1972 ILTF Women's Tennis Circuit

1972 ILTF Women's Tennis Circuit
	Evonne Goolagong won 12 singles titles during the season.
Details
Duration	26 December 1971–18 December 1972
Edition	58th
Tournaments	161
Categories	Grand Slam (4); Year-end championships (1); Virginia Slims Circuit (20); ILTF Women's Grand Prix (11); ILTF World Circuit (125)
Achievements (singles)
Most titles	Evonne Goolagong (12)
Most finals	Evonne Goolagong (20)
	← 1971 1973 →

The 1972 ILTF Women's Tennis Circuit was the 58th season since the founding of the International Lawn Tennis Association and was the final season to be solely administered by the ILTF.

It was composed of the 2nd annual Virginia Slims Circuit with 20 events, a tour of tennis tournaments for female tennis players, sponsored by Virginia Slims cigarettes, but approved by the ILTF and the 2nd annual ILTF Commercial Union Women's Grand Prix circuit with 13 events which included Roland Garros and Wimbledon,^[1]^[2] and sponsored by Commercial Union insurance company and the 58th annual ILTF World Circuit with 125 events.

The following season would see the formation of the Women's Tennis Association in which the ILTF would eventually have to share responsibility for administering the worldwide tour for women something at this time it was resisting to change.^[3] In 1973 the majority of the ILTF events remain under direct administration of that organisation and continues with and independent ILTF World Circuit that offered lower prize money and ranking points of the other two circuits.

Composition

ILTF Women's Grand Prix Circuit

The 1972 ILTF Women's Grand Prix Circuit.was a tennis circuit administered by the International Lawn Tennis Federation which served as a forerunner to the current Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour. The circuit consisted of two of the four modern Grand Slam tournaments including Roland Garros, Wimbledon and open tournaments recognised by the ILTF.^[4] That circuit ran from 27 March to 4 September. Evonne Goolagong won most events on this circuit with 5 titles.^[5]

Virginia Slims Circuit

Prior to the establishment of this circuit there was an inequality between the prize money purses for male and female tennis players which gave rise to complaints from a number of the leading female tennis players of the time. Nine of them, including Billie Jean King, became later known as the "Original 9" after being banned from the then existing multi-gender invitational professional events run by the influential United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) due to their boycotting of the Pacific Southwest Championships. This resulted in the first Virginia Slims-sponsored event being held in September 1970 in Houston, an event which laid the groundwork for the establishment of the annual Virginia Slims Circuit the following year. The 1972 Virginia Slims Circuit consisted on 22 tournaments including the U.S. Open the circuit began on 12 January and ended on 11 October and offered $587,775 in prize money.^[5] Billie Jean King won most events on this circuit with 7 titles of her 11 titles in total she played on all three circuits and won events across all three.^[5]

ILTF World Circuit

The 1972 ILTF World Circuit tournaments consisted of 125 events,^[6] including the Australian Open that were not part of the sponsored Virginia Slims and Commercial Union Grand Prix circuits. It began 27 December 1971 with the Eastern Province Championships in Port Elizabeth, South Africa and ended on 25 December 1972 with Border Championships, East London, South Africa This years singles title leader Evonne Goolagong won 5 tournaments on this circuit her total 12 tournament wins were across two circuits, this one and the Grand Prix.^[5]

Schedule

This is an incomplete calendar of all events that formed the majority of the ILTF Circuit and the Commercial Union Assurance Company and Virginia Slims sponsored tennis circuits in the year 1972, with player progression documented from the quarterfinals stage. The table also includes the Grand Slam tournaments, the 1972 Virginia Slims Championships and the 1972 Federation Cup.^[1]

Key

Grand Slam tournaments
Virginia Slims championships
Virginia Slims Circuit
ILTF Commercial Union Grand Prix
ILTF World Circuit
Team events

December (1971)

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
27 Dec	Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam Grass – 64S/32D Singles – Doubles	Virginia Wade 6–4, 6–4	Evonne Goolagong	Helen Gourlay Kerry Harris	Barbara Hawcroft Olga Morozova Gail Chanfreau Patricia Coleman
27 Dec		Helen Gourlay Kerry Harris 6–0, 6–4	Patricia Coleman Karen Krantzcke	Helen Gourlay Kerry Harris

January

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
3 Jan	New South Wales Open Sydney, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 6–1, 7–6^(7–4)	Virginia Wade	Patricia Coleman Barbara Hawcroft	Anne Coleman Janet Young Olga Morozova Marilyn Tesch
3 Jan	New South Wales Open Sydney, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong Patricia Edwards 6–1, 6–2	Lesley Bowrey Virginia Wade	Patricia Coleman Barbara Hawcroft	Anne Coleman Janet Young Olga Morozova Marilyn Tesch
10 Jan	British Motor Cars Invitational San Francisco, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $17,000	Billie Jean King 7–6^(5–0), 7–6^(5–2)	Kerry Melville	Virginia Wade Judy Dalton	Nancy Gunter Helen Gourlay Françoise Dürr Rosie Casals
10 Jan		Rosie Casals Virginia Wade 6–3, 5–7, 6–2	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Virginia Wade Judy Dalton	Nancy Gunter Helen Gourlay Françoise Dürr Rosie Casals
17 Jan	Indep. Press-Telegram Championships Long Beach, California, United States Virginia Slims Carpet (i) – $17,000	Rosie Casals 6–2, 6–7^(4–5), 6–3	Françoise Dürr	Kerry Melville Billie Jean King	Helen Gourlay Julie Heldman Virginia Wade Wendy Overton
		Rosie Casals Virginia Wade 6–3, 5–7, 6–2	Helen Gourlay Karen Krantzcke	Kerry Melville Billie Jean King	Helen Gourlay Julie Heldman Virginia Wade Wendy Overton
	South Australian Championships Adelaide, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 7–6^(7–4), 6–3	Olga Morozova	Janet Young Marilyn Tesch	Kathy Walker Janine Whyte Christine Matison Barbara Hawcroft
	South Australian Championships Adelaide, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong Olga Morozova 6–3, 6–0	Marilyn Tesch Kerry Hogarth	Janet Young Marilyn Tesch
24 Jan	Virginia Slims National Indoors Boston, United States Virginia Slims $18,000	Virginia Wade 6–3, 7–5	Françoise Dürr	Rosie Casals Wendy Overton	Karen Krantzcke Judy Dalton Lesley Hunt Kerry Melville
24 Jan		Rosie Casals Virginia Wade 6–7, 6–0, 7–5	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Rosie Casals Wendy Overton	Karen Krantzcke Judy Dalton Lesley Hunt Kerry Melville
31 Jan	Virginia Slims of Fort Lauderdale Fort Lauderdale, United States Virginia Slims $25,000	Chris Evert 6–1, 6–0	Billie Jean King	Wendy Overton N/A	Nancy Gunter N/A N/A N/A
		Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr 6–3, 6–2	Nancy Gunter Virginia Wade	Wendy Overton N/A	Nancy Gunter N/A N/A N/A
	Western Australian Championships Perth, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 6–2, 7–5	Olga Morozova	Patricia Coleman Barbara Hawcroft
	Western Australian Championships Perth, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong Barbara Hawcroft 6–3, 6–0	Olga Morozova Janet Young	Patricia Coleman Barbara Hawcroft

February

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
14 Feb	Virginia Slims of Oklahoma City Oklahoma City, United States Virginia Slims $20,000	Rosie Casals 6–4, 6–1	Valerie Ziegenfuss	Betty Stöve Judy Dalton	Billie Jean King Wendy Overton Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr
14 Feb		Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 6–7^(4–5), 7–6^(5–2), 6–2	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Betty Stöve Judy Dalton	Billie Jean King Wendy Overton Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr
21 Feb	Virginia Slims of Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., United States Virginia Slims $18,000 Singles	Nancy Gunter 7–6^(5–1), 6–1	Chris Evert	Kerry Melville Rosie Casals	Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr Barbara Downs Wendy Overton
21 Feb		Wendy Overton Valerie Ziegenfuss 7–5, 6–2	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Kerry Melville Rosie Casals	Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr Barbara Downs Wendy Overton
28 Feb	K-Mart International Birmingham, Michigan, United States Virginia Slims $15,000	Kerry Melville 6–3, 6–7^(3–5), 6–4	Rosie Casals	Wendy Overton Helen Gourlay	Julie Heldman Betty Stöve Valerie Ziegenfuss Corinne Molesworth
28 Feb		Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr 6–1, 6–1	Rosie Casals Kerry Melville	Wendy Overton Helen Gourlay

March

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
7 Mar	Maureen Connolly Brinker International Dallas, United States Virginia Slims $32,775	Nancy Gunter 7–6^(5–2), 6–1	Billie Jean King	Evonne Goolagong Lesley Hunt	Wendy Overton Chris Evert Nell Truman Kerry Melville
7 Mar		Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 6–3, 4–6, 7–5	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Evonne Goolagong Lesley Hunt	Wendy Overton Chris Evert Nell Truman Kerry Melville
21 Mar	Federation Cup Johannesburg, South Africa Federation Cup Hard – 31 teams knockout	South Africa 2–1	Great Britain	Australia United States	Italy West Germany France Netherlands
	Virginia Slims of Richmond Richmond, Virginia, United States Virginia Slims Clay – $18,000	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–4	Nancy Gunter	Kerry Melville (3rd) Rosie Casals (4th)	Wendy Gilchrist Marie Neumannová Janet Newberry Lany Kaligis
		Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 7–5, 7–6	Judy Dalton Karen Krantzcke	Kerry Melville (3rd) Rosie Casals (4th)
27 Mar	South African Open Johannesburg, South Africa Grand Prix Hard – 64S/16D	Evonne Goolagong 4–6, 6–3, 6–0	Virginia Wade	Pat Walkden Gail Sherriff Chanfreau	Allison McMillan Lesley Hunt Helen Gourlay Winnie Shaw
		Evonne Goolagong Helen Gourlay 6–1, 6–4	Winnie Shaw Joyce Williams	Pat Walkden Gail Sherriff Chanfreau	Allison McMillan Lesley Hunt Helen Gourlay Winnie Shaw
	Caribe Hilton Invitational San Juan, Puerto Rico Virginia Slims Hard – $18,000	Nancy Gunter 6–1, 6–3	Chris Evert	Rosie Casals Billie Jean King	Corinne Molesworth Kerry Melville Wendy Overton Nell Truman
		Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 6–2, 6–3	Judy Dalton Karen Krantzcke	Rosie Casals Billie Jean King	Corinne Molesworth Kerry Melville Wendy Overton Nell Truman

April

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
3 Apr	Virginia Slims of Jacksonville Jacksonville, Florida, United States Virginia Slims $18,000	Marie Neumannová 6–4, 6–3	Billie Jean King	Lita Liem Kerry Harris	Karen Krantzcke Judy Dalton Corinne Molesworth Kerry Melville
3 Apr		Judy Dalton Karen Krantzcke 7–5, 6–4	Vicki Berner Billie Jean King	Lita Liem Kerry Harris
10 Apr	Virginia Slims Masters St. Petersburg, Florida, United States Virginia Slims $18,000	Nancy Gunter 6–3, 6–4	Chris Evert	Billie Jean King Judy Dalton	Françoise Dürr Karen Krantzcke Kerry Melville Jeanne Evert
10 Apr		Karen Krantzcke Wendy Overton 7–5, 6–4	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Billie Jean King Judy Dalton	Françoise Dürr Karen Krantzcke Kerry Melville Jeanne Evert
17 Apr	Virginia Slims Conquistadores Tucson, United States Virginia Slims Hard – $18,000	Billie Jean King 6–0, 6–3	Françoise Dürr	Rosie Casals (3rd) Judy Dalton (4th)	Kerry Harris Valerie Ziegenfuss Janet Newberry Karen Krantzcke
17 Apr		Kerry Harris Karen Krantzcke 6–3, 6–7, 6–3	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Rosie Casals (3rd) Judy Dalton (4th)
24 Apr	Italian Open Rome, Italy Grand Prix	Linda Tuero 6–4, 6–3	Olga Morozova	Helga Masthoff Gail Chanfreau	Vlasta Vopičková Heide Orth Laura Rossouw Alena Palmeová
24 Apr	Italian Open Rome, Italy Grand Prix	Lesley Hunt Olga Morozova 6–3, 6–4	Gail Chanfreau Rosalba Vido	Helga Masthoff Gail Chanfreau	Vlasta Vopičková Heide Orth Laura Rossouw Alena Palmeová

May

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
1 May	Virginia Slims of Indianapolis Indianapolis, United States Virginia Slims $20,000	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–3	Nancy Gunter	Wendy Overton Rosie Casals	Mary-Ann Eisel Françoise Dürr Judy Dalton Karen Krantzcke
1 May		Rosie Casals Karen Krantzcke 6–3, 6–2	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr	Wendy Overton Rosie Casals	Mary-Ann Eisel Françoise Dürr Judy Dalton Karen Krantzcke
8 May	Rothmans Hardcourt Championships Bournemouth, United Kingdom Grand Prix Clay	Evonne Goolagong 6–0, 6–4	Helga Masthoff	Sharon Walsh Joyce Williams	Katja Ebbinghaus Helen Gourlay Gail Chanfreau Virginia Wade
8 May		Evonne Goolagong Helen Gourlay 7–5, 6–1	Brenda Kirk Betty Stöve	Sharon Walsh Joyce Williams	Katja Ebbinghaus Helen Gourlay Gail Chanfreau Virginia Wade
15 May	Surrey Hardcourt Championships Guildford, United Kingdom ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 7–5, 6–2	Joyce Williams	Nell Truman Helen Gourlay
15 May		Evonne Goolagong Helen Gourlay 6–2, 6–1	Winnie Shaw Joyce Williams	Nell Truman Helen Gourlay
May 22 29 May	French Open Paris, France Grand Slam Clay (red) – 56S/47Q/32D/32X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–3	Evonne Goolagong	Helga Masthoff Françoise Dürr	Katja Ebbinghaus Virginia Wade Olga Morozova Corinne Molesworth
		Billie Jean King Betty Stöve 6–1, 6–2	Winnie Shaw Nell Truman
		Evonne Goolagong Kim Warwick 6–2, 6–4	Françoise Dürr Jean-Claude Barclay

June

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
5 June	German Open Hamburg, Germany Grand Prix Clay	Helga Masthoff 6–3, 3–6, 8–6	Linda Tuero	Kazuko Sawamatsu Valerie Ziegenfuss	Marijke Jansen Judit Szörényi Vlasta Vopičková Edith Winkens
	German Open Hamburg, Germany Grand Prix Clay	Helga Masthoff Heide Orth 6–3, 2–6, 6–0	Wendy Overton Valerie Ziegenfuss	Kazuko Sawamatsu Valerie Ziegenfuss
	John Player Tournament Nottingham, United Kingdom ILTF Grass, Round-robin	Billie Jean King (1st)	Evonne Goolagong (2nd)	Rosie Casals (3rd)	Virginia Wade (4th)
12 June	W. D. & H.O. Wills Open Bristol, United Kingdom Grand Prix Grass Singles – Doubles	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–2	Kerry Melville	Rosie Casals Evonne Goolagong	Laura Rossouw Helen Gourlay Betty Stöve Françoise Dürr
		Helen Gourlay Karen Krantzcke 6–4, 6–2	Rosie Casals Billie Jean King	Rosie Casals Evonne Goolagong	Laura Rossouw Helen Gourlay Betty Stöve Françoise Dürr
	Wightman Cup London, United Kingdom Grass Team event	United States 5–2	Great Britain
19 June	Rothman's Queens Club London, United Kingdom ILTF Grass	Chris Evert 6–4, 6–0	Karen Krantzcke	Wendy Overton Patricia Coleman	Esmé Emmanuel Pam Teeguarden Valerie Ziegenfuss Winnie Shaw
19 June	Rothman's Queens Club London, United Kingdom ILTF Grass	Rosie Casals Billie Jean King 5–7, 6–0, 6–2	Brenda Kirk Pat Walkden-Pretorius	Wendy Overton Patricia Coleman	Esmé Emmanuel Pam Teeguarden Valerie Ziegenfuss Winnie Shaw
26 June 3 July	Wimbledon Championships London, Great Britain Grand Slam Grass – 96S/48D/80X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–3	Evonne Goolagong	Chris Evert Rosie Casals	Françoise Dürr Patti Hogan Nancy Gunter Virginia Wade
		Billie Jean King Betty Stöve 6–2, 4–6, 6–3	Judy Dalton Françoise Dürr
		Rosie Casals Ilie Năstase 6–4, 6–4	Evonne Goolagong Kim Warwick

July

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
10 July	Green Shield Welsh Championships Newport, Wales Grand Prix Grass	Kerry Melville 6–3, 6–2	Virginia Wade	Winnie Shaw Joyce Williams	Betty Stöve Patti Hogan Carole Graebner Helen Gourlay
		Judy Dalton Betty Stöve 7–5, 6–4	Kerry Harris Kerry Melville	Winnie Shaw Joyce Williams	Betty Stöve Patti Hogan Carole Graebner Helen Gourlay
	Carroll's Irish Open Dublin, Ireland Grand Prix Grass	Evonne Goolagong 2–6, 6–1, 6–2	Pat Walkden-Pretorius	Karen Krantzcke Lesley Hunt	Sue Minford Geraldine Barniville Brenda Kirk Cecilia Martinez
	Carroll's Irish Open Dublin, Ireland Grand Prix Grass	Brenda Kirk Pat Walkden-Pretorius 6–3, 8–10, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong Karen Krantzcke	Karen Krantzcke Lesley Hunt
17 July	Rothmans North of England Championships Hoylake, United Kingdom Grand Prix Grass	Evonne Goolagong vs Betty Stöve Title Shared
17 July		Evonne Goolagong / Helen Gourlay vs Brenda Kirk / Pat Walkden-Pretorius Title Shared
31 July	Virginia Slims of Columbus Columbus, Georgia, United States Virginia Slims $25,500	Rosie Casals 6–7^(2–5), 7–6^(5–0), 6–0	Françoise Dürr	Billie Jean King Valerie Ziegenfuss	Helen Gourlay Lesley Hunt Wendy Overton Nancy Gunter
		Françoise Dürr Helen Gourlay 6–4, 6–3	Kerry Harris Kerry Melville	Billie Jean King Valerie Ziegenfuss	Helen Gourlay Lesley Hunt Wendy Overton Nancy Gunter
	Western Open Championships Cincinnati, United States Grand Prix	Margaret Court 3–6, 6–2, 7–5	Evonne Goolagong	Linda Tuero Nathalie Fuchs	Isabel Fernández de Soto Sue Stap Janice Metcalf Pat Walkden-Pretorius
		Margaret Court Evonne Goolagong 6–4, 6–1	Brenda Kirk Pat Walkden-Pretorius	Linda Tuero Nathalie Fuchs

August

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
7 Aug	U.S. Clay Court Championships Indianapolis, United States Grand Prix Clay – $60,000 – 32S/16D	Chris Evert 7–6^(5–2), 6–1	Evonne Goolagong	Margaret Court Linda Tuero	Lesley Hunt Pat Walkden Pam Teeguarden Julie Heldman
7 Aug		Evonne Goolagong Lesley Hunt 6–2, 6–1	Margaret Court Pam Teeguarden	Margaret Court Linda Tuero	Lesley Hunt Pat Walkden Pam Teeguarden Julie Heldman
14 Aug	Virginia Slims of Denver Denver, United States Virginia Slims $25,000	Nancy Gunter 1–6, 6–4, 6–4	Billie Jean King	Valerie Ziegenfuss (3rd) Lesley Hunt (4th)	Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr Kristy Pigeon Jana Cooper
		Françoise Dürr Lesley Hunt 6–0, 6–3	Helen Gourlay Karen Krantzcke	Valerie Ziegenfuss (3rd) Lesley Hunt (4th)	Julie Heldman Françoise Dürr Kristy Pigeon Jana Cooper
	Rothmans Canadian Open Toronto, Canada Grand Prix Carpet(i) – 8S/2D	Evonne Goolagong 6–3, 6–1	Virginia Wade	Linda Tuero Margaret Court	Pat Walkden-Pretorius Fiorella Bonicelli Nathalie Fuchs Andrea Martin
		Margaret Court Evonne Goolagong 3–6, 6–3, 7–5	Brenda Kirk Pat Walkden-Pretorius	Linda Tuero Margaret Court
21 Aug	Virginia Slims of Newport Newport, Rhode Island, United States Virginia Slims $18,000	Margaret Court 6–4, 6–1	Billie Jean King	Chris Evert (3rd) Julie Heldman (4th)	Pam Teeguarden Kerry Melville Rosie Casals Wendy Overton
		Margaret Court Lesley Hunt 6–2, 6–2	Rosie Casals Billie Jean King	Chris Evert (3rd) Julie Heldman (4th)	Pam Teeguarden Kerry Melville Rosie Casals Wendy Overton
	Eastern Grass Court Championships South Orange, New Jersey, United States ILTF Grass	Olga Morozova 6–2, 6–7, 7–5	Marina Kroschina
		Marina Kroschina Olga Morozova 6–7, 6–2, 6–2	Carole Caldwell Graebner Patti Hogan
	Pennsylvanian Championships Merion, Pennsylvania, United States ILTF	Virginia Wade 6–4, 6–1	Carrie Fleming
		Virginia Wade Sharon Walsh 7–6, 6–2	Brenda Kirk Pat Walkden-Pretorius
28 Aug 4 Sep	US Open New York City, United States Grand Slam Grass – 64S/32D/51X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Billie Jean King 6–3, 7–5	Kerry Melville	Margaret Court Chris Evert	Virginia Wade Rosie Casals Olga Morozova Pam Teeguarden
		Françoise Dürr Betty Stöve 6–3, 1–6, 6–3	Margaret Court Virginia Wade
		Margaret Court Marty Riessen 6–3, 7–5	Rosie Casals Ilie Năstase

September

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
11 Sep	Four Roses Classic Charlotte, United States Virginia Slims $40,000	Billie Jean King 6–2, 6–2	Margaret Court	Rosie Casals Nancy Gunter	Mona Schallau Kerry Melville Françoise Dürr Wendy Overton
11 Sep		Françoise Dürr & Betty Stöve vs Margaret Court & Lesley Hunt (Divided)		Rosie Casals Nancy Gunter	Mona Schallau Kerry Melville Françoise Dürr Wendy Overton
18 Sep	Virginia Slims Golden Gate Classic Oakland, United States Virginia Slims $20,000	Margaret Court 6–4, 6–1	Billie Jean King	Rosie Casals (3rd) Kerry Melville (4th)	Julie Heldman Veronica Burton Lesley Hunt Mona Schallau
18 Sep		Ann Jones Billie Jean King 7–5, 2–6, 7–6^(5–4)	Margaret Court Lesley Hunt	Rosie Casals (3rd) Kerry Melville (4th)	Julie Heldman Veronica Burton Lesley Hunt Mona Schallau
25 Sep	Virginia Slims of Phoenix Phoenix, United States Virginia Slims $25,000	Billie Jean King 7–6^(5–3), 6–3	Margaret Court	Rosie Casals (3rd) Wendy Overton (4th)	Veronica Burton Karen Krantzcke Françoise Dürr Nancy Gunter
25 Sep		Rosie Casals Wendy Overton 6–4, 6–3	Françoise Dürr Betty Stöve	Rosie Casals (3rd) Wendy Overton (4th)	Veronica Burton Karen Krantzcke Françoise Dürr Nancy Gunter

October

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
9 Oct	Virginia Slims Championships Boca Raton, United States Year-end championships $100,900 Draw	Chris Evert 7–5, 6–4	Kerry Melville	Françoise Dürr (3rd) Billie Jean King (4th)	Wendy Overton Karen Krantzcke Jeanne Evert Betty Stöve
16 Oct	Spanish International Open Championships Barcelona, Spain ILTF	Gail Chanfreau 6–1, 6–4	Nathalie Fuchs
		Gail Chanfreau Nathalie Fuchs 6–1, 6–4	Michele Gurdal Monique Van Haver
	Dewar Cup Billingham Billingham, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court 7–5, 6–1	Julie Heldman	Brenda Kirk Virginia Wade	Jackie Fayter Sharon Walsh Sue Mappin Corinne Molesworth
	Dewar Cup Billingham Billingham, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court Virginia Wade 6–3, 6–2	Patti Hogan Sharon Walsh	Brenda Kirk Virginia Wade	Jackie Fayter Sharon Walsh Sue Mappin Corinne Molesworth
23 Oct	Dewar Cup Edinburgh Edinburgh, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court 6–3, 3–6, 7–5	Virginia Wade	Brenda Kirk Betty Stöve	Wendy Gilchrist Corinne Molesworth Julie Heldman Sharon Walsh
23 Oct	Dewar Cup Edinburgh Edinburgh, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court Virginia Wade 6–2, 6–3	Julie Heldman Betty Stöve	Brenda Kirk Betty Stöve
30 Oct	Dewar Cup Aberavon Aberavon, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court 6–3, 6–4	Virginia Wade	Betty Stöve Julie Heldman	Corinne Molesworth Sharon Walsh Brenda Kirk Wendy Gilchrist
30 Oct	Dewar Cup Aberavon Aberavon, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court Virginia Wade 6–0, 6–3	Julie Heldman Betty Stöve	Betty Stöve Julie Heldman	Corinne Molesworth Sharon Walsh Brenda Kirk Wendy Gilchrist

November

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Nov	Dewar Cup Torquay Torquay, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court 2–6, 6–3, 6–1	Virginia Wade	Julie Heldman Brenda Kirk	Patti Hogan Corinne Molesworth Betty Stöve Sharon Walsh
6 Nov	Dewar Cup Torquay Torquay, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court Virginia Wade 6–4, 6–4	Brenda Kirk Sharon Walsh	Julie Heldman Brenda Kirk	Patti Hogan Corinne Molesworth Betty Stöve Sharon Walsh
13 Nov	Dewar Cup Final Nottingham, United Kingdom ILTF	Margaret Court 6–1, 6–1	Virginia Wade	Betty Stöve Julie Heldman	Wendy Gilchrist Corinne Molesworth Brenda Kirk Sharon Walsh
20 Nov	Australian Hardcourt Championships Melbourne, Australia ILTF Hard	Evonne Goolagong 6–7, 6–2, 6–2	Patricia Coleman
20 Nov		Evonne Goolagong Janet Young 2–6, 6–4, 6–3	Patricia Coleman Sally Irvine
27 Nov	Queensland Championships Brisbane, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 6–0, 7–5	Glynis Coles	Barbara Hawcroft Lesley Charles	Gai Healey Marilyn Tesch Wendy Turnbull Patricia Coleman
	Queensland Championships Brisbane, Australia ILTF	Janet Fallis / Evonne Goolagong vs Barbara Hawcroft / Marilyn Tesch No Contest		Barbara Hawcroft Lesley Charles	Gai Healey Marilyn Tesch Wendy Turnbull Patricia Coleman
	Argentine Open Buenos Aires, Argentina ILTF Clay	Virginia Wade 6–4, 6–1	Fiorella Bonicelli
	Argentine Open Buenos Aires, Argentina ILTF Clay	Helga Masthoff Pam Teeguarden 6–4, 6–1	Ana María Arias Virginia Wade

December

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
4 Dec	Western Australian Championships Perth, Australia ILTF	Margaret Court 6–3, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong	Lesley Hunt Kazuko Sawamatsu	Nathalie Fuchs Christine Matison Glynis Coles Monique van Haver
11 Dec	South Australian Championships Adelaide, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong 6–1, 6–2	Kerry Harris
11 Dec	South Australian Championships Adelaide, Australia ILTF	Eugenia Birioukova Janet Young 6–3, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong Helen Gourlay
18 Dec	New South Wales Open Sydney, Australia ILTF	Margaret Court 6–3, 6–2	Evonne Goolagong
18 Dec	New South Wales Open Sydney, Australia ILTF	Evonne Goolagong Melissa Edwards 6–1, 6–2	Lesley Turner Virginia Wade

Statistical information

These tables present the number of singles (S), doubles (D), and mixed doubles (X) titles won by each player and each nation during the 1972 Virginia Slims Circuit. They also include data for the Grand Slam tournaments and the year-end championships. The table is sorted by:

total number of titles (a doubles title won by two players representing the same nation counts as only one win for the nation);
highest amount of highest category tournaments (for example, having a single Grand Slam gives preference over any kind of combination without a Grand Slam title);
a singles > doubles > mixed doubles hierarchy;
alphabetical order (by family names for players).

Key

Grand Slam tournaments
Year-end championships
Virginia Slims event

Titles won by player

Total	Player	S	D	X	S	S	D	S	D	X
16	Billie Jean King (USA)	● ● ●	● ●			● ● ● ● ● ●	● ● ● ● ●	9	7	0
13	Rosie Casals (USA)			●		● ● ●	● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●	3	9	1
5	Virginia Wade (GBR)	●				●	● ● ●	2	3	0
5	Nancy Gunter (USA)					● ● ● ● ●		5	0	0
4	Françoise Durr (FRA)		●				● ● ●	0	4	0
4	Margaret Court (AUS)			●		● ●	●	2	1	1
4	Wendy Overton (USA)						● ● ● ●	0	4	0
4	Karen Krantzcke (AUS)						● ● ● ●	0	4	0
3	Betty Stöve (NED)		● ● ●					0	3	0
2	Helen Gourlay (AUS)		●				●	0	2	0
2	Kerry Harris (AUS)		●				●	0	2	0
2	Chris Evert (USA)				●	●		2	0	0
2	Judy Dalton (AUS)						● ●	0	2	0
2	Lesley Hunt (AUS)						● ●	0	2	0
2	Valerie Ziegenfuss (USA)						● ●	0	2	0
1	Evonne Goolagong (AUS)			●				0	0	1
1	Kerry Melville (AUS)					●		1	0	0
1	Marie Neumannová (TCH)					●		1	0	0
1	Ann Jones (GBR)						●	0	1	0

Titles won by nation

Total	Nation	S	D	X	S	S	D	S	D	X
35	United States (USA)	3	2	1	1	15	13	19	15	1
14	Australia (AUS)	0	1	2	0	3	8	3	9	2
6	Great Britain (GBR)	1	0	0	0	1	4	2	4	0
4	France (FRA)	0	1	0	0	0	3	0	4	0
3	Netherlands (NED)	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
1	Czechoslovakia (TCH)	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0

References

1 2 "WTA Tour Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2012-04-27.
↑ John Dolan (2011). Women's Tennis 1968–84: the Ultimate Guide. Remous. pp. 105–114.
↑ "Kramer". Press-Telegram. The Wikipedia Library - Newspapers.Com. 14 Nov 1973. p. 46. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
↑ "SEWTA Tour Archive: 1972 Virginia Slims Circuit" (PDF). London, England: Wayback Machine. p. 49. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
1 2 3 4 SEWTA Tour Archive
↑ "Asia Tennis Circuit Plan". Nottingham Guardian via British Newspaper Archive. 5 January 1972. p. 12. Retrieved 10 June 2025.

External links

[VSCalendar1972-1] 1 2 "WTA Tour Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2012-04-27.

[dolan2011-2] John Dolan (2011). Women's Tennis 1968–84: the Ultimate Guide. Remous. pp. 105–114.

[3] "Kramer". Press-Telegram. The Wikipedia Library - Newspapers.Com. 14 Nov 1973. p. 46. Retrieved 26 September 2023.

[4] "SEWTA Tour Archive: 1972 Virginia Slims Circuit" (PDF). London, England: Wayback Machine. p. 49. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-01. Retrieved 4 December 2023.

[SEWTA_Tour_Archive-5] 1 2 3 4 SEWTA Tour Archive

[6] "Asia Tennis Circuit Plan". Nottingham Guardian via British Newspaper Archive. 5 January 1972. p. 12. Retrieved 10 June 2025.

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v t e 1972 Women's Tennis Circuit « 1971 1973 »
Grand Slam events	Australian Open (S, D) French Open (S, D, X) Wimbledon (S, D, X) US Open (S, D, X)
Virginia Slims Circuit	San Francisco (S, D) Long Beach (S, D) Boston (S, D) Fort Lauderdale (S, D) Oklahoma City (S, D) Washington (S, D) Birmingham (S, D) Dallas (S, D) Richmond (S, D) San Juan (S, D) Jacksonville (S, D) St. Petersburg (S, D) Tucson (S, D) Indianapolis 1 (S, D) Columbus (S, D) Denver (S, D) Newport (S, D) Oakland (S, D) Phoenix (S, D)
Grand Prix Circuit	Johannesburg (S, D) Rome (S, D) Bournemouth (S, D) Hamburg (S, D) Cincinnati (S, D) Indianapolis 2 (S, D) Toronto (S, D) New York (S, D) Atlanta (S, D) Tokyo 1 (S, D) Palm Harbor (S, D) Atlanta (S, D) Phoenix (S, D) Melbourne (S, D)
Non-tour events	Sydney (S, D) Adelaide (S, D) Kitzbühel (S, D) London (S, D) Beckenham (S, D) Tokyo 2 (S, D) Tokyo 3 (S, D) Billingham (S, D) Edinburgh (S, D) Aberavon (S, D) Torquay (S, D) Nottingham (S, D)
Team events	Fed Cup Wightman Cup
Virginia Slims Championships (S, D)

v t e Women's tennis seasons
Seasons (1881–1912) ILTF (1913–1972)	1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
ILTF Independent Circuit	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
ILTF Women's International Grand Prix	1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976
Virginia Slims Circuit	1971 1972 1973 1974 1975
Virginia Slims/Colgate Series	1976 1977 1978
Avon/Colgate Series	1979 1980
Avon/Toyota Series	1981 1982
Virginia Slims World Championship Series	1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
WTA Tour	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026