Guillermo Vilas facts for kids
Guillermo Vilas during the Munich Open in May 1975
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| Country (sports) |  Argentina |
|---|---|
| Residence | Montecarlo |
| Born | 17 August 1952 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Turned pro | 1968 |
| Retired | 1992 |
| Plays | Left-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Prize money | $4,923,882 |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1991 (member page) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 951–297 (76.2%) (76.2%) |
| Career titles | 62 (10th in the Open Era) |
| Highest ranking | No. 2 (30 April 1975) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1978, 1979) |
| French Open | W (1977) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1975, 1976) |
| US Open | W (1977) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | W (1974) |
| WCT Finals | F (1976) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 217–150 (59.1%) |
| Career titles | 16 |
| Highest ranking | No. 13 (21 May 1979) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 2R (1977Jan) |
| French Open | SF (1975) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1976) |
| US Open | QF (1975) |
Guillermo Vilas (born August 17, 1952) is a famous former professional tennis player from Argentina. He was considered the world's top player in the Grand Prix seasons of 1974, 1975, and 1977. During his career, he won 62 singles titles and 16 doubles titles. This includes four major Grand Slam titles and the 1974 Tour Finals.
Many tennis experts and publications, like World Tennis, ranked him as the world No. 1 in 1977. However, in the official ATP rankings, he reached No. 2 in April 1975 and stayed there for 83 weeks. Some people believe he should have been ranked No. 1 for at least 10 weeks, especially in 1977 when he won two major tournaments. He was added to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991.
Vilas was especially good on clay courts. He won over 650 matches on clay, which is a record. His best year was 1977, when he won 16 singles titles. This included two major tournaments, both on clay. He also had a 53-match winning streak on clay, which was the longest in the Open Era at that time. In 2016, The Daily Telegraph newspaper said he was the third best male clay-court player ever, after Rafael Nadal and Björn Borg. In 2018, Tennis Magazine ranked him as the 16th greatest tennis player of the Open Era.
In 2015, a journalist and a mathematician presented a study. They said Vilas should have been ranked No. 1 in the old ATP ranking system for seven weeks between 1975 and 1976. The ATP did not officially recognize him as No. 1, even though they didn't say the study was wrong. In October 2020, a documentary film called Guillermo Vilas: Settling the Score was released on Netflix about this issue. In May 2024, the ATP confirmed that Vilas will not be officially recognized as number one.
Guillermo Vilas's Tennis Journey
Guillermo Vilas grew up in Mar del Plata, a city by the sea. He was a left-handed player and started his professional tennis career in 1968. He was one of the top ten players in the world every year from 1974 to 1982.
He was known as a "clay-court specialist," meaning he was especially good on courts made of clay. But he also played very well on hard courts, grass courts, and carpet courts.
Grand Slam Victories
Vilas won four major Grand Slam titles:
- The 1977 French Open
- The 1977 US Open (both played on clay)
- The 1978 Australian Open
- The 1979 Australian Open (both played on grass)
He also reached the finals of the French Open three times (1975, 1978, and 1982) and the Australian Open once (January 1977).
In 1974, he won the year-end Masters Grand Prix title. This was a big tournament for the best players of the year. He also won seven Grand Prix Super Series titles between 1975 and 1980. These were important tournaments, similar to today's Masters 1000 events.
His Amazing Year: 1977
Vilas was a baseliner, which means he usually stayed near the back of the court during matches. His best year was 1977. He won 16 singles titles, including two Grand Slams. He won 16 out of the 31 tournaments he played that year. His record for 1977 was 130 wins and only 15 losses, which is an incredible 89.65% win rate!
He won 72 of his last 73 matches in 1977. A highlight was winning the US Open at Forest Hills. He beat Jimmy Connors in a match where Vilas surprised everyone by playing very aggressively.
Long Winning Streaks
In 1977, after Wimbledon, Vilas won seven tournaments in a row. This gave him a 46-match winning streak across all court types. He also had a record 53-match winning streak on clay courts. This record stood until Rafael Nadal broke it in 2006.
Both of Vilas's winning streaks ended in October 1977 when he played against Ilie Năstase. Vilas stopped playing in the middle of the match because Năstase was using a special "spaghetti racquet." This type of racquet was later banned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) because it gave players too much spin on the ball. After that, Vilas won another 28 matches in a row before losing in the Masters semi-finals to Björn Borg.
The World No. 1 Debate
Even though Guillermo Vilas won 21 singles titles in 1977, including the French Open and the US Open, the ATP never officially ranked him as world No. 1 that year. This was because the ranking system at the time was based on the average of a player's results. He was ranked No. 2, behind Jimmy Connors, who won 8 titles but no Grand Slams that year.
However, many tennis experts and publications, like World Tennis and France Presse, believed Vilas was the true No. 1 for 1977. The International Tennis Hall of Fame also states that "it was generally considered Vilas was the real No. 1 for 1977."
In 2014, an Argentine journalist and a Romanian mathematician studied the old ranking records. They found that Vilas should have been ranked No. 1 for five weeks in 1975 and two weeks in 1976. They gave their research to the ATP. In 2015, the ATP decided not to change the official rankings. In October 2020, Netflix released a documentary about this called Guillermo Vilas: Settling the Score. In May 2024, the ATP confirmed that Vilas will not be officially recognized as number one.
Retirement from Tennis
Vilas stopped playing on the main ATP Tour in 1989. However, he continued to play in smaller tournaments called the ATP Challenger Series until 1992. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991. In 2009, Vilas was in the stands at the US Open to cheer for his fellow Argentine player, Juan Martín del Potro, who won the final.
Guillermo Vilas's Life Today
In 2005, Guillermo Vilas married Phiangphathu Khumueang from Thailand. They have three daughters and one son. They live in Monaco.
Special Achievements
- He won the Grand Prix circuit in 1974, 1975, and 1977.
- Many unofficial sources, like World Tennis Magazine, ranked him as the No. 1 Tennis Player of the Year in 1977.
- He held the Open Era record for the longest winning streak on clay courts with 53 matches in 1977. This record was later broken by Rafael Nadal in 2006.
- He won 62 ATP singles titles and was a runner-up in 40 singles tournaments. He also won 16 doubles titles.
- He helped Argentina reach its first-ever Davis Cup final in 1981.
- Vilas's success made tennis much more popular in Argentina and across Latin America. Some famous Argentine tennis players, like Guillermo Cañas and Guillermo Coria, were named after him.
- In 2005, TENNIS Magazine placed Vilas 24th on its list of the 40 Greatest Players of the Tennis Open Era.
Grand Slam Finals
Singles: 8 (4 Wins, 4 Runner-ups)
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1975 | French Open | Clay |  Björn Borg |
2–6, 3–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 1977 | Australian Open (Jan.) | Grass |  Roscoe Tanner |
3–6, 3–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 1977 | French Open | Clay | Brian Gottfried |
6–0, 6–3, 6–0 |
| Win | 1977 | US Open | Clay | Jimmy Connors |
2–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–4), 6–0 |
| Loss | 1978 | French Open (2) | Clay | Björn Borg |
1–6, 1–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 1978 | Australian Open | Grass |  John Marks |
6–4, 6–4, 3–6, 6–3 |
| Win | 1979 | Australian Open (2) | Grass | John Sadri |
7–6(7–4), 6–3, 6–2 |
| Loss | 1982 | French Open (3) | Clay | Mats Wilander |
6–1, 6–7(6–8), 0–6, 4–6 |
See also
In Spanish: Guillermo Vilas para niños
