Nottingham's ATP event to return to Eastbourne in grass court season reshuffle

Eastbourne's Devonshire Park has held top-class women's tennis since 1974 and staged an ATP event between 2009 and 2014

Men's tennis will return to Eastbourne in 2017 as part of a reshuffle of the pre-Wimbledon grass court season.

The ATP 250 event which is currently staged in Nottingham will move to Eastbourne and be held alongside the long-running WTA tournament in Sussex.

A joint men's and women's event was staged at Eastbourne's Devonshire Park between 2009 and 2014.

Nottingham will now hold a WTA event - the Aegon Open - alongside a $100,000 (£70,000) ATP Challenger Tour event.

Meanwhile, the Lawn Tennis Association has doubled the prize fund for Aegon Trophy Series events - joint ATP Challenger and ITF Pro Circuit events at Ilkley, Surbiton, and Manchester - to more than $600,000 (£425,000) in 2017.

"This is all about delivering a bigger and better set of grass court tournaments for the players and our fans," said LTA chief executive Michael Downey.

"It represents another major step in the evolution of the British grass court circuit."

The grass court season has been changed after a three-week gap between the end of the French Open and the start of Wimbledon was created in the calendar last year.

The move allowed the Aegon Championship at Queen's Club to be upgraded to an ATP 500 status, while Nottingham held a WTA event for the first time.

British grass court season 2017:

5-11 June

• Aegon Surbiton Trophy at Surbiton Racket & Fitness Club (combined ITF Women's Pro Circuit & ATP Challenger events)

12-18 June

• Combined WTA International Aegon Open Nottingham & Aegon Nottingham Trophy (ATP Challenger) events at Nottingham Tennis Centre

• Aegon Manchester Trophy at Northern Lawn Tennis Club, Manchester (ITF Women's Pro Circuit)

19-25 June

• Aegon Championships at The Queen's Club, London (ATP World Tour 500 event)

• Aegon Classic at Edgbaston Priory Club, Birmingham (WTA Premier)

• Aegon Ilkley Trophy at Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club (combined ITF Women's Pro Circuit & ATP Challenger events)

26 June - 1 July

• Aegon International (combined WTA Premier & ATP World Tour 250 event) at Devonshire Park, Eastbourne

• Wimbledon Qualifying, Roehampton, London

3-16 July

• The Championships, Wimbledon

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