Event Descriptions

Amigos Cup

In 1981, tennis players from the United States and Mexico met in Mexico City for the first Amigos Cup Tournament, an event organized by former USTA President Robert Kelleher and Larry Krieger on the United States side and Marco Mestre and Manuel Rincon Gallardo on the Mexico side. Over the next twenty-years, many friendships have been formed as this event traveled between Mexico and the U.S. The host cities in the United States have included: Dallas, Huntington Beach, La Jolla, Naples, Palm Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, New Orleans and Washington D.C., and now in 2014, Pacific Palisades, CA.

Avory Cup
Ted Avory

The Ted Avory Cup is a biennial event which alternates between Great Britain and the United States featuring both men and women in highly competitive matchplay.

Edward Raymond (Ted) Avory was an accomplished British tennis player. Born in 1909, Avory attended Cambridge University, where he played on the tennis team and won the university title.  After graduation, he continued to compete in tennis events at home and abroad while working for his grandfather’s firm on the stock exchange.  Avory first competed at Wimbledon in 1927.  He would play The Championships 13 times, on five occasions advancing as far as the third round of the singles event.  He played the Queens tournament three times and was the runner up in 1931.  He also played the US Championships five times (reaching the fourth round in 1932) and the French Championships twice.

Avory began playing International Club matches in 1936 and was the Chairman of the IC of Great Britain from 1972 to 1982 and also the Chairman of the IC Council for many years.

Given the close relationship between the ICGB and the USIC, the British wanted to formalize the matches between the two International Clubs and the inaugural Ted Avory Cup match was played at the All England Club in 1997.

Baker Bowl
Lawrence A. Baker (1890-1980)

The Baker Bowl is an annual event in honor of Lawrence Baker. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1975. Very few individuals were as steadfastly loyal to the United States Lawn Tennis Association as Baker. Not only was he President of the association, but he also served as General Counsel from 1952 until 1970. Moreover, he was captain of the United States Davis Cup team that defeated Canada in 1953. Founder of the National Tennis Foundation, he was the winner of the National Senior Grass Court Doubles Championship in 1937. Baker was prominent USLTA official for nearly four decades.

This event it a part of the ‘Canadian Matches’ which occur generally on the first weekend of June each year. Players include men 45 and older.

Broward Craig Trophy
D. Broward Craig

The Broward Craig Trophy is a bi-annual event between the USIC and the IC of Belgium in honor of D. Broward Craig. Broward first joined the IC in 1950, having participated in the Prentice Cup as a member of the Harvard-Yale Team. Thereafter, as a result of his leadership, judgment, and interpersonal skills, he advanced the objectives of the Club both at home and abroad. He improved communications with the members and increased dramatically the number of opportunities for women and men to participate in international competitions. He represented the USIC at the Council of International Clubs with integrity and diplomacy, contributing greatly to the overall benefit of the International IC movement.

Columbus Trophy

The Columbus Trophy, presented by the IC of Mexico in 1992, is an official Men’s team competition of the Council of International Lawn Tennis Clubs (“the Council”).

It is a knock-out competition for four playing members, two of whom must have reached the age of 55 during the calendar year of the competition, and two of whom must have reached the age of 65 during the calendar year in which the competition is held. Teams may have a playing or non-playing captain, or one of the players may act as a captain.

CQS 4 Nation Trophy in Prague

This is a friendly tennis event for four IC teams, including the IC team of the Czech Republic. Each IC team should have a minimum of six playing members, men or women. Please be advised that only doubles or mixed doubles will be played. There are no tennis level limits and this event is open to all ages. The captains of the teams will arrange their doubles teams according to respective player levels. Everyone can expect a competitive game at his or her tennis level.

Gene Scott Trophy
Eugene ‘Gene’ Scott

The Gene Scott Trophy honors the relationship Gene forged with the USIC and the Bahamas, as Gene helped form the Bahamas IC back in the mid-1980’s, when Gene was also hosting the prestigious Marlboro Cup event at the Ocean Club.

Gene Scott was a tennis icon; he touched the game in every possible way – as a Davis Cup player and a Senior World Champion, as an advocate who tirelessly challenged the game’s status quo, and as founder and publisher of Tennis Week magazine, where he never stopped working at promoting the enjoyment of the game for all. Gene’s highest US ranking as an amateur was No. 4 in 1963, and he reached as high as No. 11 in the World rankings in 1965. He was a member of the USTA board of directors from 1995-1996, president of the US International Lawn Tennis Club from 1976 to 1998, and he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame posthumously in 2008.

Gengler Cup
Jeanne Logan Gengler (1919-2000)

The Gengler Cup is an annual event in honor of Jeanne Gengler. She was a lifelong member of the Piping Rock Club, admired and respected by the tennis community as a passionate participant and contributor to the game of tennis. Jeanne’s own return to the tournament began at the age of 69 when she joined the national women’s senior tour. She achieved a top ten ranking in singles in the 80 and over age group. As one of the USTA’s national Family of the Year recipients, it was Jeanne who encouraged her five daughters to pursue tennis and was the force behind their success as juniors and their continued contributions as adults. Jeanne loved the game, the competition and friendships made.

This event it a part of the ‘Canadian Matches’ which occur generally on the first weekend of June each year. Players include women of all ages.

Juego de Pelota

The Juego de Pelota Trophy, is an official Men’s team competition of the Council of International Lawn Tennis Clubs (“the Council”).

It is a knock-out competition for four playing members, two of whom must have reached the age of 70 during the calendar year of the competition, and two of whom must have reached the age of 75 during the calendar year in which the competition is held. Teams may have a playing or non-playing captain, or one of the players may act as a captain.

La Carreta Trophy

La Carreta Trophy, presented by the IC of Uruguay in 2003, is an official Ladies team competition of the Council of International Lawn Tennis Clubs (“the Council”).

It is a knock-out competition for two lady playing members, one of whom should have reached the age of 50 and one the age of 60 years during the calendar year the competition is held.

Teams may have a non-playing captain, or one of the players may act as a captain.

Mercellis, Windmill

An IC Week shall be played no more than once a year under the auspices of a host International Club (“the Host IC”) agreed by the Council of International Lawn Tennis Clubs (“the Council”) during such a period and at such a place as shall be agreed by the Council. Having regard to the substantial expenses of running an IC Week, the Council will not encourage IC Weeks to take place in consecutive years except in exceptional circumstances.

Potter Cup

The Potter Cup is one of the preeminent team competition in senior tennis. It draws many former pros and top veterans from around the world. It is played in Barcelona, Spain on the beautiful red clay courts of the Polo Club. The format is Davis Cup style format with each match consisting of 5 Singles and 2 Doubles. Selection for this event is by invitation only.

Presidents’ Cup
Robert ‘Bobby’ Abdesselam and Eugene ‘Gene’ Scott

The Presidents’ Cup is a bi-ennial tennis match between the United States and France for men and women who have played for their country in the past or who have won national titles.

The Presidents’ Cup is named for Robert ‘Bobby’ Abdesselam and Eugene ‘Gene’ Scott, who were long-time presidents of the French IC and USIC, respectively. They both passed away in 2006, (the first year of competition).

Bobby Abdesselam was well respected as one of the leaders and visionaries for the IC of France who had a long and distinguished international playing career, including fourteen French Davis Cup appearances. He later became a distinguished attorney in France, and from 1946 to 1963 he was counsel to the Court of Appeals of Algiers. He was a noted supporter for French Algiers and in 1960 his car was riddled with bullets in Paris by FLN activists. In his biography of Robert Abdesselam, Michel Dreyfus describes his life as ‘more exciting than a novel’. From 1968 to 1974, he was vice-president of the French Tennis Federation, and he was president of the French International Lawn Tennis Club from 1993 to 2004.

Gene Scott was a tennis icon; he touched the game in every possible way – as a Davis Cup player and a Senior World Champion, as an advocate who tirelessly challenged the game’s status quo, and as founder and publisher of Tennis Week magazine, where he never stopped working at promoting the enjoyment of the game for all. Gene’s highest US ranking as an amateur was No. 4 in 1963, and he reached as high as No. 11 in the World rankings in 1965. He was a member of the USTA board of directors from 1995-1996, president of the US International Lawn Tennis Club from 1976 to 1998, and he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame posthumously in 2008.

Sorlien Cup
Richard ‘Dick’ Sorlien (1923-2008)

The Sorlien Cup is an annual event in honor of Richard ‘Dick’ Sorlien. The event is an open-age men’s competition between the International Lawn Tennis Clubs of Canada and the United States.

Dick served on the board of the International Lawn Tennis Club of the United States. He was a three-time finalist in the Wimbledon Veterans’ Doubles in the 45-and-older category. He won 10 U.S. titles in senior divisions, and in 1982 he won the 60s Singles International Tennis Federation World Championship in Australia. He continued to compete in senior events until he was 82.

This event it a part of the ‘Canadian Matches’ which occur generally on the first weekend of June each year. It includes men under 45.

The Rod Laver IC 16 and under Jr. Challenge

It was in Paris, in 2003, at an Executive Committee meeting of the Council of International Tennis Clubs that Julian Tatum came up with the idea for this wonderful competition.  16 & Under Juniors seemed to have been forgotten as far an international competition was concerned and he wanted to correct this.​

​The IC Junior Challenge is unique in that it has boys and girls competing on the same team, which provides an opportunity for mixed doubles to play a part in the competition.  The essence of the IC is that off-court activities and friendships formed are as important as the competitive tennis.  At IC events, all teams stay in the same place and eat meals together with great opportunities for social interaction.  As a result, many juniors make life-long friends at these events.​

The event is a competition open to all ICs around the world (over 40 countries). A regional competition is played on each of the five continents and the winners of the regional events go through to play the Worldwide Finals the following year, together with a team fielded by the host country. IC countries take turns hosting the Regional Challenges, which are paid for by the host countries, by local sponsorship, and a generous grant from the IC Council.​

For the IC, this isn’t just about making better players, it is also about teaching youngsters that they have an obligation to ‘put something back into the game’.  The IC has strong philanthropic goals, reaching thousands of disadvantaged kids around the world annually.  These events provide a great opportunity to help disadvantaged kids in the area of the challenge, so the competitors are required to take part in junior clinics and experience some of the local culture.  It all adds up to life-changing opportunities that can lead to developing champions in life, as well as on the court.​