The Droitwich Open Hard Courts [1] also known as the Bio-Strath Droitwich Open Hard Courts or Bio-Strath Droitwich for sponsorship reasons was a combined men's and women's clay court tennis tournament founded in 1968.[2] The tournament was organised by the Droitwich Spa Lawn Tennis Club (now called the Droitwich Tennis Club), and played at the Brine Baths Park (now called Droitwich Lido Park), Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire, England.[3] The tournament ran until 1974 then was discontinued.
| Droitwich Open Hard Courts | |
|---|---|
| Defunct tennis tournament | |
| Event name | Bio-Strath Droitwich Open Hard Courts (1971) |
| Tour | ILTF Circuit (1968-1969) Bio-Strath Circuit, (1970-1971) ILTF Circuit (1972-1974) |
| Founded | 1968 |
| Abolished | 1974 |
| Location | Droitwich Spa, Droitwich, Worcestershire, England. |
| Venue | Droitwich Tennis Club |
| Surface | Clay |
History
editIn 1928 as the Droitwich Open Lawn Tennis Tournament was founded.[4] This tournament was played on grass courts and staged annually through till 1939 when it was discontinued.[5] In October 1967 Droitwich Tennis Club applied to the Lawn Tennis Association to restart a new open tennis hard court tournament that was to begin in 1968.[6] In May 1968 the first Droitwich Open Hard Courts tournament was held.[5] In 1971 that event became part of the Bio-Strath Circuit under the brand name the Bio-Starth Droitwich Open Hard Courts.
Venue
editDroitwich Spa Lawn Tennis Club was founded in 1920.[7] It staged the first Droitwich Open in 1928.[8] The club was located in what was then called Brine Baths Park (now called Droitwich Lido Park), Droitwich Spa, Worcesteshire.[7] The original club had 4 grass courts and 4 hard courts (clay).[9] In 1975 Droitwich Tennis Club moved to its current location at St Peters Church Lane.[7] The club still has the eight courts, they no longer have the original grass or clay courts, instead they are a combination of hard cement and artificial grass courts.[10]
Finals
editMen's singles
edit(Incomplete list)
| Year | Winners | Runners-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968[11] |  Bob Howe |
Ken Hiskins |
6–1, 6–1 |
| ↓ Open era ↓ | |||
| 1969[11] |  Simon Partridge[12] |
A. Punell |
6–2, 6–0 |
| 1970[13] | Peter Doerner |
 Mel Baleson |
6–0, 7–5 |
| 1971[11] | Peter Doerner (2) |
John Manderson |
6–0, 7–5 |
| 1972[11] | John Trickey |
Malcolm Titcomb |
6–2, 6–0 |
Women's singles
edit(Incomplete list)
| Year | Winners | Runners-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Janice Townsend |
Brenda Kirk |
6–2 12–10 |
| ↓ Open era ↓ | |||
| 1969 | Kerry Melville |
 Beatriz Araujo |
6–4, 3–6, 7–5 |
| 1970[14] |  María Guzmán |
Sandra Walsham |
6–2 12–10 |
| 1971 | María Guzmán (2) |
Sandra Walsham |
2–6, 6–2, 6–2 |
| 1972 | Charlotte Bastin |
S. Preece |
6–2, 6–3 |
See also
edit- Droitwich Open (grass court event)
References
edit- ^ "Droitwich Hard Courts Tournament: Droitwich Rain prevented the completion at any matches on the first day of the Droitwich open hard court tennis tournament yesterday. Play in the qualifying events will continue today". Birmingham Daily Post. Warwickshire, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 7 May 1968. p. 12.
- ^ "LAWN TENNIS Droitwich event may be revived: Plans are being made at Droitwich to restart a neww week long Open tennis tournament next year, which disappeared from the annual calendar during the war. The Application is being made to the National Lawn Tennis Association next week". Birmingham Daily Post. Warwickshire, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 4 October 1967. p. 19.
- ^ "ABOUT US". droitwichtennis.co.uk. Droiwich Spa, Worcestershire, England: Droitwich Tennis Club. 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "DROITWICH FINALS: SINGLES VICTORIES FOR A. PEARSON AND MISS E. T. MADIN. The finals of the level events in the second annual Droitwich Spa Open lawn tennis tournament, held in the charming Brine Baths Park, were productive of some interesting play yesterday". Birmingham Daily Gazette. Birmingham, England: The British Newspaper Archive. 8 August 1929. p. 10.
- ^ a b Birmingham Daily Post (4 October 1967)
- ^ Birmingham Daily Post (4 October 1967). British Newspaper Archives. p.19.
- ^ a b c Droitwich Tennis Club
- ^ Birmingham Daily Gazette. (6 August 1934). The British Newspaper Archive. p. 10.
- ^ "Droitwich Spa". Holiday Haunts in England, Wales and Channel Islands: The Official Guide to the Holiday Resorts Served by the G.W.R. with Particulars of Accommodation for Holiday Makers and Travellers Generally. London: Great Western Railway. 1927. p. 887.
- ^ Bates, Adrian (2023). "Worcester: Droitwich Spa Lawn Tennis Club". www.cityoftennis.co.uk. City of Tennis. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Tournaments:Droitwich Hardcourts". The Tennis Base. Tennismem SL. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
- ^ "Player Profile: Simon Partridge (GBR)". www.itftennis.com. ITF. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
- ^ Barrett, John; Tingay, Lance; West, Peter (1971). "The 1970 British Tournament Season". World of Tennis 1971 : a BP yearbook. London: Queen Anne Press. pp. 260–271. ISBN 978-0-362-00091-7.
- ^ Barrett, John; Tingay, Lance; West, Peter (1971). "The 1970 British Tournament Season". World of Tennis 1971 : a BP yearbook. London: Queen Anne Press. pp. 260–271. ISBN 978-0-362-00091-7.