The inaugural Washington Open event took place in 1969.
Brazilian Thomaz Koch won the first edition of the men’s singles tournament, beating home favourite Arthur Ashe 7–5, 9–7, 4–6, 2–6, 6–4 in the final.
It was Koch’s second career title – following on from his triumph in Caracas, Venezuela earlier in 1969.
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A year after Koch’s triumph, Arthur Ashe again had the opportunity to write his name into the Washington Open history books.
Again Ashe was denied – this time by a fellow American.
Cliff Richey became the first American to win the Washington Open in 1970
Richey, born in San Angelo, Texas, began his 1970 Washington Open campaign by beating compatriot Robert McKinley 6-1, 6-3.
The American’s fine form continued thereafter, as he secured straight sets victories against Barry Mackay, Mike Estep and Georges Goven.
Richey then stunned top seed Ilie Nastase in the semi-finals, winning 6-3, 6-2 in the American capital.
Richey completed his spellbinding run with a 7–5, 6–1, 6–2 victory over Arthur Ashe in the final.
- R1 – defeated Robert McKinley 6-1, 6-3
- R2 – defeated Barry Mackay 6-2, 6-2
- R3 – defeated Mike Estep 6-0, 6-3
- QF – defeated Georges Goven 6-4, 6-3
- SF – defeated Ilie Nastase 6-3, 6-2
- F – defeated Arthur Ashe 7–5, 6–1, 6–2
A total of 10 other American men have triumphed in Washington since Richey’s triumph, including Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick.
Sebastian Korda was the last American man to win the title, beating Flavio Cobolli 4–6, 6–2, 6–0 in the 2024 final.
American women who have won the Washington Open
The Washington Open women’s singles event was first introduced in 2011.
Since then, three Americans have triumphed in the event.
Sloane Stephens was the first to do so, beating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6–1, 6–2 in the 2015 final.
Stephens, who went on to win the 2017 US Open, is still competing on the Tour. She recently won her first match for two months, beating Boyoung Jeong in Evansville.
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Jessica Pegula became the second American to win the Washington Open Women’s Singles title when she beat Camila Giorgi in the 2019 final.
Pegula successfully defended her title two years later [COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the cancellation of the 2020 event], beating Coco Gauff in the final.
Gauff added her name to the American list in 2024 after triumphing 6–2, 6–3 over Maria Sakkari.
