Pro Tennis is Back in Iowa City

The United States Tennis Association (USTA) will bring their Pro Circuit to the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex (HTRC) beginning Monday July 15, 2019. The tournament, named the Old Capitol Tennis Championships, is a professional men’s tournament and a sanctioned International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour event. This marks the second consecutive year that professional tennis is being showcased in the Corridor. 

The field will feature nearly 70 professional players competing in both singles and doubles events for $25,000 in total prize money. Players ranked as high as No. 300 in the world compete in the ITF World Tennis Tour events. Several current and former University of Iowa Hawkeye Men’s players are expected to compete. 

Qualifying matches begin on Monday, July 15, 2019 at 10:00 a.m., featuring 32 singles competitors vying for one of eight places in the main draw. Main draw play begins at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 17, 2019 as 32 singles competitors and 16 doubles teams begin their quest for prize money and world ranking points. 

Tournament Director Alex Voss states, “It is exciting to welcome world-class athletes from around the globe to the Corridor for Iowa’s only professional tennis tournament. After demonstrating what a great host Iowa City is for pro tennis last year, this year our goal is to showcase pro tennis and create excitement among the community for the sport. We want all of Iowa to experience the power and excitement of tennis at its highest form and see the future of tennis!” 

The Old Capitol Tennis Championships will start a USTA Pro Circuit “summer swing” where players travel to similar ITF World Tennis Tour tournaments in Champaign-Urbana, IL; Decatur, IL; and Edwardsville, IL. Players participating in this stretch of tournaments hope to improve their world ranking and move up to the next level of professional tournaments: Challengers. From the Challenger Circuit, players move to the ATP Tour and have the eventual goal of competing in tennis’ major tournaments such as Wimbledon and the US Open.

Old Capitol Tennis Championships