1976 Grand Prix (tennis)

The 1976 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix was a professional tennis circuit administered by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) which served as a forerunner to the current Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.[1] The circuit consisted of the four modern Grand Slam tournaments and open tournaments recognised by the ILTF. The Commercial Union Assurance Masters is included in this calendar but did not count towards the Grand Prix ranking.[2]

1976 Grand Prix circuit
Details
Duration28 December 1975 – 13 December 1976
Edition7th
Tournaments48
Achievements (singles)
Most tournament titlesUnited States Jimmy Connors (7)
Most tournament finalsSpain Manuel Orantes (10)
Prize money leaderMexico Raúl Ramírez ($190,000)
Points leaderMexico Raúl Ramírez (938)
Awards
Player of the yearSweden Björn Borg
Newcomer of the yearPoland Wojciech Fibak
1975
1977
Jimmy Connors finished the year as ATP world No. 1 for the third time in his career. Connors won seven titles during the season, including a major at the US Open.
Raúl Ramírez was the 1976 Grand Prix No. 1. Ramírez won two tournaments during the season.
Björn Borg was named the ATP Player of the Year. Borg won three tournaments during the season, including a major at the Wimbledon Championships, and finished runner-up at another major at the US Open.

The 1976 Grand Prix circuit consisted of 48 tournaments held in 21 different countries.

Schedule edit

Key
Triple Crown
Grand Prix Masters
Five-star events
Four-star events
Three-star events
Two-star events
One-star events
Team events

December 1975 edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
28 Dec Australian Open
Melbourne, Australia
Grand Slam
Two Star
Grass – $75,000 – 64S/32D
SinglesDoubles
  Mark Edmondson
6–7, 6–3, 7–6, 6–1
  John Newcombe   Ken Rosewall
  Ray Ruffels
  Brad Drewett
  Dick Crealy
  Tony Roche
  Ross Case
  John Newcombe
  Tony Roche
7–6, 6–4
  Ross Case
  Geoff Masters

May edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
4 May Romika Cup
Munich, West Germany
Clay – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
SinglesDoubles
  Manuel Orantes
6–1, 6–4, 6–1
  Karl Meiler   Hans Kary
  Jan Kodeš
  François Jauffret
  Mike Cahill
  Jiří Hřebec
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Manuel Orantes
1–6, 6–3, 6–2, 2–3 RET.
  Jürgen Fassbender
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
11 May Coca-Cola British Hard Court Championships
Bournemouth, Great Britain
Clay – 48S/24D/16XD
Two Star
  Wojciech Fibak
6–2, 7–9, 6–2, 6–2
  Manuel Orantes   Corrado Barazzutti
  François Jauffret
  Hans Kary
  Norman Holmes
  Iván Molina
  Jean-François Caujolle
  Wojciech Fibak
  Fred McNair
4–6, 7–5, 7–5
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Manuel Orantes
  Linky Boshoff
  Colin Dowdeswell
6–8, 8–6, 6–1
  Ilana Kloss
  Byron Bertram
18 May German Open
Hamburg, West Germany
Clay – $100,000 – 64S/32D
Three Star
  Eddie Dibbs
6–4, 4–6, 6–1, 2–6, 6–1
  Manuel Orantes   Jaime Fillol
  Hans Kary
  Ulrich Pinner
  Jiří Hřebec
  Balázs Taróczy
  José Higueras
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
7–6, 7–6, 7–6
  Dick Crealy
  Kim Warwick
25 May Italian Open
Rome, Italy
Clay – $150,000 – 64S/32D
Five Star
  Adriano Panatta
2–6, 7–6, 6–2, 7–6
  Guillermo Vilas   Eddie Dibbs
  John Newcombe
  Corrado Barazzutti
  Mark Edmondson
  Harold Solomon
  Jan Kodeš
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
7–6, 5–7, 6–3, 3–6, 6–3[note 1]
  Geoff Masters
  John Newcombe
Agfa Colour Cup
Düsseldorf, West Germany
Clay – $50,000 – 48S/24D
Two Star
  Björn Borg
6–2, 6–2, 6–0
  Manuel Orantes   José Higueras
  Jaime Fillol
  Byron Bertram
  Dick Crealy
  Wojciech Fibak
  Kjell Johansson
  Wojciech Fibak
  Karl Meiler
6–4, 4–6, 6–4
  Bob Carmichael
  Raymond Moore
31 May French Open
Paris, France
Grand Slam
Triple Crown
Clay – 128S/64D/32XD
SinglesDoublesMixed doubles
  Adriano Panatta
6–1, 6–4, 4–6, 7–6(7–3)
  Harold Solomon   Eddie Dibbs
  Raúl Ramírez
  Björn Borg
  Manuel Orantes
  Balázs Taróczy
  Guillermo Vilas
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
7–6(8–6), 6–3, 6–1
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
  Ilana Kloss
  Kim Warwick
5–7, 7–6, 6–2
  Linky Boshoff
  Colin Dowdeswell

June edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
14 Jun John Player Open
Nottingham, Great Britain
Grass – $100,000 – 64S/32D
Three Star
No Winner   Jimmy Connors
  Ilie Năstase
6–2, 4–6, 1–1 Match Abandoned
  Raúl Ramírez
  Ove Bengtson
  Tom Okker
  Vijay Amritraj
  Ismail El Shafei
  Roger Taylor
Not completed. (5 pairs remaining)
Berlin Open
Berlin, West Germany
Clay – $50,000 – 32S/15D
One Star
  Víctor Pecci
6–1, 6–2, 5–7, 6–3
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann   Julián Ganzábal
  Ricardo Cano
  Belus Prajoux
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Wojciech Fibak
  Werner Zirngibl
  Patricio Cornejo
  Antonio Muñoz
7–5, 6–1
  Jürgen Fassbender
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
21 Jun Wimbledon Championships
London, Great Britain
Grand Slam
Triple Crown
Grass – $160,000 – 128S/64D/64XD
SinglesDoublesMixed doubles
  Björn Borg
6–4, 6–2, 9–7
  Ilie Năstase   Raúl Ramírez
  Roscoe Tanner
  Vitas Gerulaitis
  Charlie Pasarell
  Guillermo Vilas
  Jimmy Connors
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
3–6, 6–3, 8–6, 2–6, 7–5
  Ross Case
  Geoff Masters
  Françoise Dürr
  Tony Roche
6–3, 2–6, 7–5
  Rosemary Casals
  Dick Stockton

July edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
5 Jul Swedish Open
Båstad, Sweden
Clay – $100,000 – 64S/32D
Three Star
  Antonio Zugarelli
4–6, 7–5, 6–2
  Corrado Barazzutti   Byron Bertram
  Billy Martin
  Fred McNair
  Peter Fleming
  Raymond Moore
  Per Hegna
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
6–3, 6–4
  Wojciech Fibak
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
Swiss Open
Gstaad, Switzerland
Clay – $75,000 – 48S/24D
Two Star
  Raúl Ramírez
7–5, 6–7, 6–1, 6–3
  Adriano Panatta   Jan Kodeš
  Onny Parun
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Jeff Borowiak
  Karl Meiler
  Ricardo Cano
  Jürgen Fassbender
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
7–5, 6–3, 6–3
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Adriano Panatta
12 Jul Western Championships
Cincinnati, United States
Clay – $100,000 – 64S/32D
Three Star
  Roscoe Tanner
4–6, 7–5, 6–2
  Eddie Dibbs   Dick Stockton
  Dick Crealy
  Trey Waltke
  Stan Smith
  Bill Scanlon
  Cliff Richey
  Stan Smith
  Erik van Dillen
6–1, 6–1
  Eddie Dibbs
  Harold Solomon
Dutch Open
Hilversum, Netherlands
Clay – $75,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Balázs Taróczy
6–7, 2–6, 6–1, 6–3
  Ricardo Cano   Ángel Giménez
  Belus Prajoux
  Manuel Santana
  Robin Drysdale
  Raymond Moore
  Jean-François Caujolle
  Ricardo Cano
  Belus Prajoux
6–4, 6–3
  Wojciech Fibak
  Balázs Taróczy
19 Jul Head Cup
Kitzbühel, Austria
Clay – $75,000 – 64S/32D
Two Star
  Manuel Orantes
7–6, 6–2, 7–6
  Jan Kodeš   Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
  François Jauffret
  Jean-Louis Haillet
  Charlie Pasarell
  Ramiro Benavides
  Jeff Borowiak
  Jiří Hřebec
  Jan Kodeš
6–7, 6–2, 6–4
  Jürgen Fassbender
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
26 Jul Washington Star International
Washington, D.C., USA
Clay – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four star
  Jimmy Connors
6–2, 6–4
  Raúl Ramírez   Brian Fairlie
  Raymond Moore
  Dick Stockton
  Víctor Pecci
  Stan Smith
  Eddie Dibbs
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
6–3, 6–3
  Arthur Ashe
  Jimmy Connors

August edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
2 Aug Louisville International
Louisville, United States
Clay – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four Star
  Harold Solomon
6–2, 7–5
  Wojciech Fibak   Dick Stockton
  Stan Smith
  Guillermo Vilas
  Jaime Fillol
  Raúl Ramírez
  Víctor Pecci
  Byron Bertram
  Pat Cramer
6–3, 6–4
  Stan Smith
  Erik van Dillen
Volvo International
North Conway, United States
$100,000 – Clay – 64S/32D
Three Star
SinglesDoubles
  Jimmy Connors
7–6, 4–6, 6–3
  Raúl Ramírez   Željko Franulović
  Cliff Richey
  Eddie Dibbs
  Wojciech Fibak
  Brian Gottfried
  Manuel Orantes
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
6–3, 6–0
  Ricardo Cano
  Víctor Pecci
Buckeye Tennis Championships
Columbus, United States
Clay – 48S/24D
Two Star
  Roscoe Tanner
6–4, 7–6(7–5)
  Stan Smith   Brian Teacher
  Vijay Amritraj
  Patricio Cornejo
  Dick Stockton
  Colin Dibley
  Anand Amritraj
  William Brown
  Brian Teacher
6–3, 6–4
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
9 Aug U.S. Clay Court Championships
Indianapolis, United States
Four Star
Clay – $125,000 – 64S/32D
SinglesDoubles
  Jimmy Connors
6–2, 6–4
  Wojciech Fibak   Harold Solomon
  Guillermo Vilas
  Eddie Dibbs
  Manuel Orantes
  Buster Mottram
  Brian Gottfried
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
6–2, 6–2
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
16 Aug Rothmans Canadian Open
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Clay – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four Star
  Guillermo Vilas
6–4, 7–6, 6–2
  Wojciech Fibak   Jaime Fillol
  Brian Fairlie
  Onny Parun
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Víctor Pecci
  Bob Hewitt
  Bob Hewitt
  Raúl Ramírez
6–2, 6–1
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Manuel Orantes
23 Aug U.S. Professional Tennis Championships
Boston, United States
Clay – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four Star
SinglesDoubles
  Björn Borg
6–7(3–7), 6–4, 6–1, 6–2
  Harold Solomon   Raúl Ramírez
  Eddie Dibbs
  Jimmy Connors
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Guillermo Vilas
  Adriano Panatta
  Ray Ruffels
  Allan Stone
3–6, 6–3, 7–6
  Mike Cahill
  John Whitlinger
Tennis Week Open
South Orange, United States
Clay – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Ilie Năstase
6–4, 6–2
  Roscoe Tanner   Balázs Taróczy
  Onny Parun
  Vijay Amritraj
  Buster Mottram
  Bernard Mitton
  Željko Franulović
  Fred McNair
  Marty Riessen
7–5, 4–6, 6–2
  Vitas Gerulaitis
  Ilie Năstase
30 Aug US Open
New York City, United States
Grand Slam
Triple Crown
Clay – $217,000 – 128S/64D/32XD
SinglesDoublesMixed doubles
  Jimmy Connors
6–4, 3–6, 7–6(11–9), 6–4
  Björn Borg   Guillermo Vilas
  Ilie Năstase
  Jan Kodeš
  Eddie Dibbs
  Dick Stockton
  Manuel Orantes
  Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen
6–4, 6–0
  Paul Kronk
  Cliff Letcher
  Betty Stöve
  Frew McMillan
6–3, 7–6
  Billie Jean King
  Ray Ruffels

September edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
13 Sep Grow Professional Doubles Championships
The Woodlands, United States
Hard – $100,000 – 16D
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
6–1, 6–4, 5–7, 7–6
  Phil Dent
  Allan Stone
  McNair /   Stewart
  El Shafei /   Fairlie
Bermuda Classic
Bermuda
Clay – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Cliff Richey
7–6, 6–2
  Gene Mayer   Dick Crealy
  John Yuill
  John Lloyd
  Álvaro Fillol
  Steve Krulevitz
  Balázs Taróczy
  Mike Cahill
  John Whitlinger
6–4, 4–6, 7–6
  Mark Edmondson
  John Marks
20 Sep Arco Pacific Southwest Open
Los Angeles, United States
Carpet – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four Star
SinglesDoubles
  Brian Gottfried
6–2, 6–2
  Arthur Ashe   Ilie Năstase
  Raúl Ramírez
  Jimmy Connors
  Dick Stockton
  John Lloyd
  Sandy Mayer
  Bob Lutz
  Stan Smith
6–2, 3–6, 6–3
  Arthur Ashe
  Charlie Pasarell
27 Sep Fireman's Fund International
San Francisco, United States
Carpet – $125,000 – 64S/32D
Four Star
  Roscoe Tanner
4–6, 7–5, 6–1
  Brian Gottfried   Sherwood Stewart
  Dick Stockton
  Harold Solomon
  Vijay Amritraj
  Butch Walts
  Arthur Ashe
  Dick Stockton
  Roscoe Tanner
6–3, 6–4
  Brian Gottfried
  Bob Hewitt

October edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
4 Oct Aryamehr Cup
Tehran, Iran
Clay – $150,000 – 64S/32D
Five Star
  Manuel Orantes
7–6, 6–0, 2–6, 6–4
  Raúl Ramírez   Guillermo Vilas
  Eddie Dibbs
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Antonio Zugarelli
  Wojciech Fibak
  Wojciech Fibak
  Raúl Ramírez
7–5, 6–1
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Manuel Orantes
Island Holidays Classic
Maui, United States
Hard – $100,000 – 48S/24D
Three Star
  Harold Solomon
6–3, 5–7, 7–5
  Bob Lutz   Marty Riessen
  Stan Smith
  John Lloyd
  John Newcombe
  Brian Fairlie
  Arthur Ashe
  Raymond Moore
  Allan Stone
6–7, 6–3, 6–4
  Dick Stockton
  Roscoe Tanner
11 Oct Trofeo Gillette
Madrid, Spain
Clay – 64S/32D
Three Star
  Manuel Orantes
7–6, 6–2, 6–1
  Eddie Dibbs   Raúl Ramírez
  Wojciech Fibak
  Balázs Taróczy
  Jan Kodeš
  Jaime Fillol
  Bob Hewitt
  Wojciech Fibak
  Raúl Ramírez
4–6, 7–5, 6–3
  Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan
Air India/BP Tennis Classic
Brisbane, Australia
Grass – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Mark Edmondson
3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–4
  Phil Dent   Allan Stone
  Tom Gorman
  Ray Ruffels
  Kim Warwick
  Dick Crealy
  Brian Fairlie
  Syd Ball
  Kim Warwick
6–4, 6–4
  Ismail El Shafei
  Brian Fairlie
18 Oct CC Australian Indoor Championships
Sydney, Australia
Four Star
Hard (i) – $125,000 – 48S/24D
SinglesDoubles
  Geoff Masters
4–6, 6–3, 7–6, 6–3
  James Delaney   Mark Edmondson
  Dick Crealy
  Paul Kronk
  Sashi Menon
  Bill Scanlon
  Kim Warwick
  Ismail El Shafei
  Brian Fairlie
4–6, 6–4, 7–6
  Syd Ball
  Kim Warwick
Trofeo Conde de Godó
Barcelona, Spain
Clay – $100,000 – 64S/32D
Three Star
  Manuel Orantes
6–1, 2–6, 2–6, 7–5, 6–4
  Eddie Dibbs   Raúl Ramírez
  Harold Solomon
  Jan Kodeš
  Željko Franulović
  Brian Gottfried
  Javier Soler
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
7–6, 6–4
  Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan
25 Oct Hitachi West Coast Classic
Perth, Australia
Hard – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Ray Ruffels
6–0, 4–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–2
  Phil Dent   Roscoe Tanner
  Dick Stockton
  Dick Crealy
  Tim Gullikson
  Syd Ball
  Gene Mayer
  Dick Stockton
  Roscoe Tanner
6–7, 6–1, 6–2
  Bob Carmichael
  Ismail El Shafei
Jean Becker Open
Paris, France
Hard (i) – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
SinglesDoubles
  Eddie Dibbs
5–7, 6–4, 6–4, 7–6
  Jaime Fillol   Mark Cox
  Stan Smith
  Erik van Dillen
  Tom Okker
  Sherwood Stewart
  Paolo Bertolucci
  Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen
6–2, 6–2
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
Fischer Grand Prix
Vienna, Austria
Hard (i) – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
SinglesDoubles
  Wojciech Fibak
6–7, 6–3, 6–4, 2–6, 6–1
  Raúl Ramírez   Ove Bengtson
  Víctor Pecci
  Vitas Gerulaitis
  Arthur Ashe
  Brian Gottfried
  Balázs Taróczy
  Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan
6–4, 4–0 RET.
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez

November edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
1 Nov Dewar Cup
London, Great Britain
Carpet – $100,000 – 32S/16D
Three Star
  Raúl Ramírez
6–3, 6–4
  Manuel Orantes   Mark Cox
  Jaime Fillol
  Bernard Mitton
  Antonio Zugarelli
  Arthur Ashe
  Wojciech Fibak
  David Lloyd
  John Lloyd
6–4, 3–6, 6–3
  John Feaver
  John James
Japan Open Tennis Championships
Tokyo, Japan
Clay – $100,000 – 48S/24D
Three Star
  Roscoe Tanner
6–3, 6–2
  Corrado Barazzutti   Dick Stockton
  Ken Rosewall
  Jürgen Fassbender
  Dick Crealy
  Brian Fairlie
  John Whitlinger
  Bob Carmichael
  Ken Rosewall
6–4, 6–4
  Ismail El Shafei
  Brian Fairlie
Cologne Cup
Cologne, West Germany
Carpet – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Jimmy Connors
6–2, 6–3
  Frew McMillan   Brian Gottfried
  Víctor Pecci
  Jiří Hřebec
  František Pála
  Henry Bunis
  Harold Solomon
  Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan
6–1, 3–6, 7–6
  Colin Dowdeswell
  Mike Estep
8 Nov Stockholm Open
Stockholm, Sweden
Five Star
Hard (i) – $150,000 – 64S/32D
SinglesDoubles
  Mark Cox
4–6, 7–5, 7–6(7–3)
  Manuel Orantes   Jimmy Connors
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
  Byron Bertram
  Haroon Rahim
  Björn Borg
  Bob Hewitt
  Frew McMillan
6–4, 4–6, 6–4
  Tom Okker
  Marty Riessen
Citizen's Classic
Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Hard – $75,000 – 32S/16D
Two Star
  Ken Rosewall
1–6, 6–4, 7–6, 6–0
  Ilie Năstase   James Hagey
  Gene Mayer
  Emilio Montaño
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
  Steve Krulevitz
  Paul Kronk
  Hank Pfister
  Butch Walts
6–4, 6–2
  Anand Amritraj
  Ilie Năstase
15 Nov Benson & Hedges Championships
London, Great Britain
Four Star
Carpet – $125,000 – 32S/16D
  Jimmy Connors
3–6, 7–6(8–6), 6–4
  Roscoe Tanner   Brian Gottfried
  Wojciech Fibak
  Stan Smith
  Raúl Ramírez
  Tom Okker
  Ilie Năstase
  Stan Smith
  Roscoe Tanner
7–6, 6–3
  Wojciech Fibak
  Brian Gottfried
Philippine Open
Manila, the Philippines
Clay – $75,000 – 48S/24D
Two Star
  Brian Fairlie
7–5, 6–7, 7–6
  Ray Ruffels   Geoff Masters
  Dick Crealy
  Mike Machette
  Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
  Mark Edmondson
  Ross Case
  Ross Case
  Geoff Masters
6–0, 6–1
  Anand Amritraj
  Corrado Barazzutti
São Paulo Open
São Paulo, Brazil
Carpet – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Guillermo Vilas
6–3, 6–0
  José Higueras   Jorge Andrew
  Thomaz Koch
  Belus Prajoux
  Víctor Pecci
  Ricardo Cano
  Adriano Panatta
  Lito Álvarez
  Víctor Pecci
6–4, 3–6, 6–3
  Ricardo Cano
  Belus Prajoux
22 Nov South African Breweries Open
Johannesburg, South Africa
Hard – $150,000 – 48S/24D/16XD
Five Star
  Harold Solomon
6–2, 6–7, 6–3, 6–4
  Brian Gottfried   Raúl Ramírez
  Stan Smith
  Cliff Richey
  Raymond Moore
  Roscoe Tanner
  Willem Prinsloo
  Brian Gottfried
  Sherwood Stewart
1–6, 6–1, 6–2, 7–6
  Juan Gisbert Sr.
  Stan Smith
  Betsy Nagelsen
  Bob Hewitt
6–2, 7–6
  Annette du Plooy
  Deon Joubert
South American Open
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Clay – $75,000 – 32S/16D
Two Star
Singles
  Guillermo Vilas
6–2, 6–2, 6–3
  Jaime Fillol   Paolo Bertolucci
  Thomaz Koch
  José Higueras
  Željko Franulović
  Víctor Pecci
  Ricardo Cano
  Carlos Kirmayr
  Tito Vázquez
6–4, 7–5
  Ricardo Cano
  Belus Prajoux
Indian Open
Bangalore, India
Clay – $50,000 – 32S/16D
One Star
  Kim Warwick
6–1, 6–2
  Sashi Menon   Haroon Rahim
  Doug Crawford
  Bob Carmichael
  Alvin Gardiner
  Mike Cahill
  Ashok Amritraj
  Bob Carmichael
  Ray Ruffels
6–2, 7–6
  Chiradip Mukerjea
  Bhanu Nunna

December edit

Week Tournament Champions Runners-up Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
6 Dec Commercial Union Assurance Masters
Houston, United States
Carpet – $130,000 – 8S/4D
SinglesDoubles
  Manuel Orantes
5–7, 6–2, 0–6, 7–6(7–1), 6–1
  Wojciech Fibak   Guillermo Vilas
  Harold Solomon
Round robin
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez
  Eddie Dibbs
  Roscoe Tanner
  Fred McNair
  Sherwood Stewart
6–3, 5–7, 5–7, 6–4, 6–4
  Brian Gottfried
  Raúl Ramírez

Points system edit

The tournaments listed above were divided into six groups. Group TC consisted of the Triple Crown—the French Open, the Wimbledon Championships and the US Open—while the other tournaments were given star ratings ranging from five stars to one star, based on prize money and draw size.[3] Points were allocated based on these ratings and the finishing position of a player in a tournament. No points were awarded to first-round losers, and ties were settled by the number of tournaments played. The points allocation, with doubles points listed in brackets, is as follows:

Group TC
  • Champion: 160 (32)
  • Runner-up: 120 (24)
  • Semifinalist: 80 (16)
  • Quarterfinalist: 40 (8)
  • Fourth Round: 20 (4)
  • Third Round: 10 (2)
  • Second Round: 5
Five-star
  • Champion: 120 (24)
  • Runner-up: 90 (18)
  • Semifinalist: 60 (12)
  • Quarterfinalist: 30 (6)
  • 9th – 16th: 15 (3)
  • 17th – 32nd: 7
  • 33rd – 64th: 1
Four-star
  • Champion: 100 (20)
  • Runner-up: 75 (15)
  • Semifinalist: 50 (10)
  • Quarterfinalist: 25 (5)
  • 9th – 16th: 12 (2)
  • 17th – 32nd: 6


Three-star
  • Champion: 80 (16)
  • Runner-up: 60 (12)
  • Semifinalist: 40 (8)
  • 5th – 8th: 20 (4)
  • 9th – 16th: 10 (2)
  • 17th – 32nd: 5


Two-star
  • Champion: 60 (12)
  • Runner-up: 45 (9)
  • Semifinalist: 30 (6)
  • 5th – 8th: 15 (3)
  • 9th – 16th: 7 (1)
  • 17th – 32nd: 3


One-star
  • Champion: 40 (8)
  • Runner-up: 30 (6)
  • Semifinalist: 20 (4)
  • 5th – 8th: 10 (2)
  • 9th – 16th: 5

Standings edit

The 1976 Grand Prix tournaments were divided in six separate point categories, ranging from the Triple Crown tournaments (150 points for the winner) to the smallest One Star tournaments (40 points for the winner). At the end of the year the 35 top-ranked players received a bonus from the bonus pool. To qualify for a bonus a player must have played a minimum amount of One and Two Star tournaments. The top eight points ranked singles players and top four doubles teams were entitled to participate in the season-ending Masters tournament.[2]

Rk Name Points Bonus
1   Raúl Ramírez (MEX) 938 $150,000
2   Manuel Orantes (ESP) 811 $90,000
3   Jimmy Connors (USA) 800
4   Eddie Dibbs (USA) 687 $60,000
5   Harold Solomon (USA) 681 $45,000
6   Guillermo Vilas (ARG) 627 $35,000
7   Roscoe Tanner (USA) 615 $30,000
8   Wojciech Fibak (POL) 582 $26,000
9   Brian Gottfried (USA) 574 $23,000
10   Björn Borg (SWE) 510

ATP rankings edit

These are the ATP rankings of the top twenty singles players at the end of the 1975 season [4] and at the end of the 1976 season,[5] with numbers of ranking points, points averages, numbers of tournaments played, year-end rankings in 1976, highest and lowest positions during the season and number of spots gained or lost from the first rankings to the year-end rankings.

List of tournament winners edit

The list of winners and number of Grand Prix singles titles won, alphabetically by last name:

The following players won their first Grand Prix title in 1976:

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ This match was stopped at two sets all due to bad light. The final set was played on 15 September during the Grow Professional Doubles Championships.

References edit

  1. ^ "How it All Began". ATPWorldTour.com. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
  2. ^ a b John Barrett, ed. (1977). World of Tennis 1977 : a BP yearbook. London: Macdonald and Janes. pp. 25–31. ISBN 9780354090117.
  3. ^ "$5-Million Tour For Grand Prix Tennis". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. UPI. 23 January 1976.
  4. ^ "ATP Rankings (singles) as of December 15, 1975". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc. 15 December 1975. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  5. ^ "ATP Rankings (singles) as of December 12, 1976". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc.
  6. ^ "ATP rankings 15 Dec, 1975". ATP. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  7. ^ "ATP Year-end top 20". ATP. Retrieved 14 September 2023.

External links edit

Further reading edit

  • Collins, Bud (2010). The Bud Collins History of Tennis: An Authoritative Encyclopedia and Record Book (2nd ed.). New York: New Chapter Press. ISBN 978-0-942257-70-0.