(Provided by Tennis World USA)
Since the start of the Open era in 1968, only eight players have reached 100 ATP finals. Jimmy Connors stands at the top, and Roger Federer follows him with 157. The American and the Swiss are the only players with 150 ATP finals on their tallies, with Connors reaching that number in 1985 and Federer joining him in Cincinnati five years ago.
Ivan Lendl barely missed a chance to join his great rival on the exclusive list after staying on 146 title matches. Federer emerged on the scene in 2000, staying competitive for two decades and achieving the milestone in the summer of 2018.
The American was younger than the Swiss after reaching his 150th ATP final, but Roger would have had a chance to pass him if he did not experience a nasty knee injury that ruined his career. To wrap up so many ATP finals in under two decades, one has to compete with determination and desire for many consecutive years against various generations of players and different surfaces.
Roger Federer played his 150th ATP final in Cincinnati 2018.
Connors, Federer and Lendl did that better than other legends, but Novak Djokovic will have a chance to catch at least the Czech in the next couple of years. In the seven seasons span between 1973 and 1979, Connors played in no less than 100 ATP finals.
The American added 11 more in 1982 while turning 30, and 27 since 1983 until the end of his career to finish above 160. Jimmy played in no less than two ATP finals for 19 straight years. Federer’s first ATP final came in Marseille in 2000 at 18, and he stood on 19 ahead of 2004.
Roger embraced an epic journey that year, reaching 91 finals within nine seasons! He slowed down a bit in 2013 and played in only three before making a strong push in 2014 and 2015 with 22. Roger played only seven tournaments in the first half of 2016 and missed the second part of the year due to a knee injury.
The Swiss Maestro bounced back in 2017, reaching 14 finals by Cincinnati the next year, including nine at Majors and Masters 1000 events. Federer played in Ohio for the first time since 2015 and advanced into the title clash against Novak Djokovic.
The Serb proved too strong, beating the Swiss in straight sets and achieving the Career Golden Masters. However, Federer celebrated his 150th ATP final, joining Jimmy Connors on the exclusive list that still awaits the third participant.
