Who Has The Advantage? An Economic Exploration of Winning in Men's Professional Tennis

Tomi Ovaska () and Albert J. Sumell

The American Economist, 2014, vol. 59, issue 1, 34-51

Abstract: This study investigates the factors that determine winning in men's professional tennis. Using 27,388 tennis matches played on the men's singles ATP World Tour between 2000 and 2009, we estimate probit models which explain how several tournament, match, and player characteristics influence the probability of the higher ranked player winning the match. The results are used to confirm or dispel ten performance hypotheses concerning match outcomes. The results of the study provide insights into what matters to winning in head-to-head competitions, and are used to evaluate various economic issues such as how labor compensation, specialization, and experience can influence performance.

Keywords: contest theory; elimination tournaments; player performance; tennis; winning factors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:amerec:v:59:y:2014:i:1:p:34-51

DOI: 10.1177/056943451405900104

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