McCartney Kessler, Patrick Kypson win singles titles on USTA Pro Circuit

Americans McCartney Kessler and Patrick Kypson used their USTA Pro Circuit success in late 2023 to earn their places in this year's Australian Open main draw, via the USTA's Wild Card Challenge. Buoyed by their top-level experiences in Melbourne, both players again lifted Pro Circuit trophies on Sunday.

Kessler, who won her first pro title in Rome, Ga., last October, won another last week at the W75 event at the same site. Kypson, a two-time ATP Challenger champion in 2023, found his way back into the winner's circle at the Challenger 75 in Cleveland.

Kessler's Rome Repeat 

The 24-year-old Kessler advanced to the AO second round in her Grand Slam main-draw debut, winning a comeback three-setter against France's Fiona Ferro before falling to world No. 31 Linda Noskova—who went on to stun No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the third round.

In her first tournament since then, Kessler embarked on a dominant run in her native Georgia to win the title with the loss of just one set. The fifth seed defeated Hailey Baptiste, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, in the semis before beating Liv Hovde, 6-4, 6-1, in the title match to emerge from an all-American semifinal lineup with the trophy.

The triumph lifted Kessler to a new career-high WTA ranking of No. 152, continuing her rapid rise. She first entered the Top 250 last October when she won her previous title in Rome, after beginning the 2023 season outside the Top 900.

Kypson's Cleveland Comebacks

Kypson twice battled back from a set down to claim the Cleveland Challenger title, which lifted him to a new career-high ATP ranking of No. 158. The 24-year-old won a 4-6, 7-6(1), 6-4 quarterfinal against American Emilio Nava and later clinched the championship with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win in an all-American final against Ethan Quinn. 

After a four-set defeat to Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori in his Australian Open debut, Kypson returned to winning ways on home soil. His Cleveland run saw him pick up where he left off on the USTA Pro Circuit after he won what was the biggest title of his career at the Champaign Challenger 75 to close the 2023 Pro Circuit calendar. He now has two trophies at the Challenger 75 level.

Denis Kudla also reached the semifinals in Cleveland, where seven of the eight singles quarterfinalists were American. American George Goldhoff won the doubles title with Japan's James Trotter, with the duo beating the all-U.S. team of William Blumberg and Alex Lawson, 6-7(0), 6-3, 10-7, in the final.