Obituary: Brian Tobin

The ITF is deeply saddened to learn of the death of former ITF President Brian Tobin, who died on 22 April at the age of 93. 

Tobin served two terms as ITF President from 1991 to 1999. A former player, he made a lasting impact on tennis in several leadership roles, particularly at the helm of the ITF and before that as president of Tennis Australia. Tobin moved the game into new territory, and was a crucial figure in the evolution of ‘open’ tennis as well as playing a key role in the revitalisation of the Australian Open. 

Born in Perth on 5 December 1930 before moving to Melbourne in his late teens, Tobin was a top 10 player in his native Australia from 1956 to 1962 before spending more than 20 years working in banking and finance.  

Tobin was a member of the Lawn Tennis Association of Australia (now Tennis Australia) from 1964, serving as honorary president from 1977 then swapping his finance career for the position of its first full-time president. He remained in the role until 1989, overseeing the move of the Australian Open from the grass courts of Kooyong to its current home at Melbourne Park, and the construction of Rod Laver Arena with its revolutionary retractable roof. 

The Australian became the first full-time president of the ITF when he was elected in 1991, having become the first Executive Vice-President of the ITF in 1989. Tobin guided the ITF into the new era that followed the establishment of the ATP and WTA tours and the reintroduction of tennis into the Olympics in 1988. He greatly enhanced and developed the ITF’s core activities and major events including Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup (then Fed Cup), and his business acumen and progressive thinking ensured that the ITF was well prepared to carry out its mission to grow the sport of tennis. 

The Australian was chair of the ITF Davis Cup Committee from 1989 to 1999 and chaired the ITF Olympic Committee from 1989 to 2001. He was named an Honorary Life President in 1999.  

In more than 40 years dedicated to tennis, Tobin held numerous other roles in the sport. He was team captain and manager of the Australian Billie Jean King Cup team in 1964 and 1967, and World Tournament Representative on the Men’s Professional Tennis Council from 1982 to 1987. He was a Women’s International Pro Tour World Tournament Representative from 1983 to 1985, and was the ITF’s representative on the same body from 1986 to 1989. 

In 1986 Tobin was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), and in 1999 received the Olympic Order from the IOC. He was given the International Tennis Hall of Fame Golden Achievement Award in 1999, and in 2003 was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. 

ITF President David Haggerty said: “Brian Tobin was a great president of the ITF and leaves an important legacy. He became the first Executive President in 1991 and oversaw tennis’s emergence as a truly global sport, played and enjoyed by millions around the world. His leadership of the ITF and vision at a pivotal time for tennis established firm foundations for the ITF to grow and adapt to the changes of the subsequent three decades, and ensured the future of the sport we all love.”  

“Our condolences to his wife Carmen, sons Geoff and Alan, and his family and friends around the world.”