# French Pro Championship

The French Pro Championship was a major tennis tournament founded in 1930 by the "Association Française des Professeurs de Tennis (AFPT)" and ran annually until 1968 when it was discontinued.

## History

In 1930 the "Association Française des Professeurs de Tennis (AFPT)" held its first pro tournament, titled "Championnat International de France Professionnel" (French Pro Championships) June 18–22, 1930, and is considered as a part of the professional major from 1927 to 1967 till the advent of Open Era. The tournament only had a men's draw.
From 1930 the French Pro Championship were always played at Paris, on outdoor clay at Roland Garros except from 1963 to 1967 where it was held at Stade Pierre de Coubertin on indoor wood. Ken Rosewall holds the record for 8 wins overall and 7 consecutive wins.
There was a professional tournament at Roland Garros in 1952 held on a round robin basis, in which Segura finished first, winning the decider over Pancho Gonzales, Kramer third, and Budge fourth. There is no indication yet of recognition by the AFPT as the official French Pro.
There were tournaments played on indoor cement in 1950 and 1953 at the Palais des Sports. They are listed in the table below, but there is no suggestion that they were seen as official French Pro titles.

## Champions
### Singles

| Year | Champion | Runner-up | Score | Venue | Surface |
| Professional Era ||||||
| 1930 | Karel Koželuh | Albert Burke | 6–1, 6–2, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1931 | Martin Plaa | Robert Ramillon | 6–3, 6–1, 3–6, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1932 | Robert Ramillon | Martin Plaa | 6–4, 3–6, 8–6, 6–4 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1933 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1934 | Bill Tilden | Martin Plaa | 6–2, 6–4, 7–5 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1935 | Ellsworth Vines | Hans Nüsslein | 10–8, 6–4, 3–6, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1936 | Henri Cochet | Robert Ramillon | 6–3, 6–1, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1937 | Hans Nüsslein | Henri Cochet | 6–2, 8–6, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1938 | Hans Nüsslein | Bill Tilden | 6–0, 6–1, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1939 | Don Budge | Ellsworth Vines | 6–2, 7–5, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1940–1949 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1950 | Pancho Segura* | Jack Kramer | | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) |
| 1951 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1952 | Pancho Segura* | Jack Kramer | 6-3, 6-2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1953 | Frank Sedgman* | Pancho Gonzales | | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) |
| 1954–1955 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1956 | Tony Trabert | Pancho Gonzales | 6–3, 4–6, 5–7, 8–6, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1957 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1958 | Ken Rosewall | Lew Hoad | 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–0 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1959 | Tony Trabert | Frank Sedgman | 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1960 | Ken Rosewall | Lew Hoad | 6–2, 2–6, 6–2, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1961 | Ken Rosewall | Pancho Gonzales | 2–6, 6–4, 6–3, 8–6 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1962 | Ken Rosewall | Andrés Gimeno | 3–6, 6–2, 7–5, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1963 | Ken Rosewall | Rod Laver | 6–8, 6–4, 5–7, 6–3, 6–4 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1964 | Ken Rosewall | Rod Laver | 6–3, 7–5, 3–6, 6–3 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1965 | Ken Rosewall | Rod Laver | 6–3, 6–2, 6–4 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1966 | Ken Rosewall | Rod Laver | 6–3, 6–2, 14–12 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1967 | Rod Laver | Andrés Gimeno | 6–4, 8–6, 4–6, 6–2 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| Open Era ||||||
| 1968 | Rod Laver | John Newcombe | 6–2, 6–2, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
Notes:
* ↑ In History of the Pro Tennis Wars Ray Bowers gives a detailed account of the first twenty years of the professional tennis tours, from a modest beginning in 1926 with Suzanne Lenglen and Vincent Richards as the main attractions, on through 1945. No mention is made of a French Pro tournament in 1933. The only professional competition played that year at Roland Garros was a USA-France meeting, September 22–24, in the Davis Cup format won by the USA 4–1 where Cochet overcame Bruce Barnes, Tilden defeated Plaa and Cochet, Barnes beat Plaa, and Americans then closed out the doubles. Many sources, probably incorrectly, considered the Tilden-Cochet match as a final of a supposed French Pro.
* 1 2 3 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 mentions that it may not have been considered at the time as an official French Pro. In January 1950 at the same site Pancho Segura defeated Jack Kramer.

### Doubles

| Year | Champion | Runner-up | Score | Venue | Surface |
| Professional Era ||||||
| 1930 | Karel Koželuh Roman Najuch | Albert Burke Edmund Burke | 6–4, 6–2, 3–6, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1931 | | | | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1932 | | | | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1933 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1934 | | | | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1935 | Bill Tilden Ellsworth Vines | Albert Burke Hans Nüsslein | 6–4, 3–6, 7–5, 6–4 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1936 | Henri Cochet Albert Burke | Martin Plaa Robert Ramillon | 6–1, 4–6, 6–1, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1937 | Lester Stoefen Bill Tilden | Henri Cochet Robert Ramillon | 6–4, 3–6, 6–2, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1938 | Martin Plaa Robert Ramillon | Hans Nüsslein Bill Tilden | 6–3, 4–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1939 | Don Budge Ellsworth Vines | Henri Cochet Robert Ramillon | 6–4, 6–4, 2–6, 6–4 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1940–1949 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1950 | | | | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) |
| 1951 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1952 | | | | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1953 | Don Budge* Frank Sedgman* | Pancho Gonzales Pancho Segura | 2–6, 9–7, 6–4 | Palais des Sports | Hard (i) |
| 1954–1955 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1956 | Pancho Gonzales Tony Trabert | Rex Hartwig Frank Sedgman | 6–3, 2–6, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1957 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1958 | Lew Hoad Tony Trabert | Pancho Gonzales Ken Rosewall | 6–4, 2–6, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1959 | Lew Hoad Tony Trabert | Mervyn Rose Frank Sedgman | 14–12, 6–4, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1960 | Lew Hoad Tony Trabert | Ken Rosewall Frank Sedgman | 6–4, 6–0, 6–1 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1961 | Lew Hoad Ken Rosewall | Pancho Gonzales Tony Trabert | 6–1, 6–3, 8–10, 13–11 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1962 | Lew Hoad Ken Rosewall | Mal Anderson Ashley Cooper | 6–1, 6–3, 6–3 | Roland Garros | Clay |
| 1963 | Lew Hoad Ken Rosewall | Mal Anderson Rod Laver | 6–2, 7–5, 8–6 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1964 | Lew Hoad Ken Rosewall | Luis Ayala Andrés Gimeno | 6–8, 6–4, 6–4 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1965 | Mal Anderson Ken Rosewall | Butch Buchholz Rod Laver | 10–8, 4–6, 8–6, 2–6, 10–8 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1966 | Butch Buchholz Rod Laver | Pierre Barthès Andrés Gimeno | 6–3, 6–3, 6–4 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| 1967 | Pierre Barthès Andrés Gimeno | Rod Laver Fred Stolle | 6–3, 6–4 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | Wood (i) |
| Open Era ||||||
| 1968 | Roy Emerson Rod Laver | Ken Rosewall Fred Stolle | 1–6, 3–6, 11–9, 6–3, 6–2 | Roland Garros | Clay |
Source:

## Bristol Cup and other French professional events

Before 1930 some tournaments were sometimes labelled "Professional Championships of France": the Bristol Cup (held from 1920 to 1932), the most important pro tournament in the world in the 1920s, was sometimes referred as the French Pro as well as the World Pro tournament held at Deauville in 1925. Therefore, two different tournaments were both considered as French Pro Championships in 1925 (World Pro at Deauville and Bristol Cup at Cannes) and from 1930 to 1932 (Roland Garros and Bristol Cup at Beaulieu).

## Records
### Men's singles

Source: French Pro Championships, (1930–68): The Tennisbase included
| Most titles | Ken Rosewall | 8 |
| Most finals | Ken Rosewall | 8 |
| Most consecutive titles | Ken Rosewall (1960 - 1966) | 7 |
| Most consecutive finals | Ken Rosewall (1960 - 1966) | 7 |
| Most matches played | Ken Rosewall | 32 |
| Most matches won | Ken Rosewall | 30 |
| Most consecutive matches won | Ken Rosewall | 25 |
| Most editions played | Ken Rosewall | 11 |
| Best winning % | Ken Rosewall | 93.75% |
| Title won with the fewest games lost | Karel Koželuh | 20 (1930) |
| Youngest champion | Don Budge | 23y, 7m, 14d (1939) |
| Oldest champion | Bill Tilden | 41y, 7m, 7d (1934) |
Longest final :
| 1963 (55 games) ||||||
| Ken Rosewall | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Rod Laver | 8 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 4 |
Shortest final :
| 1938 (21 games) ||||||
| Hans Nüsslein | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Bill Tilden | 0 | 1 | 2 |