Sony Ericsson Open

Sony Ericsson Open
Location	Key Biscayne, Florida  United States
Venue	Tennis Center at Crandon Park
Surface	Hard (Laykold) / Outdoors
Official website
ATP World Tour
Category	Masters 1000
Draw	96S / 48Q / 32D
Prize Money	US$5,250,000
Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
Category	Premier Mandatory
Draw	96S / 48Q / 32D
Prize Money	US$4,500,000

The Sony Ericsson Open is an annual tennis tournament for men and women held in Key Biscayne, Florida. The event is an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the men's tour and a Premier Mandatory event on the women's tour. The tournament is played on hard courts at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park. The event is currently held in March each year.

The event was initially known as the Lipton International Players Championships. In 2000, there was a change of title sponsor and the event was renamed the Ericsson Open. In 2002, the event became known as the NASDAQ-100 Open. In 2007, the tournament was renamed the Sony Ericsson Open in a deal where the company will pay US$20 million over the next four years. It is sometimes called the Miami Masters.

History

The tournament was founded by former player Butch Buchholz. His original aim was to make the event the first major tournament of the year (the Australian Open was held in December at that time), and he dubbed it the "Winter Wimbledon". Buchholz approached the ATP and the WTA and offered to provide the prize-money and give them a percentage of the ticket sales and worldwide television rights in return for the right to run the tournament for 15 years. The two associations agreed.

The first tournament was held in February 1985 at Laver's International Tennis Resort at Delray Beach, Florida. Buchholz brought in Alan Mills, the tournament referee at Wimbledon, as the head referee; and Ted Tinling, a well-known tennis fashion designer since the 1920s, as the director of protocol. The prize money of US$1.8 million was surpassed only by Wimbledon and the US Open at the time. (The event's prize money has since grown to over US$9 million.)

In 1986, the tournament relocated to Boca Raton. It moved to its permanent home in Key Biscayne in 1987. In keeping with the ambitions of its founder, the tournament is today considered by many as the "fifth major".^[1]

Event characteristics

Besides the four Grand Slam championships, the Sony Ericsson Open is one of the few events on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tours where the main singles draw (for both the men and the women) involves more than 64 players and where main draw play extends beyond one week. 96 men and 96 women compete in the singles competition, and 32 teams compete in each of the doubles competitions. The event lasts 12 days.

Given its size, history, and the fact that it is a combined event involving both men and women, this event has had the nickname "the 5th grand slam", since many consider the Sony Ericsson Open to be the fifth most prestigious event on the ATP and WTA tours – behind the four Grand Slam tournaments but ahead of the ATP World Tour Finals / WTA Tour Championships.

In 2006, the tournament became the first event in the United States to use instant replay to allow players to challenge close line calls. Players were allowed two challenges per set, with an additional challenge allowed for tiebreaks. The first challenge was made by Jamea Jackson against Ashley Harkleroad in the first round.

Past results

Men's singles

• The men's final has been abandoned three times since the tournament's inception.
  • In 1989, Thomas Muster was hit by a drunk driver the night before the final, which put him in a wheelchair for months. He was able to win the championship eight years later.
  • In 1996, Goran Ivanišević retired from the match early with a stiff neck.
  • In 2004, Guillermo Coria retired during the first game of the fourth set due to back pain and an inability to move properly. The problem later turned out to be kidney stones.

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score	Name
1985	Tim Mayotte	Scott Davis	4–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–2, 6–4	Lipton International Players Championships
1986	Ivan Lendl	Mats Wilander	3–6, 6–1, 7–6, 6–4
1987	Miloslav Mečíř	Ivan Lendl	7–5, 6–2, 7–5
1988	Mats Wilander	Jimmy Connors	6–4, 4–6, 6–4, 6–4
1989	Ivan Lendl	Thomas Muster	walkover
↓  ATP Masters 1000 tournament  ↓
1990	Andre Agassi	Stefan Edberg	6–1, 6–4, 0–6, 6–2
1991	Jim Courier	David Wheaton	4–6, 6–3, 6–4
1992	Michael Chang	Alberto Mancini	7–5, 7–5
1993	Pete Sampras	MaliVai Washington	6–3, 6–2	Lipton Championships
1994	Pete Sampras	Andre Agassi	5–7, 6–3, 6–3
1995	Andre Agassi	Pete Sampras	3–6, 6–2, 7–6(3)
1996	Andre Agassi	Goran Ivanišević	3–0, retired
1997	Thomas Muster	Sergi Bruguera	7–6(6), 6–3, 6–1
1998	Marcelo Ríos	Andre Agassi	7–5, 6–3, 6–4
1999	Richard Krajicek	Sébastien Grosjean	4–6, 6–1, 6–2, 7–5
2000	Pete Sampras	Gustavo Kuerten	6–1, 6–7(2), 7–6(5), 7–6(8)	Ericsson Open
2001	Andre Agassi	Jan-Michael Gambill	7–6(4), 6–1, 6–0
2002	Andre Agassi	Roger Federer	6–3, 6–3, 3–6, 6–4	NASDAQ-100 Open
2003	Andre Agassi	Carlos Moyà	6–3, 6–3
2004	Andy Roddick	Guillermo Coria	6–7, 6–3, 6–1, retired
2005	Roger Federer	Rafael Nadal	2–6, 6–7(4), 7–6(5), 6–3, 6–1
2006	Roger Federer	Ivan Ljubičić	7–6(5), 7–6(4), 7–6(6)
2007	Novak Djokovic	Guillermo Cañas	6–3, 6–2, 6–4	Sony Ericsson Open
2008	Nikolay Davydenko	Rafael Nadal	6–4, 6–2
2009	Andy Murray	Novak Djokovic	6–2, 7–5

Women's singles

Year	Champion	Runner-up	Score
1985	Martina Navratilova	Chris Evert	6–2, 6–4
1986	Chris Evert	Steffi Graf	6–4, 6–2
1987	Steffi Graf	Chris Evert	6–1, 6–2
↓  Tier I tournament  ↓
1988	Steffi Graf	Chris Evert	6–4, 6–4
1989	Gabriela Sabatini	Chris Evert	6–1, 4–6, 6–2
1990	Monica Seles	Judith Wiesner	6–1, 6–2
1991	Monica Seles	Gabriela Sabatini	6–3, 7–5
1992	Arantxa Sánchez	Gabriela Sabatini	6–1, 6–4
1993	Arantxa Sánchez	Steffi Graf	6–4, 3–6, 6–3
1994	Steffi Graf	Natasha Zvereva	4–6, 6–1, 6–2
1995	Steffi Graf	Kimiko Date	6–1, 6–4
1996	Steffi Graf	Chanda Rubin	6–1, 6–3
1997	Martina Hingis	Monica Seles	6–2, 6–1
1998	Venus Williams	Anna Kournikova	2–6, 6–4, 6–1
1999	Venus Williams	Serena Williams	6–1, 4–6, 6–4
2000	Martina Hingis	Lindsay Davenport	6–3, 6–2
2001	Venus Williams	Jennifer Capriati	4–6, 6–1, 7–6(4)
2002	Serena Williams	Jennifer Capriati	7–5, 7–6(4)
2003	Serena Williams	Jennifer Capriati	4–6, 6–4, 6–1
2004	Serena Williams	Elena Dementieva	6–1, 6–1
2005	Kim Clijsters	Maria Sharapova	6–3, 7–5
2006	Svetlana Kuznetsova	Maria Sharapova	6–4, 6–3
2007	Serena Williams	Justine Henin	0–6, 7–5, 6–3
2008	Serena Williams	Jelena Janković	6–1, 5–7, 6–3
↓  Premier Mandatory tournament  ↓
2009	Victoria Azarenka	Serena Williams	6-3, 6-1

Men's doubles

Year	Champions	Runners-up	Score
2009	Max Mirnyi / Andy Ram	Ashley Fisher / Stephen Huss	6–7(4), 6–2, [10–7]
2008	Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan	Mahesh Bhupathi / Mark Knowles	6–2, 6–2
2007	Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan	Martin Damm / Leander Paes	6–7(7), 6–3, [10–7]
2006	Jonas Björkman / Max Mirnyi	Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan	6–4, 6–4
2005	Jonas Björkman / Max Mirnyi	Wayne Black / Kevin Ullyett	6–1, 6–2
2004	Wayne Black / Kevin Ullyett	Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge	6–2, 7–6(12)
2003	Roger Federer / Max Mirnyi	Leander Paes / David Rikl	7–5, 6–3
2002	Mark Knowles / Daniel Nestor	Donald Johnson / Jared Palmer	6–3, 3–6, 6–1
2001	Jiří Novák / David Rikl	Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge	7–5, 7–6(3)
2000	Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde	Martin Damm / Dominik Hrbatý	6–3, 6–4
1999	Wayne Black / Sandon Stolle	Boris Becker / Jan-Michael Gambill	6–1, 6–1
1998	Ellis Ferreira / Rick Leach	Alex O'Brien / Jonathan Stark	6–2, 6–4
1997	Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde	Mark Knowles / Daniel Nestor	7–6, 7–6
1996	Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde	Ellis Ferreira / Patrick Galbraith	6–1, 6–3
1995	Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde	Jim Grabb / Patrick McEnroe	6–3, 7–6
1994	Jacco Eltingh / Paul Haarhuis	Mark Knowles / Jared Palmer	7–6, 7–6
1993	Richard Krajicek / Jan Siemerink	Patrick McEnroe / Jonathan Stark	6–7, 6–4, 7–6
1992	Ken Flach / Todd Witsken	Kent Kinnear / Sven Salumaa	6–4, 6–3
1991	Wayne Ferreira / Piet Norval	Ken Flach / Robert Seguso	5–7, 7–6, 6–2
1990	Rick Leach / Jim Pugh	Boris Becker / Cassio Motta	6–3, 6–4
1989	Jakob Hlasek / Anders Järryd	Jim Grabb / Patrick McEnroe	6–3, retired
1988	John Fitzgerald / Anders Järryd	Ken Flach / Robert Seguso	7–6, 6–1, 7–5
1987	Paul Annacone / Christo van Rensburg	Ken Flach / Robert Seguso	6–2, 6–4, 6–4
1986	Brad Gilbert / Vince Van Patten	Stefan Edberg / Anders Järryd	walkover
1985	Paul Annacone / Christo van Rensburg	Sherwood Stewart / Kim Warwick	7–5, 7–5, 6–4

Women's doubles

Year	Champions	Runners-up	Score
1985	Gigi Fernández Martina Navrátilová	Kathy Jordan Hana Mandlíková	7–6(4), 6–2
1986	Pam Shriver Helena Suková	Chris Evert Wendy Turnbull	6–2, 6–3
1987	Martina Navrátilová Pam Shriver	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	6–3, 7–6(6)
1988	Steffi Graf Gabriela Sabatini	Gigi Fernández Zina Garrison	7–6(6), 6–3
1989	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil	7–6(5), 6–4
1990	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	Betsy Nagelsen Robin White	6–4, 6–3
1991	Mary Joe Fernández Zina Garrison Jackson	Gigi Fernández Jana Novotná	7–5, 6–2
1992	Arantxa Sánchez Larisa Savchenko Neiland	Jill Hetherington Kathy Rinaldi	7–5, 5–7, 6–3
1993	Jana Novotná Larisa Savchenko Neiland	Jill Hetherington Kathy Rinaldi	6–2, 7–5
1994	Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva	Patty Fendick Meredith McGrath	6–3, 6–1
1995	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez	Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva	7–5, 2–6, 6–3
1996	Jana Novotná Arantxa Sánchez	Meredith McGrath Larisa Savchenko Neiland	6–4, 6–4
1997	Arantxa Sánchez Natasha Zvereva	Sabine Appelmans Miriam Oremans	6–4, 6–2
1998	Martina Hingis Jana Novotná	Arantxa Sánchez Natasha Zvereva	6–2, 3–6, 6–3
1999	Martina Hingis Jana Novotná	Mary Joe Fernández Monica Seles	0–6, 6–4, 7–6(1)
2000	Julie Halard-Decugis Ai Sugiyama	Nicole Arendt Manon Bollegraf	4–6, 7–5, 6–4
2001	Arantxa Sánchez Nathalie Tauziat	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	6–0, 6–4
2002	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	Virginia Ruano Paola Suárez	7–6(4), 6–7(4), 6–3
2003	Liezel Huber Magdalena Maleeva	Shinobu Asagoe Nana Miyagi	6–4, 3–6, 7–5
2004	Nadia Petrova Meghann Shaughnessy	Svetlana Kuznetsova Elena Likhovtseva	6–2, 6–3
2005	Svetlana Kuznetsova Alicia Molik	Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs	7–5, 6–7(5), 6–2
2006	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur	Liezel Huber Martina Navrátilová	6–4, 7–5
2007	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur	Cara Black Liezel Huber	6–4, 3–6, [10–2]
2008	Katarina Srebotnik Ai Sugiyama	Cara Black Liezel Huber	7–5, 4–6, [10–3]
2009	Svetlana Kuznetsova Amélie Mauresmo	Kveta Peschke Lisa Raymond	4–6, 6–3, [10–3]

Mixed doubles

A mixed doubles competition was also held at the inaugural tournament in 1985, and was won by Heinz Günthardt & Martina Navrátilová.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sony Ericsson Open

• Official tournament website
• Satellite view of the tournament venue (Google Maps)

Coordinates: 25°42′29″N 80°09′32″W / 25.70806°N 80.15889°W / 25.70806; -80.15889