The St. Petersburg WCT was a men's

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

tournament founded in 1953 as the Masters Invitational in St Augustine, Florida. In 1954 that event moved to Jacksonville, Florida until 1959. In 1960 the event moved to St Petersburg. It remained at the former location until 1971. After the men's event St Petersburg Masters Invitational finished in 1971 the women's event continued as the Virginia Slims Masters St Petersburg. In 1974 the men's tournament was revived as St. Petersburg WCT until 1975 when it was abolished. The women's tournament continued under various brand names and various locations in the Tampa Bay Area until it was discontinued in 1990. The event was part of the WCT Tour and was played on outdoor hard courts.

History

In 1953 Masters Invitational tournament was established at the St Augustine Tennis Club,

St Augustine, Florida St. Augustine ( ; es, San Agustín ) is a city in the Southeastern United States and the county seat of St. Johns County on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers, it is the oldest continuously inhabi ...

and played on outdoor clay courts. In 1954 the Masters event was moved to

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

through till 1959. In 1959 it changed location to St Petersburg, Florida, where it remained under that brand name until 1965. In 1966 the tournaments name was changed to the St. Petersburg Masters Invitational until 1970 when the women's event became known as the Virginia Slims Masters St Petersburg, the men's tournament continued under the same name until 1971 when it was discontinued. The tournament was part Florida-Caribbean Circuit which was a major feature of the international tennis scene in the 1960s and early 1970s. The women's event continued under brand name VS Masters of St Petersburg until 1973 when it was rebranded as the St. Petersburg Masters Invitational In 1974 a new sponsor was found and the event became known as the Barnett Bank Masters until 1974 when it was discontinued. In 1977 the tournament was revived as the Florida Federal Open until 1985, and in 1986 becoming the Eckerd Open until it was abolished. The tournament was played on outdoor clay courts from 1953 to 1974 and from 1987 to 1990. It was played on outdoor hard courts from 1977 to 1986. The holding of men's tournaments in the Tampa Bay Area were not as consistent as the women's event in 1974 the former St Petersburg Masters Invitational was revived and rebranded as the St. Petersburg WCT from 1974 to 1975 before that was discontinued. In 1981 a

Tampa Open The Tampa Open is a defunct Grand Prix affiliated tennis tournament played from 1981 to 1983. It was held in Tampa, Florida in the United States and played on outdoor hard courts from 1981 to 1982 and on indoor carpet courts in 1983. Finals S ...

men's tournament held in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

through till 1983.

Finals

Singles

Doubles

External links

1974 ATP tournament results

1975 ATP tournament results
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Petersburg WCT World Championship Tennis St. Petersburg WCT Sports in St. Petersburg, Florida 1974 establishments in Florida 1975 disestablishments in Florida Recurring sporting events established in 1974 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1975