John McEnroe was a tennis player.
The Association of Tennis Professionals ( ATP ) was formed in September 1972 by Donald Dell , Bob Briner , Jack Kramer , and Cliff Drysdale to protect the interests of male professional tennis players . The International Tennis Federation ( ITF ) is the governing body of world tennis , wheelchair tennis , and beach tennis . It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national associations , and as of 2016 , is affiliated with 211 national tennis associations and six regional associations . The ITF 's governance responsibilities include maintaining and enforcing the rules of tennis , regulating international team competitions , promoting the game , and preserving the sport 's integrity via anti-doping and anti-corruption programs . The ITF partners with the Women 's Tennis Association ( WTA ) and the Association of Tennis Professionals ( ATP ) to govern professional tennis . The ITF organizes annual team competitions for men ( Davis Cup ) , women ( Fed Cup ) , and mixed teams ( Hopman Cup ) , as well as tennis and wheelchair tennis events at the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games on behalf of the International Olympic Committee . The ITF sanctions the Grand Slam tennis tournaments as well as circuits which span age ranges ( junior , professional men and women , and seniors ) as well as disciplines ( wheelchair tennis ; beach tennis ) . In addition to these circuits , the ITF also maintains rankings for juniors , seniors , wheelchair and beach tennis . John McEnroe . In 1981 , 1983 and 1984 he was both the ATP player of the year and the ITF World Champion for Men 's singles .