ATX Open will return to Austin in 2024 for its second WTA tennis tournament
Area tennis fans will get to enjoy a second serving of professional tennis in early 2024.
The ATX Open will return to Westwood Country Club for its second annual event, officials announced Thursday. The tournament will begin with qualifying rounds Feb. 24 and wrap up with singles and doubles championship matches March 3.
“We are so excited to bring the WTA Tour back to Austin in 2024 after such a successful inaugural ATX Open,” tournament director Christo Van Rensburg said in a statement. “While our first edition went very, very well, we are eager to have an even better event” in 2024.
The tournament will fall in the same place on the WTA schedule as it did last year, after most of the tour’s early swing through Australia, the Middle East and Mexico and right before its stop at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, Calif., a big WTA event that draws many of the tour’s top-ranked players.
More: Officials thought the inaugural ATX Open was all aces for Austin
Interviewed during last year’s event, Van Rensburg said late February and early March seemed perfect for the ATX Open for a number of reasons.
“We can’t play here in the summer; it’s too hot,” he said then. “I thought that this week was the best week from a player’s point of view because you bring the circuit back to America. They now have a week before they get to Indian Wells where they are getting over jet lag. Austin’s a great place to get them used to the time change and then you can move them on.”
Officials: changes are coming
Officials announced that the tournament will include additional seating around the center court, a new club level area that includes views of both the center and grandstand courts.
“We received so much valuable feedback from our fans, partners and players, all of which has been top of mind as we prepare to bring world-class tennis back to Austin in February,” Van Rensburg said.
Last year's ATX Open was a springboard
Tournament officials announced that 18,000 fans attended the inaugural event, which featured several players who went on to enjoy very successful 2023 seasons, including solid showings at the major tournaments that followed the ATX Open:
∙ Marta Kostyuk, who won the ATX Open singles title, started the year ranked 69th, jumped to 40th in March and is currently No. 33.
∙ Fan favorite and former Texas Longhorn Peyton Stearns was ranked 137th in the world when she reached the ATX Open quarterfinals as a wild-card entry. She moved into the top 50 after reaching the U.S. Open round of 16.
∙ ATX Open doubles champion Erin Routliffe (with partner Aldila Sutjiadi) continued her solid doubles play throughout the year and teamed with Gabriela Dabrowski to win her first grand slam title at the U.S. Open. She’s currently the 15th-ranked doubles player on tour.
∙ Magda Linette, the top seed at the ATX Open, moved up to 25th, the highest ranking of any ATX Open participant.
∙ Anastasia Potapova, one of the seeds at the ATX Open, reached the third round at both the French Open and Wimbledon, topping out at No. 21 in the tour rankings. She’s currently No. 27.
The field for the 2024 ATX Open won’t be announced for some time. A WTA 250 event can include as many as three players ranked in the top 30 leading into the event. Along with Kostyuk, Stearns and Potapova, the 2023 field included 2017 U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens and 2022 Australian Open runner-up Danielle Collins.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: The ATX Open, a WTA tournament, will bring pro tennis back for 2024
