Eric Butorac ’03 Named Western & Southern Open Tournament Director

Release courtesy of Western & Southern Open

CINCINNATI, Ohio – Former ATP Tour player Eric Butorac, a 2003 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College, has been named Tournament Director of the Western & Southern Open.

Butorac, who won 18 doubles titles during his playing career, will be the 32nd person to hold the position of Tournament Director since the Western & Southern Open started in 1899. He served as the event’s Assistant Tournament Director in 2021 and has been USTA Director, Professional Tennis Operations and Player Relations since 2016.

“We look forward to Eric joining us as Tournament Director,” Western & Southern Open COO Katie Haas said. “Eric has a tremendous passion for tennis and his experience both as a player as well as an administrator in the sport will be assets to our team.”

The Western & Southern Open features an ATP Masters 1000 as well as a WTA 1000 tournament in the same week at the same venue, making it one of five events to host concurrent top tier tour tournaments along with Indian Wells, Calif., Madrid, Miami and Rome.

“The Western & Southern Open is one of the most important events on both Tours and is one of the players’ favorites, thanks in large part to the energy and enthusiasm the fans bring to the tournament,” Butorac said.

Butorac, who will remain in his USTA role, reached 29 total finals in his career, including at the 2014 Australian Open. He had a career high ranking of No. 17 and took part in the Western & Southern Open six times before playing his final tournament at the US Open in 2016.

During his playing days, Butorac was involved in ATP Tour governance while serving on the 10-member Player Council from 2008-16, including as vice president under Roger Federer from 2012-14 then as president from 2014-16.

A native of Rochester, Minn., Butorac was an All-American at Division III Gustavus Adolphus College, winning the NCAA singles and doubles titles as well as the Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship Award.

Since becoming a single-week tournament featuring both tours in 2011, the Western & Southern Open has attracted more than 1.8 million spectators, including ticket buyers who have traveled to Cincinnati from all 50 states and more than 35 countries. International broadcast agreements deliver coverage to more than 120 million viewers in over 160 countries.

In late 2021, it was announced the tournament’s sponsorship with Western & Southern Financial Group, which began in 2002, would be extended, continuing the longest naming rights agreement of a North American tennis tournament for an additional three years.

In 2022, the Western & Southern Open will feature digital back wall signage, which have not previously been used at a combined ATP and WTA event in North America. The 2021 singles championships were won by Ashleigh Barty and Alexander Zverev while the doubles titles were claimed by Sam Stosur & Zhang Shuai and Marcel Granollers & Horacio Zeballos.

The Western & Southern Open is held annually at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio. The 2022 tournament will take place Aug. 13-21.