The Women’s Tennis Association is the professional women’s tennis’ governing body globally. The WTA Tour is the circuit that is made by the organizers in order to allow players to progressively participate in events at various phases of the season to improve their ranking points. One such tier of events is the WTA 250.
In the hierarchy of professional women’s tennis events, the most basic tour-level events fall under the WTA 250 category. Among the tour-level events, they offer the least ranking points but can contribute significantly in determining a player’s year-end rankings.
The WTA 250 events were known as Tier III/IV/V events between 1990 to 2008. The rebranding of the tour in 2009, led to these events falling under the name of WTA International. The current name, WTA 250, was adopted in 2021.
Historically, over 50 WTA 250 events have taken place in different parts of the globe. However, there are a total of 23 tournaments in the 2024 WTA Tour season. Seven of these tournaments are played on clay courts, three on grass courts, and the remaining on hard courts.
Usually, 32 players make up the main draw in singles, whereas 16 doubles players are a part of the main draw in doubles. All tournaments are played in a single knockout round format. A routine WTA 250 round will have a Round of 32, Round of 16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals and the Final. The runner-up gets 163 points whereas the winner gets 250 points. These points significantly contribute to a player’s year-end ranking.
As of 2024, the prize money for WTA 250 events has risen to $267,082. Steffi Graf holds the record for winning the maximum WTA 250 (or equivalent) titles with her tally being 17. The next best is Conchita Martinez, who had won 16 titles.
