered by the ILTF.
.jpg.webp) Evonne Goolagong was titles leader this year | |
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Duration | 26 December 1971–18 December 1972 |
| Edition | 58th |
| Tournaments | 188 |
| Categories | Grand Slam (4) Year-end championships Virginia Slims Circuit (20) Commercial Union Grand Prix (11) ILTF Circuit (125) |
| Achievements (singles) | |
| Most tournament titles | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Evonne Goolagong (12) |
| Most tournament finals | Evonne Goolagong (20) |
← 1971 1973 → | |
It was composed of the 2nd annual Virginia Slims Circuit with 20 events, a tour of tennis tournaments for female tennis players, sponsored by Virginia Slims cigarettes, but approved by the ILTF and the 2nd annual ILTF Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix circuit with 11 events,[1][2] and the 58th annual ILTF Circuit with 125 events.
The following season would see the formation of the Women's Tennis Association in which the ILTF would eventually have to share responsibility for administering the world wide tour for women something at this time it was resisting to change.[3] In 1973 the majority of the ILTF events under direct administration of that organisation will form the ILTF Independent Tour.
Schedule
This is a calendar of all events that formed the majority of the ILTF Circuit and the Commercial Union Assurance Company and Virginia Slims sponsored tennis circuits in the year 1972, with player progression documented from the quarterfinals stage. The table also includes the Grand Slam tournaments, the 1972 Virginia Slims Championships and the 1972 Federation Cup.[1]
- Key
| Grand Slam tournaments |
| Virginia Slims championships |
| Virginia Slims Circuit |
| Commercial Union Grand Prix |
| Independent circuit |
| Team events |
December (1971)
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 Dec | Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam Grass – 64S/32D Singles – Doubles |  Virginia Wade6–4, 6–4 | Evonne Goolagong | Helen Gourlay Kerry Harris | Barbara Hawcroft Olga Morozova Gail Chanfreau Patricia Coleman |
| Helen Gourlay Kerry Harris 6–0, 6–4 | Patricia Coleman Karen Krantzcke |
January
February
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Feb | Virginia Slims of Oklahoma City Oklahoma City, United States Virginia Slims $20,000 Singles – Doubles |
 Rosie Casals 6–4, 6–1 | Valerie Ziegenfuss |  Betty Stöve Judy Dalton | Billie Jean King Wendy Overton Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr |
| Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 6–7(4–5), 7–6(5–2), 6–2 |
Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr | ||||
| 21 Feb | Virginia Slims of Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., United States Virginia Slims $18,000 Singles – Doubles |
Nancy Gunter 7–6(5–1), 6–1 | Chris Evert | Kerry Melville Rosie Casals | Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr Barbara Downs Wendy Overton |
| Wendy Overton Valerie Ziegenfuss 7–5, 6–2 |
Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr | ||||
| 28 Feb | K-Mart International Birmingham, United States Virginia Slims $15,000 Singles – Doubles |
Kerry Melville 6–3, 6–7(3–5), 6–4 | Rosie Casals | Wendy Overton Helen Gourlay |
|
| Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr 6–1, 6–1 |
Rosie Casals Kerry Melville |
March
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April
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May
June
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July
August
September
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Sep | Four Roses Classic Charlotte, United States Virginia Slims $40,000 Singles – Doubles |
Billie Jean King 6–2, 6–2 | Margaret Court | Rosie Casals Nancy Gunter | Mona Schallau Kerry Melville Françoise Dürr Wendy Overton |
| Françoise Dürr & Betty Stöve vs Margaret Court & Lesley Hunt(Divided) | |||||
| 18 Sep | Virginia Slims Golden Gate Classic Oakland, United States Virginia Slims $20,000 Singles – Doubles |
Margaret Court 6–4, 6–1 | Billie Jean King | Rosie Casals (3rd) Kerry Melville (4th) | Julie Heldman Veronica Burton Lesley Hunt Mona Schallau |
| Ann Jones Billie Jean King 7–5, 2–6, 7–6(5–4) |
Margaret Court Lesley Hunt | ||||
| 25 Sep | Virginia Slims of Phoenix Phoenix, United States Virginia Slims $25,000 Singles – Doubles |
Billie Jean King 7–6(5–3), 6–3 | Margaret Court | Rosie Casals (3rd) Wendy Overton (4th) | Veronica Burton Karen Krantzcke Françoise Dürr Nancy Gunter |
| Rosie Casals Wendy Overton 6–4, 6–3 |
Françoise Dürr Betty Stöve | ||||
October
November
December
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Dec | Western Australian Championships Perth, Australia Non-Tour Event Singles – Doubles |
Margaret Court 6–3, 6–2 | Evonne Goolagong | Lesley Hunt  Kazuko Sawamatsu | Nathalie Fuchs Christine Matison Glynis Coles .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Monique van Haver |
| 11 Dec | South Australian Championships Adelaide, Australia Non-Tour Event Singles – Doubles |
Evonne Goolagong 6–1, 6–2 | Kerry Harris | ||
| Eugenia Birioukova Janet Young 6–3, 6–2 |
Evonne Goolagong Helen Gourlay | ||||
| 18 Dec | New South Wales Open Sydney, Australia Non-Tour Event Singles – Doubles |
Margaret Court 6–3, 6–2 | Evonne Goolagong | ||
| Evonne Goolagong Melissa Edwards 6–1, 6–2 |
Lesley Turner Virginia Wade |
Statistical information
These tables present the number of singles (S), doubles (D), and mixed doubles (X) titles won by each player and each nation during the 1972 Virginia Slims Circuit. They also include data for the Grand Slam tournaments and the year-end championships. The table is sorted by:
- total number of titles (a doubles title won by two players representing the same nation counts as only one win for the nation);
- highest amount of highest category tournaments (for example, having a single Grand Slam gives preference over any kind of combination without a Grand Slam title);
- a singles > doubles > mixed doubles hierarchy;
- alphabetical order (by family names for players).
- Key
| Grand Slam tournaments |
| Year-end championships |
| Virginia Slims event |
Titles won by player
| Total | Player | S | D | X | S | S | D | S | D | X |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Billie Jean King (USA) | ● ● ● | ● ● | ● ● ● ● ● ● | ● ● ● ● ● | 9 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 13 | Rosie Casals (USA) | ● | ● ● ● | ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● | 3 | 9 | 1 | |||
| 5 | Virginia Wade (GBR) | ● | ● | ● ● ● | 2 | 3 | 0 | |||
| 5 | Nancy Gunter (USA) | ● ● ● ● ● | 5 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 4 | Françoise Durr (FRA) | ● | ● ● ● | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||||
| 4 | Margaret Court (AUS) | ● | ● ● | ● | 2 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 4 | Wendy Overton (USA) | ● ● ● ● | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||||
| 4 | Karen Krantzcke (AUS) | ● ● ● ● | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||||
| 3 | Betty Stöve (NED) | ● ● ● | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||||
| 2 | Helen Gourlay (AUS) | ● | ● | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2 | Kerry Harris (AUS) | ● | ● | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2 | Chris Evert (USA) | ● | ● | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2 | Judy Dalton (AUS) | ● ● | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||
| 2 | Lesley Hunt (AUS) | ● ● | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||
| 2 | Valerie Ziegenfuss (USA) | ● ● | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||
| 1 | Evonne Goolagong (AUS) | ● | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| 1 | Kerry Melville (AUS) | ● | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 1 |  Marie Neumannová (TCH) | ● | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 1 | Ann Jones (GBR) | ● | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Titles won by nation
| Total | Nation | S | D | X | S | S | D | S | D | X |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | United States (USA) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 13 | 19 | 15 | 1 |
| 14 | Australia (AUS) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
| 6 | Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 4 | France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 3 | Netherlands (NED) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1 | Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
References
- "WTA Tour Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2012-04-27.
- John Dolan (2011). Women's Tennis 1968–84: the Ultimate Guide. Remous. pp. 105–114.
- "Kramer". Press-Telegram. The Wikipedia Library - Newspapers.Com. 14 Nov 1973. p. 46. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
External links
- Women's Tennis Association (WTA) official website
- International Tennis Federation (ITF) official website