While the Grand Slams, ATP Tour, and WTA Tour tend to take all of the focus when it comes to professional tennis, a vast majority of the professional players typically kick off their careers on the ITF Men’s and Women’s World Tours as well as the ATP Challenger Tour where players compete week in and week out to climb up in the professional ranks.
In 2023, current and former collegians have been kickstarting their careers after college on the ITF Men’s and Women’s Tours as well as the ATP Challenger Tour, winning over 120 Titles so far in the 2023 calendar year.
These players with college ties include former NCAA Singles and Doubles Champions, ITA National Champions, National Players of the Year, as well as current players who are contributing to their team’s success this season.
Beginning with the ATP Challenger Tour, former ITA National Player of the Year Nuno Borges (Mississippi State), as well as two-time ITA All-American Aleksandar Kovacevic (Illinois), already have claimed two ATP Challenger Singles Titles this season. Joining Rinky Hijikata (North Carolina) who won the Caterpillar Burnie International, these three players have already accounted for five Challenger Titles in 2023.
Across doubles play on the ATP Challenger Tour, 18 former collegians have won Doubles Titles across 14 Challenger Events with several winning on multiple occasions. Of these Champions, several currently rank within the Top 100 of the world as Nathaniel Lammons (SMU), Jackson Withrow (Texas A&M), Sadio Doumbia (AUM/Georgia), and Andre Goransson (Cal) make up just a few of these notable winners.
On the ITF Women’s World Tour, some of the top players from the 2021-22 season at the NCAA Division I level have seen their professional careers blossom as the past two NCAA Singles Champions, Peyton Stearns (Texas) and Emma Navarro (Virginia), have each won titles this year. They make up two of the eight former collegians who have won ITF Women’s Singles Titles so far in 2023.
From the ITF Men’s World Tour, former ITA All-Americans such as Gabi Adrian Boitan (Baylor), Gabriel Diallo (Kentucky), and Clement Chidekh (Washington) are all kickstarting their professional careers in a strong way on the ITF Tour. Current collegians have also made their presence felt on the ITF Men’s World Tour this year as Radu Mihai Papoe (Cornell) won the M15 in Ithaca, NY, and Arthur Fery (Stanford) won the M25 in Malibu, CA just a few months back.
Doubles play on the ITF Men’s and Women’s World Tour has been exceptional for collegians so far in 2023, as 73 Titles have already been won by both current and former student-athletes.
Names such as Daniel Cukierman (USC), Matej Vocel (Oklahoma State/Ohio State), and Nathan Ponwith (Arizona State) headline a crowded list of Champions on the men’s side which boasts alumni from the NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, and JUCO levels of play.
Similarly, on the women’s side, names such as Ashley Lahey (Pepperdine), Francesca Di Lorenzo (Ohio State), Elysia Bolton (UCLA), and Makenna Jones (North Carolina) are just a few of the Champions already in 2023, joining a list which features NCAA Champions, ITA All-Americans, and Australian Open Finalists.
The ITF Men’s and Women’s World Tour, as well as the ATP Challenger Tour, account for just a few of the numerous ways collegiate tennis players can spark professional careers after college. With tournaments taking place each and every week of the calendar year, many of these players serve as the backbone to the ultimately much larger tennis ecosystem.
Through programs such as the ATP Accelerator Program, the ITA hopes to continue to shine a light and provide a pathway to all players who have aspirations to pursue professional careers after their time in college is complete.
Read below for a complete list of ITF Tour and ATP Challenger Tour Champions with college ties to start the 2023 season:
Quick Travel: ITF Men’s Singles | ITF Men’s Doubles | ITF Women’s Singles | ITF Women’s Doubles | ATP Challenger Singles | ATP Challenger Doubles
ITF Men’s World Tour Singles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
M15 Sharm Elsheikh | Josh Sheehy | Abilene Christian |
M25 Wesley Chapel, FL | Nathan Ponwith | Arizona State |
M15 Palm Coast, FL | Gabi Adrian Boitan | Baylor |
M15 Weston, FL | Gabi Adrian Boitan | Baylor |
M15 Napels, FL | Gabi Adrian Boitan | Baylor |
M15 Ithaca, NY | Radu Mihai Papoe | Cornell |
M25 Monastir | Oliver Crawford | Florida |
M25 Montreal | Gabriel Diallo | Kentucky |
M15 Napels, FL | Federico Agustin Gomez | Louisville |
M15 Monastir | Moez Echargui | Nevada |
M15 Monastir | Moez Echargui | Nevada |
M15 Monastir | Guy Den Ouden | Pepperdine |
M25 Malibu, CA | Arthur Fery | Stanford |
M25 Al Zahra | Prajnesh Gunneswaran | Tennessee |
M25 Faro | Lucas Poullain | Florida State |
M25 Sheffield | Daniel Little | Utah |
M25 Bath | Henri Squire | Wake Forest |
M25 Loughborough | Clement Chidekh | Washington |
M25 Sunderland | Clement Chidekh | Washington |
ITF Men’s World Tour Doubles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
M15 Ithaca, NY | Nathan Ponwith | Arizona State |
M25 Santo Domingo | Conner Huertas del Pino | Auburn |
M25 Santo Domingo | Conner Huertas del Pino | Auburn |
M15 Antalya | Matteo De Vincentis | Auburn |
M25 Manacor | Filip Bergevi | California |
M25 Loughborough | Tom Hands | Drake |
M15 Naples, FL | Jiri Jenicek | Flagler/FAU |
M25 Wesley Chapel, FL | Alfredo Perez | Florida |
M25 Montreal | Alfredo Perez | Florida |
M15 Sharm Elsheikh | Johannes Ingildsen | Florida |
M25 Manacor | Alex Knaff | Florida State |
M15 Monastir | Kai Wehnelt | Hawaii/Utah State |
M15 Monastir | Kai Wehnelt | Hawaii/Utah State |
M25 Montreal | Zeke Clark | Illinois |
M15 Oberhaching | Joe Tyler | Iowa/San Diego State |
M25 Montreal | Joe Tyler | Iowa/San Diego State |
M15 Naples, FL | Federico Agustin Gomez | Louisville |
M25 Bakersfield, CA | Christian Langmo | Miami |
M15 Edmond, OK | Benjamin Sigouin | North Carolina |
M15 Edmond, OK | Mac Kiger | North Carolina |
M15 Palm Coast, FL | Mac Kiger | North Carolina |
M15 Monastir | Tim Handel | Northern Arizona |
M25 Vila Real De Santo Antonio | Matej Vocel | Oklahoma State/Ohio State |
M15 Aktobe | Aleksandre Bakshi | Oklahoma/Texas A&M |
M25 Veigy-Foncenex | Zvonimir Babic | Ole Miss |
M15 Kish Island | Gergely Madarasz | Purdue |
M15 Ithaca, NY | Nick Chappell | TCU |
M15 Monastir | Andrew Rogers | Tennessee/Pepperdine |
M15 Monastir | Colin Markes | Texas |
M25 Montreal | Juan Carlos Aguilar | Texas A&M/TCU |
M15 Palm Coast, FL | George Goldhoff | Texas/Baylor |
M15 Oberhaching | Joshua Goodger | Tulsa/Florida |
M15 Antalya | Jorge Martinez Martinez | Tyler JC |
M25 Santo Domingo | Arklon Huertas del Pino | UIndy |
M25 Santo Domingo | Arklon Huertas del Pino | UIndy |
M25 Sunderland | Daniel Cukierman | USC |
M25 Manacor | Alberto Barroso Campos | USF |
M25 Wesley Chapel, FL | Roberto Cid Subervi | USF |
M15 Monastir | Kris van Wyk | Weber State |
M25 Tucuman | Murkel Dellien | Wichita State |
ITF Women’s World Tour Singles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
W25 Pretoria | Emina Bektas | Michigan |
W25 Malibu, CA | Jamie Loeb | North Carolina |
W40 Nonthaburi | Kateryna Bondarenko | Northwestern Ohio |
W25 Spring, TX | Yuliia Starodubtseva | Old Dominion |
W25 Fredericton | Gabriela Knutson | Syracuse |
W25 Orlando, FL | Peyton Stearns | Texas |
W60 Rome, GA | Peyton Stearns | Texas |
W25 Naples, FL | Emma Navarro | Virginia |
W25 Santo Domingo | Stacey Fung | Washington |
ITF Women’s World Tour Doubles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
W25 Bath | Lauryn John-Baptiste | Arizona State |
W25 Spring, TX | Maria Mateas | Duke |
W60+H Irapuato | Ingrid Neel | Florida |
W40 Astana | Anna Danilina | Florida |
W25 Orlando, FL | Rasheeda McAdoo | Georgia Tech |
W25 Santo Domingo | Rasheeda McAdoo | Georgia Tech |
W25 Joue Les Tours | Justina Mikulskyte | Kentucky |
W15 Antalya | Natalia Siedliska | Lynn |
W40 Mexico City | Sofia Sewing | Miami |
W25 Santo Domingo | Sofia Sewing | Miami |
W60+H Irapuato | Emina Bektas | Michigan |
W25 Pretoria | Emina Bektas | Michigan |
W15 Monastir | Magdalini Adaloglou | Mississippi State |
W40 Monastir | Sada Nahimana | NC State |
W25 Naples, FL | Reese Brantmeier | North Carolina |
W25 Naples, FL | Makenna Jones | North Carolina |
W60 Vero Beach, FL | Makenna Jones | North Carolina |
W40 Tallinn | Jessie Aney | North Carolina |
W25 Fredericton | Jessie Aney | North Carolina |
W60 Trnava | Alicia Barnett | Northwestern |
W60 Vero Beach, FL | Francesca Di Lorenzo | Ohio State |
W60 Arcadia, CA | Francesca Di Lorenzo | Ohio State |
W25 Bath | Katarina Stresnakova | Oklahoma State |
W25 Boca Raton, FL | Tiphanie Lemaitre | Ole Miss, Kentucky, TCU |
W25 Boca Raton, FL | Ashley Lahey | Pepperdine |
W60 Rome, GA | Lulu Sun | Texas |
W15 Gwalior | Ksenia Laskutova | Tulsa |
W15 Amiens | Martha Matoula | Tulsa |
W25 Orlando, FL | Jada Myii Hart | UCLA |
W25 Santo Domingo | Jada Myii Hart | UCLA |
W25 Swan Hill | Elysia Bolton | UCLA |
W60 Canberra | Elysia Bolton | UCLA |
W60 Arcadia, CA | Christina Rosca | Vanderbilt |
ATP Challenger Singles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
Texas Tennis Classic | Aleksandar Kovacevic | Illinois |
Cleveland Open | Aleksandar Kovacevic | Illinois |
Abierto GNP Seguros | Nuno Borges | Mississippi State |
Arizona Tennis Classic | Nuno Borges | Mississippi State |
Caterpillar Burnie International | Rinky Hijikata | North Carolina |
ATP Challenger Doubles Champions
Event | Player | School |
---|---|---|
Cleveland Open | Hans Hach Verdugo | Abilene Christian |
Bangkok Open | Saketh Myneni | Alabama |
Quimper Open | Sadio Doumbia | AUM/Georgia |
Canberra International | Andre Goransson | California |
Canberra International | Ben McLachlan | California |
Abierto GNP Seguros | Andre Goransson | California |
Abierto GNP Seguros | Ben McLachlan | California |
Megasaray Hotels Open | Filip Bergevi | California |
Rome Challenger | Luke Johnson | Clemson/Florida |
SIFA Open | Colin Sinclair | Cornell |
Vina Challenger | Diego Hidalgo | Florida |
Tenerife Challenger | Andrew Harris | Oklahoma |
Chennai Open | Arjun Kadhe | Oklahoma State |
Koblenz Open | Fabian Fallert | Ole Miss |
Rome Challenger | Sam Verbeek | Pacific |
Koblenz Open | Hendrik Jebens | San Diego State |
Arizona Tennis Classic | Nathaniel Lammons | SMU |
Puerto Magico Open | Miguel Reyes-Varela | Texas |
Arizona Tennis Classic | Jackson Withrow | Texas A&M |
Cleveland Open | Robert Galloway | Wofford |
Puerto Magico Open | Robert Galloway | Wofford |