SIOUX FALLS/STARNBERG, October 27, 2025
The second edition of the MarketBeat Open in Sioux Falls, South Dakota delivered one of the most thrilling finals of the ATP Challenger Tour season, as No. 5 seed Patrick Kypson from the United States battled back to defeat Great Britain’s Johannus Monday 6-7(2), 7-6(4), 7-5 on Sunday.
The hard-fought championship match lasted two hours and 34 minutes and featured just one service break, coming at the most crucial moment. Monday, who hadn’t double-faulted all match, did so for the first time in the 11th game of the final set, handing Kypson the decisive break. It was also the only break point the 23-year-old left-hander faced all afternoon.
The opening set, which took 44 minutes, saw both players hold serve comfortably without facing a single break point or deuce game. Monday edged ahead 2-0 in the tiebreak and never relinquished control, winning it 7-2.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with neither player giving up ground. Kypson faced two break points in the 11th game but saved both to stay alive. After Monday held, a second tiebreak ensued. This time, Kypson earned an early mini-break at 2-0 and maintained the lead, closing it out 7-4 to level the match.
In the deciding set, Kypson fought off four break points in a tense fourth game – the longest of the match at 18 points. From there, both players held serve until the 11th game, when Monday finally cracked under pressure.
Hat-trick in 2025
Kypson takes the top prize 6-7(2), 7-6(4), 7-5 Monday#ATPChallenger | @usta pic.twitter.com/YfXTQfUK2H
— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) October 26, 2025
“That was the key and whoever was going to break serve was probably going to come out on top and I was fortunate to hold tough when I was facing break points,” said Kypson, who saved all six break points in the match. “I was fortunate enough to snag the only break point I had late in the match.”
A former All-American at Texas A&M, Kypson had fallen to No. 455 in April after being sidelined for three months with a stress fracture in his left foot. Following surgery on January 24, he returned to competition in Savannah on April 21. With his victory in Sioux Falls, his ranking will climb from No. 166 to No. 146. Kypson collected $22,730 in prize money as well as 100 ATP Ranking points.
Since returning, Kypson has claimed Challenger titles on clay, outdoor hard, and indoor hard courts – becoming just the third US-American since 1978 to win titles on all three surfaces in a single season, joining Robby Ginepri (2002) and Michael Russell (2009).
“I think the margins were so thin today and you could only chalk it up to continuing to do what you were doing throughout the match,” Kypson said. “At the end of the day luck plays a little bit of a role and I stuck what I was doing and ultimately I was able to save those break points and come out on top.”
Kypson’s win marked a milestone for American tennis – the 20th ATP Challenger title won by a U.S. player this season, breaking the previous record of 19 set in 2006.
“We have a lot of guys ranked between the Top 100 and 200, young guys, a couple of veterans in there,” said Kypson, who turns 26 on Tuesday. “We have a pretty strong group of guys right now and we are all trying to push each other to get into the Top 100. It’s pretty impressive to win 20 titles in a season.”
Kypson is also now the leader in the Australian Open Wild Card Challenge Standings after week two with three weeks to go.
For Monday, a former University of Tennessee standout (2020–2024), it was a career breakthrough. Competing in his first Challenger final, the Brit entered the week ranked No. 238 and is projected to reach a career-high of No. 212 in the PIF ATP Rankings.
