With the certainty that Saudi Arabia will have a Masters 1000 in February starting in 2028, the tournaments on South America’s clay-court swing are trying to find a solution to the Saudi arrival and prevent their events from disappearing.
The “Golden Swing,” as the ATP tour held in Latin America at the beginning of the year has been known for decades, sees its place in a calendar that is increasingly cramped now at risk, at a time when players are also seeking longer rest periods. Below are the factors putting the survival of South American tennis tournaments in a bind:
Calendar problem
The South American swing, with events in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, found its window after the Australian Open during the four weeks of February, before the year’s first Masters 1000 tournaments on hard courts in Indian Wells and Miami. That outlook changed in October 2025, when the ATP announced the launch, starting in 2028, of a new Masters 1000 based in Saudi Arabia, making it the tenth tournament in that series.
The ATP billed it as “a new era for world tennis and a major sporting transformation in Saudi Arabia.” What the ATP did not clarify then was how it would fit this new event into an already jammed calendar, though everything suggests February will be the chosen month, directly affecting the South American swing.
A surface change?
For a long time, South America was used to opening the clay-court season, which made it easier for several clay specialists to show up, such as Gustavo Kuerten, Rafael Nadal, David Ferrer, or the numerous Argentine contingent. However, that has changed over the years, and there are now fewer and fewer players who truly specialize on the orange dirt.
In this context, the possibility of changing the surface of the Latin American swing has been considered for some time, something Acapulco did years ago to “move closer” to Indian Wells and Miami. “You have to evaluate whether we’re looking for a draw with better players, even if that means sacrificing a tradition,” admitted last year Catalina Fillol, director of the Chile Open.
More money and points to compete
To keep the biggest stars from shifting entirely to Saudi Arabia, the South American swing needs more significant tournaments, which means awarding more ranking points and offering more prize money. To do that, events would need to move up in category.
This is what Buenos Aires is asking for. For years, it has pushed to rise from ATP 250 to ATP 500, to match Rio de Janeiro, which follows it on the calendar. Chile closes the tour with another 250-level event. Back in 2025, the swing already “lost” the Córdoba ATP 250 in Argentina, absorbed in a round of changes aimed at reducing the calendar.
“If they really want to strengthen this swing, you have to put two ATP 500s in a row. That’s what we’re asking for,” said Kristoff Puelinckx, founder of Tennium, the company that owns the Buenos Aires tournament, to La Nación.
“We know the Saudi tournament won’t be mandatory, but players will want to play there because it will pay a lot of money. But if (in South America) you manage to put two ATP 500s together, that’s a thousand points. It’s a different offer,” said Puelinckx, who also organizes events in Barcelona, Hamburg, and Brussels.
The players’ view
In recent days, several players have defended the South American swing, including Argentina’s Francisco Cerúndolo, who on Sunday was crowned champion of the Buenos Aires Open. “For a 250, this is luxury. Come on, Andrea,” said the region’s top-ranked player (No. 19 in the world) at the trophy ceremony, addressing ATP president Andrea Gaudenzi, who was watching from a box.
Gaudenzi, recently re-elected to lead the ATP through 2028, will also travel to Rio to speak with the owners of the Brazilian event, which begins this Monday, in search of dialogue and possible proposals. In that vein, a possible ATP invitation to move the swing to the final stretch of the season, after the US Open, is not ruled out.
“South America deserves an important swing because people love tennis. Hopefully the tour stays alive here in the coming years. Even first-round matches were packed, and that’s not easy to find,” said Italy’s Matteo Berrettini, the 2021 Wimbledon finalist, who played in Argentina’s capital for the first time.
