Peru's Ignacio Buse became the youngest champion in Winston-Salem Open history on Saturday, defeating Britain's Arthur Fery 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the ATP 250 hard-court tournament in North Carolina. The 22-year-old third seed controlled the match with his forehand and completed a breakthrough week shortly before the start of the US Open in New York.
Buse, aged 22 years and five months, displaced Hubert Hurkacz as the event's youngest winner. The ATP said Hurkacz was one month older when the Polish player lifted the trophy in 2019. The victory gave Buse his second tour-level title of the 2026 season after his first at the ATP 500 tournament in Hamburg in May.
The Peruvian established control by taking the opening set in 30 minutes. He then increased the pressure on Fery's serve, earning three breaks in the second set and converting four of seven break-point opportunities across the contest, according to match data reported by Field Level Media. The official tournament result recorded a straight-sets victory that lasted a little more than 70 minutes.
Fery, the fourth seed, entered his first ATP Tour final after advancing through the draw without losing a completed set. The 24-year-old Briton struggled to match Buse's pace in longer exchanges, while Buse repeatedly used his forehand to turn neutral rallies into attacking positions and prevented his opponent from establishing a sustained rhythm.
The title carries wider significance for Peruvian tennis. ATP reporting identified Buse as the first Peruvian man to win a tour-level hard-court title since Jaime Yzaga in 1993 and the second from his country to achieve that feat in the Open Era. His two career trophies also draw him level with Luis Horna, while Yzaga remains Peru's leading men's champion with eight tour titles.
Buse now moves directly from a record-setting week in Winston-Salem toward the US Open, where the physical demands of a Grand Slam will provide the next test of his progress. Fery leaves North Carolina with his first tour final and a major career milestone, while Buse arrives in New York with a second title, improved confidence and evidence that his 2026 rise extends across clay and hard courts.
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