2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 16
as the peloton negotiated the windy conditions of the stage. Behind, Orica–GreenEDGE's Simon Clarke kept a hold of his mountains classification lead, by accelerating out of the peloton to take the points on offer for third at the summit of the climb. The lead pairing reached the bottom of the final climb with a lead approaching eight minutes, with the peloton being led by Euskaltel–Euskadi, who were looking to protect Igor Antón on the climb.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 16
Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank injected some pace into the group, and managed to split the group apart with ease before Nairo Quintana took to the front for the Movistar Team. Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank) took up the pace from his team-mates and formed a group with Quintana, his team-mate Alejandro Valverde and the race leader Joaquim Rodríguez of Team Katusha. Contador and Rodríguez rode tactically up the climb, and eventually managed to rid themselves of both Valverde and Quintana.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 16
However, their battles were only good enough for the places from third to sixth, as Cataldo and De Gendt stayed away from the field by over two-and-a-half minutes. Cataldo won the stage, as De Gendt ultimately cracked on the final climb, and gapped him by seven seconds to take his first Grand Tour stage win. Rodríguez extended his overall lead to 28 seconds over Contador, after gaining the third-place time bonus at the finish.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 17
The first stage after the second and final rest day, the seventeenth stage was the second last to have an uphill finish of some form; on this occasion, it was a 17.3 km (10.7 mi) long, second-category climb to Fuente Dé, but was not excessively steep at an average gradient of 3.9%. Prior to that, there were two other categorised climbs during the stage – both in the second half of the stage – with the third-category Collado de Ozalba and the second-category Collado La Hoz also on the itinerary for the stage, 187.3 km (116.4 mi) in length. The stage was ideally suited for rouleurs and not the overall contenders, who would be looking at the penultimate-day stage to the summit finish at Bola del Mundo, as their only remaining attempt to gain time before the finish the next day, in Madrid.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 17
Mini-attacks set the course of the early running of the stage, with the field remaining as a whole for most of the first two hours of racing after several attacks were closed down within minutes. At one point, the overall leaders were in two separate groups with Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank) and Movistar Team's Alejandro Valverde both in the group ahead of Joaquim Rodríguez before Rodríguez's Team Katusha squad closed the gap. Eleven riders representing eleven different teams eventually formed the day's breakaway after 80 km (49.7 mi), with team-mates of both Contador and Valverde in the group.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 17
Their lead never hit much more than three minutes, before splitting on the Collado de Ozalba, and FDJ–BigMat rider Arnold Jeannesson moved up from the peloton to join the leaders. A chase group formed on the descent from the climb, with three of Contador's team-mates among them. With the gap at 1' 14" to the leaders at the foot of the Collado La Hoz, Contador attacked out of the peloton.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 17
Rodríguez and Valverde tried to chase him, but Contador made it up to the lead group before the top of the climb. His team-mates helped push the gap up on the roads, while Rodríguez was struggling to react to the pace and only had Alberto Losada for support in the chasing group. Contador attacked again just before the intermediate sprint point at Potes, and only his former team-mate Paolo Tiralongo (Astana) was able to follow him.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 17
They held a two-minute gap over their closest rivals; Rodríguez was dropped on the lower slopes of the climb, as he was unable to follow Valverde, while Contador had gone solo off the front with around 13.5 km (8.4 mi) remaining. With help from team-mates Nairo Quintana and Beñat Intxausti, Valverde cut the advantage to Contador on the climb, but could not catch him. Contador eventually took his first victory since returning from suspension, six seconds ahead of a group containing Valverde, Sergio Henao of Team Sky and Euskaltel–Euskadi's Gorka Verdugo. Rodríguez came across the line tenth, 2' 38" in arrears, dropping to third overall behind new leader Contador and Valverde, who moved up to second.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 18
The longest stage of the 2012 Vuelta a España, at 204.5 km (127.1 mi), was a relatively flat affair with no categorised climbs during the stage, meaning that Orica–GreenEDGE's Simon Clarke would keep a hold of the blue polka-dot jersey as the mountains classification leader. A finishing circuit of about 38 km (23.6 mi) in length around Valladolid was also utilised, with two intermediate sprint points – in Valladolid itself, just before the first passage through the finish line, and 6.5 km (4.0 mi) before the finish in Zaratán – before an expected sprint finish. Valladolid was hosting the Vuelta for the first time since the 2008 edition of the race, when Quick-Step rider Wouter Weylandt won the seventeenth stage in a sprint finish.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 18
Unlike recent days, the breakaway was formed immediately after the start of the stage. Cofidis rider Luis Ángel Maté, Team Katusha's Gatis Smukulis and Martijn Keizer of Vacansoleil–DCM attacked in the opening metres, and were later joined by Brent Bookwalter (BMC Racing Team) and Andalucía's Gustavo César; none of the five riders were any threat in the general classification, as Maté was the best-placed of the quintet in 50th place overnight.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 18
They managed to achieve an advantage of over five minutes at one point during the stage, but they were all brought back inside of 20 km (12.4 mi) remaining in the stage. The field remained together until the finish, where Team Sky and Liquigas–Cannondale were holding station on the front. British national champion Ian Stannard tried to lead it out for team-mate Ben Swift, but Daniele Bennati (RadioShack–Nissan) made up ground on Swift, and ultimately edged him out at the finish line by inches for his sixth Vuelta stage victory. Bennati later dedicated his first victory in almost a year to former team-mate Weylandt, who was killed during the 2011 Giro d'Italia.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 19
Much like the previous day's stage, there were no categorised climbs during the day and although more undulating than the eighteenth stage, it was still expected to potentially bring about a sprint finish at the end; however, an uphill finish in La Lastrilla made it equally capable of producing a result that would favour some of the puncheurs in the race, like Philippe Gilbert (BMC Racing Team) or Team Katusha's former race leader Joaquim Rodríguez, or even a breakaway to succeed on a rare occasion.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 19
Almost from the start, two of the wildcard teams had riders go out of the peloton and attack off the front, as Andalucía's José Vicente Toribio and Caja Rural rider Aitor Galdós initiated the breakaway, quickly mustering a healthy advantage. The duo's advantage went up at a rapid pace, reaching its maximum of over ten minutes less than a quarter into the stage. Several teams took up station on the front of the main field; some to bring back the gap for the sprinters, while others to set one up for their puncheurs.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 19
Rain started to fall at the halfway point of the stage, but the gap between the leaders and the pack continued to gradually fall until they were eventually caught with 28 km (17.4 mi) remaining. An accelerated pace by the Movistar Team helped to split the peloton in Navas de Riofrío, with Valverde and Rodríguez both eventually taking bonus seconds at the intermediate sprint point in Hontoria. Several late-race attacks came and went, before Gilbert's stage-winning attack out of the peloton in the closing kilometre.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 19
He held on to his second victory of the race ahead of Valverde, Daniel Moreno (Team Katusha) and Rodríguez. The rest of the field were led in three seconds later by Lotto–Belisol's Gianni Meersman; among the group was race leader Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank), who lost 17 seconds on the day to Valverde, but remained 1' 35" clear overnight in the general classification.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
The penultimate stage of the Vuelta was seen as the final chance for the riders to take substantial amounts of time in the race, with the final stage being the customary ride into Madrid.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
The parcours of 170.7 km (106.1 mi) contained no fewer than five categorised climbs, all rated as a second-category climb or higher, with the summit finish – the tenth of the race – to Bola del Mundo being the highest-categorised of the five, as a "Categoria Especial"; the Bola del Mundo was also the highest point of the race, with the stage winner receiving the Cima Alberto Fernández award. The peloton climbed up to a height of 2,247 metres (7,372 ft) above sea level, via an 11.4 km (7.1 mi) long climb at an average gradient of 8.6%. The Bola decided the race for overall honours on its previous appearance in the race – in 2010 – as Vincenzo Nibali shadowed Ezequiel Mosquera up the climb, therefore winning the race by 41 seconds from Mosquera; Mosquera was later stripped of his results in late 2011.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
A group of twenty riders formed the day's breakaway, representing sixteen teams with Ag2r–La Mondiale, Team Katusha, Astana and Omega Pharma–Quick-Step the only squads to have multiple representation in the group. Also among the group was the leader of the mountains classification, Simon Clarke (Orica–GreenEDGE), who was looking to all but guarantee winning the blue polka-dot jersey. Indeed, Clarke took maximum points at the first three climbs during the stage, as the breakaway held a lead of around eight minutes – having reached a maximum of over ten minutes at one point – over the main field.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
The leaders remained five minutes clear of the peloton as they hit the Bola del Mundo, with the pack being led by Euskaltel–Euskadi, who had Romain Sicard in the lead group. The lead group started to splinter on the climb itself, with six riders going clear in the early stages, before three riders – Team Sky's Richie Porte, Omega Pharma–Quick-Step rider Kevin De Weert and former Vuelta overall winner Denis Menchov of Team Katusha – established themselves with the accelerated pace.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
In the peloton, Euskaltel–Euskadi's Igor Antón initially attacked without chase, before Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) forced an attack on his rivals, trying to get clear before he was closed down. De Weert was dropped by his two lead companions, while the overall leaders had managed to break out into a group of their own with Valverde, Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank) and Joaquim Rodríguez being paced by Rodríguez's Team Katusha's team-mate Daniel Moreno.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
Their team-mate Menchov won the stage – Team Katusha's fourth of the race – as he dropped Porte in the closing metres; six other members of the breakaway also crossed the line before the race contenders. Rodríguez was ninth on the stage, taking 25 seconds on Valverde – who was tenth – and he claimed back 44 seconds on Contador, who finished twelfth. In the general classification, Contador maintained his race lead, by a reduced margin of 1' 16", over Valverde, with Rodríguez another 21 seconds in arrears.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
The Vuelta concluded with the now-customary stage finish in the centre of Madrid. The stage had an easy start – with a long and gradual descent from the start town of Cercedilla – before ten high-speed laps of a 5.7 km (3.5 mi) circuit, followed by the sprint finish. In keeping with tradition, the final stage began at a slow pace, and was a largely ceremonial procession on the run into Madrid.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Shortly after the riders reached the circuit in the centre of the city, an intermediate sprint was held at the first passage through the line; David Moncoutié of Cofidis and Rabobank's Grischa Niermann were allowed to pass through before the main field, as a gesture, ahead of their respective retirements from the professional peloton. After that, the main break was initiated by six riders on the opening lap of the Madrid circuit.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
The group – consisting of Andalucía pairing Sergio Carrasco and Javier Chacón, Astana's Kevin Seeldraeyers, Javier Aramendia of Caja Rural, Mikel Astarloza (Euskaltel–Euskadi) and Sergey Lagutin for Vacansoleil–DCM – were never allowed to gain more than half a minute in their exploits and were eventually caught with around 6 km (3.7 mi) remaining.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Lagutin was the last to be caught, just as the peloton started their final lap. Team Sky took up affairs on the front of the peloton, looking to get their sprinter Ben Swift a victory in the race but it was Argos–Shimano who set up their sprinter with the best run to the finish line. Having fended off the advances of Italian pairing Elia Viviani (Liquigas–Cannondale) and Daniele Bennati (RadioShack–Nissan), it was John Degenkolb that took his fifth stage victory of the race.


2012 Vuelta a España, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Further behind, Saxo Bank–Tinkoff Bank's Alberto Contador finished within the peloton to take his second Vuelta overall title, while Simon Clarke (Orica–GreenEDGE) also confirmed his victory in the mountains classification. For the second year running, Joaquim Rodríguez (Team Katusha) lost the victory in the points classification on the final day, as a sixth place stage finish for Movistar Team's Alejandro Valverde allowed Valverde to overhaul Rodríguez's points tally by six. As a consequence of this, Valverde also claimed the combination classification on a tie-break, due to his second place overall finish to Rodríguez's third.


2012 Vuelta a Mexico
The 2012 Vuelta a Mexico was the 4th edition of the Vuelta Mexico Telmex. It started on 18 March in Acapulco with a 100 kilometres circuit. It lasted 8 days with a total length being 897.2 kilometers including a 12 km Individual Time Trial.


2012 Vuelta a Mexico
The general classification's blue jersey was won by Oscar Sevilla of Empacadora San Marcos for the second time. The Mountains Classification was won by Alex Cano of Gobernación de Antoquia. The best young rider was won by Daniel Jaramillo also of Gobernación de Antoquia. The best Mexican award was won by Carlos Lopez of Canels-Turbo for the second time. The team classification was won by Gobernación de Antioquia.


2012 Vuelta a Murcia
The 2012 Vuelta a Murcia was the 28th edition of the Vuelta a Murcia cycle race and was held on 3 March to 4 March 2012. The race started in Archena and finished in Murcia. The race was won by Nairo Quintana.


2012 W-League Grand Final
The 2012 W-League Grand Final was the grand final of the fourth season of the Australian W-League football (soccer) competition. It was contested between premiers Canberra United and second-placed Brisbane Roar at McKellar Park in Canberra on Saturday, 28 January 2012. Canberra United were victorious, winning 3–2.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup
Western Australian soccer clubs from the top three State-Based Divisions, plus the Premier Division of the Sunday League, competed in 2012 for the WA State Challenge Cup, known that year as the State League Cup 2012. This knockout competition was won by Sorrento, their 2nd title.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, Preliminary round
A total of 30 Western Australian teams took part in this stage of the competition. This involved 13 clubs from the State League Division 1, 7 clubs from the State League Division 2 and 10 clubs from the 2013 Sunday League (Premier Division). A total of 12 teams were given a Bye to the First Round. All matches in this round were completed on 9 April 2012.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, First round
A total of 32 teams took part in this stage of the competition. 11 of the 12 Clubs from the State League Premier Division entered into the competition at this stage, with the exception of the Football West NTC team, who did not take part. All matches were completed on 25 April 2012.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, Second round
A total of 16 teams took part in this stage of the competition. All matches were completed on 12 May 2012.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, Quarter finals
A total of 8 teams took part in this stage of the competition. All matches in this round were completed on 4 June 2012.


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, Semi finals
A total of 4 teams took part in this stage of the competition. All matches in this round were completed by 30 July 2012. The draw was as follows:


2012 WA State Challenge Cup, Final
The 2012 State League Cup Final was held at the neutral venue of Dorrien Gardens on 24 August.


2012 WA State League Premier Division
The 2012 season of the State League Premier Division started on 24 March between eleven clubs and the National Training Squad (NTC). The Season ended on 6 October with the Championship decider. The NTC did not play for competition points.


2012 WA State League Premier Division
Bayswater City were the Premiers – their first title – and Sorrento were Champions.


2012 WAC Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2012 WAC Men's Basketball Tournament, was held March 7–10, 2012 at the Orleans Arena in Paradise, Nevada, United States to crown a champion of the Western Athletic Conference. The winner of the tournament received an automatic bid to the 2012 NCAA Tournament. The 2012 Championship game was televised on ESPN2 at 9:00 pm Pacific Time.


2012 WAC Men's Basketball Tournament, Format
With the departure of Boise State to the Mountain West Conference, WAC Commissioner Karl Benson announced during the basketball preseason teleconferences that the league would change its postseason basketball tournament to a regular quarterfinal format, getting rid of the double-bye format used in 2011. This format was to be used for 2012 only; the format was to be re-evaluated for 2013 after new five new teams came in and three schools departed for a total of 10 participating institutions in 2012–13.


2012 WAFF Championship
The 2012 WAFF Championship was the 7th WAFF Championship, an international tournament for member nations of the West Asian Football Federation. It was hosted by Kuwait from 8 to 20 December 2012. The defending champions were Kuwait. However, they did not get past the group stage. The tournament was won by Syria for the first time.


2012 WAFF Championship, Draw of participating teams
The draw took place on 16 September 2012 in Kuwait City, Kuwait. The eleven teams were drawn into three groups based on team rankings. Two groups include four teams and one group has three teams.


2012 WAFF Championship, Tournament, Group Stage, Ranking of second-placed teams
At the end of the group stage, a comparison will be made between the second-placed teams of each group. Matches against the fourth-placed team in Group A and B group are not included in this ranking. The best second-placed team advance to the semifinals.


2012 WAFF Futsal Championship
The 2012 WAFF Futsal Championship was the 3rd WAFF Futsal Championship. It was held in Ghadir Arena, Urmia, Iran between 27 April and 2 May 2012.


2012 WAFF Women's Futsal Championship
The 2012 WAFF Women's Futsal Championship was the second women's futsal championship for the West Asian Football Federation. The tournament was played in Bahrain. The draw took place on 2 April 2012 in Manama. Iran won the tournament for the second time.


2012 WAFL Grand Final
The 2012 WAFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Claremont Football Club and the East Fremantle Football Club on Sunday 23 September 2012 at Patersons Stadium, to determine the premier team of the West Australian Football League (WAFL) for the 2012 season. Claremont won an exciting game by 26 points - 18.16 (124) to 15.8 (98) - and Paul Medhurst of Claremont was awarded the Simpson Medal. The win, which gave Claremont's its 12th WAFL premiership, was also the first time the Tigers had won successive flags since their 1938-1940 hat-trick.


2012 WAFL Grand Final, Background
Claremont, the reigning premiers, finished the home-and-away rounds on top of the ladder with 15 wins and a large percentage. The Tigers advanced directly to the Grand Final after defeating Swan Districts in the Second Semi-final.


2012 WAFL Grand Final, Background
East Fremantle finished third at the end of the home-and-away rounds with 14 wins. The Sharks defeated East Perth in the First Semi-final and then Swan Districts in the Preliminary Final to advance to the Grand Final. This was the first time the Sharks had made it to the Grand Final since 2000, and their most recent Grand Final victory was in 1998.


2012 WAFL Grand Final, Background
In the lead-up to the Grand Final, Claremont captain Andrew Browne failed a fitness test on his injured left hamstring, and deputy Luke Blackwell was appointed to lead the side.


2012 WAFL Grand Final, Match report
East Fremantle closed to within one point at the start of the final quarter when Young kicked his second, but Claremont managed to steady and kick five of the last six goals to run out comfortable winners in the end.


2012 WAFL Grand Final, Match report
The defeat was especially bitter for the Sharks as, for the second time since 2000, they lost Grand Finals in all three grades; they had lost earlier to Claremont in the Reserves, and were defeated for the Colts premiership by South Fremantle.


2012 WAFL season
The 2012 WAFL season was the 128th season of the West Australian Football League and its various incarnations. The season opened on 17 March, with Subiaco hosting West Perth at Leederville Oval, and concluded with the 2012 WAFL Grand Final, in which Claremont defeated East Fremantle by 26 points. The 2012 Sandover Medal was won by Kane Mitchell of Claremont, while the leading goalkicker was South Fremantle's Ben Saunders.


2012 WAFL season, Pre-season News and Rule changes
On 1 February, it was announced that the West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) had signed a new three-year deal with sports company Burley-Sekem as the officially endorsed supplier of footballs to all WA competition, maintaining a strong relationship with Burley that dates back to 1907.


2012 WAFL season, Pre-season News and Rule changes
The WAFL implemented one major rule change in accordance with changes at AFL level in regard to the rushed behind rule:


2012 WAFL season, Pre-season News and Rule changes
On 27 February the following amendments were accepted by the WAFC Football Affairs Committee:


2012 WAFL season, Home-and-away season, Round 19
In a Grand Final preview, Claremont crush the Sharks’ attack after quarter-time, kicking 15.8 (98) to 2.4 (16).


2012 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament
The 2012 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament will be played between March 9 and March 17, 2012 at six conference arenas and the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The winner will receive the Broadmoor Trophy as the tournament's champions, and will be awarded the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's automatic bid to the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.


2012 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Format
The first round of the postseason tournament features a best-of-three games format. All twelve conference teams participate in the tournament. Teams are seeded No. 1 through No. 12 according to their final conference standing, with a tiebreaker system used to seed teams with an identical number of points accumulated. The top six seeded teams each earn home ice and host one of the lower seeded teams.


2012 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Format
The winners of the first round series advance to the Xcel Energy Center for the WCHA Final Five, the collective name for the quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship rounds. The Final Five uses a single-elimination format. Teams are re-seeded No. 1 through No. 6 according to the final regular season conference standings, with the top two teams automatically advancing to the semifinals. All Final Five games will be broadcast by Fox Sports North and carried by Root Sports Rocky Mountain and Fox College Sports Central.


2012 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Format, Conference Standings
Note: GP = Games Played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against


2012 WDF Europe Cup
The 2012 WDF Europe Cup was the 18th edition of the WDF Europe Cup darts tournament, organised by the World Darts Federation. It was held in Kemer, Turkey from 31 October to 3 November 2012.


2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
The 2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship was a golf tournament played February 22–26 at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club at Dove Mountain in Marana, Arizona, northwest of Tucson. It was the 14th WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and the first of four World Golf Championships held in 2012.


2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
Hunter Mahan won his first Match Play title and second WGC with a 2&1 victory over runner-up Rory McIlroy. Defending champion Luke Donald lost in the first round, as did three other previous winners.


2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Format change
For 2012, the players were seeded based on the last Official World Golf Ranking prior to the tournament, instead of the previous weeks ranking that determined the field.


2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Brackets
The championship was a single elimination match play event. The field consisted of the top 64 players available from the Official World Golf Ranking as of the February 12 ranking, seeded according to the February 19 rankings.


2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Brackets
Two players ranked in the top 64 did not play in the event. Phil Mickelson (ranked #11) did not play due to a planned family vacation and was replaced by Ernie Els (#65). Paul Casey (#23) did not play due to a shoulder injury and was replaced by George Coetzee (#66). In the first round, Els handily defeated defending champion Luke Donald 5&4 and Coetzee took Rory McIlroy to 18th hole, but fell at 2 down.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
The 2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational was a professional golf tournament held August 2–5 on the South Course of Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio. It was the 14th WGC-Bridgestone Invitational tournament, and the third of four World Golf Championships events held in 2012. Keegan Bradley shot a 64 (−6) in the final round to finish with 267 (−13) to win his first WGC event, one stroke ahead of runners-up Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Venue, Course layout
The South Course was designed by Bert Way and redesigned by Robert Trent Jones in 1960.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
The field consisted of players drawn primarily from the Official World Golf Ranking and the winners of the world-wide tournaments with the strongest fields.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
1. Playing members of the 2011 United States and International Presidents Cup teams. Robert Allenby, Aaron Baddeley, K. J. Choi (2,3), Jason Day (2,3), Ernie Els (2,3,4), Jim Furyk (2,3), Retief Goosen, Bill Haas (2,3,4), Ryo Ishikawa, Dustin Johnson (2,3,4), Matt Kuchar (2,3,4), Kim Kyung-tae, Hunter Mahan (2,3,4), Phil Mickelson (2,3,4), Geoff Ogilvy (2,3), Charl Schwartzel (2,3), Adam Scott (2,3,4), Steve Stricker (2,3,4), David Toms (2,3), Nick Watney (2,3), Bubba Watson (2,3,4), Tiger Woods (2,3,4), Y. E. Yang


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
2. The top 50 players from the Official World Golf Ranking as of July 23, 2012.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
Bae Sang-moon (3), Thomas Bjørn (3,4), Keegan Bradley (3,4), Jonathan Byrd (3), Rafa Cabrera-Bello (3,4), Nicolas Colsaerts (3,4), Luke Donald (3,4), Jason Dufner (3,4), Simon Dyson (3,4), Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño (3,4), Rickie Fowler (3,4), Sergio García (3,4), Peter Hanson (3), Freddie Jacobson (3), Zach Johnson (3,4), Martin Kaymer (3,4), Martin Laird (3), Paul Lawrie (3,4), Graeme McDowell (3), Rory McIlroy (3,4), Francesco Molinari (3,4), Kevin Na (3), Louis Oosthuizen (3,4), Carl Pettersson (3,4), Ian Poulter (3,5), Álvaro Quirós (3,4), Justin Rose (3,4), John Senden (3), Brandt Snedeker (3,4), Bo Van Pelt (3), Lee Westwood (3,5), Mark Wilson (3,4)


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
3. The top 50 players from the Official World Golf Ranking as of July 30, 2012.


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
4. Tournament winners of worldwide events since the prior year's tournament with an Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating of 115 points or more. Greg Chalmers, Ben Crane, Jamie Donaldson, Branden Grace, Michael Hoey, Thongchai Jaidee, Marc Leishman, Tom Lewis, Joost Luiten, Toshinori Muto, Scott Piercy, Ted Potter Jr., Robert Rock, Marcel Siem, Jeev Milkha Singh, Lee Slattery, Kyle Stanley, Johnson Wagner, Bernd Wiesberger, Danny Willett


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
5. The winner of selected tournaments from each of the following tours:


2012 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Field
Nine of the field were appearing in their first WGC event: Oliver Bekker, Jamie Donaldson,  Yoshinori Fujimoto, Joost Luiten, Toshinori Muto, Scott Piercy, Ted Potter Jr., Marcel Siem and Bernd Wiesberger.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship
The 2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship was a golf tournament played from March 8–11 on the TPC Blue Monster course at Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Doral, Florida, a suburb west of Miami. It was the 13th WGC-Cadillac Championship tournament, and the second of the World Golf Championships events to be staged in 2012.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship
Justin Rose won his first WGC event, one stroke ahead of runner-up Bubba Watson, the 54-hole leader. Watson rebounded and won his first Masters the following month.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Course layout
The tournament was played on the TPC Blue Monster course.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
The field consisted of players from the top of the Official World Golf Ranking and the money lists/Order of Merit from the six main professional golf tours. All 74 players that qualified for the tournament played in it. Branden Grace was the only player in the field who was appearing in his first WGC event. Players qualified based on the following qualification rules: Each player is classified according to the first category in which he qualified, but other categories are shown in parentheses.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
1.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
The top 50 players from the Official World Golf Ranking, as of February 27, 2012Aaron Baddeley (2,3), Bae Sang-moon (2,7), Thomas Bjørn (2,5), Keegan Bradley (2,3,4), Paul Casey (2), K. J. Choi (2,3), Ben Crane (2), Jason Day (2,3), Luke Donald (2,3,5), Jason Dufner (2,3), Simon Dyson (2,5), Rickie Fowler (2), Sergio García (2,5), Bill Haas (2,3,4), Anders Hansen (2,5), Peter Hanson (2,5,6), Freddie Jacobson (2,3), Miguel Ángel Jiménez (5), Dustin Johnson (2,3), Zach Johnson (2), Robert Karlsson (2), Martin Kaymer (2,5), Kim Kyung-tae (2), Matt Kuchar (2,3), Martin Laird (2), Paul Lawrie (2,5,6), Hunter Mahan (2,3,4), Graeme McDowell (2,5), Rory McIlroy (2,4,5,6), Phil Mickelson (2,3,4), Francesco Molinari (2), Geoff Ogilvy (2,3), Louis Oosthuizen (2,5,6), Ian Poulter (2), Álvaro Quirós (2,5), Justin Rose (2,3), Charl Schwartzel (2,5), Adam Scott (2,3), John Senden (2,3), Webb Simpson (2,3), Brandt Snedeker (2,3,4), Kyle Stanley (2,4), Steve Stricker (2,3,4), David Toms (2,3), Bo Van Pelt (2,3), Nick Watney (2,3), Bubba Watson (2,3), Lee Westwood (2,5,6), Mark Wilson (2,3,4), Tiger Woods (2)


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
2. The top 50 players from the Official World Golf Ranking, as of March 5, 2012Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño (5)


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
3. The top 30 players from the final 2011 FedExCup Points ListJonathan Byrd, Charles Howell III, Chez Reavie, Vijay Singh, Gary Woodland, Yang Yong-eun


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
4. The top 10 players from the 2012 FedExCup Points List, as of March 5, 2012Johnson Wagner


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
5. The top 20 players from the final 2011 European Tour Order of MeritDarren Clarke, Nicolas Colsaerts, Pablo Larrazábal, Alex Norén


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
6. The top 10 players from the European Tour Race to Dubai Standings, as of February 27, 2012Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Retief Goosen, Branden Grace, Jbe' Kruger, Robert Rock


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
7. The top 2 players from the final 2011 Japan Golf Tour Order of MeritTadahiro Takayama


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
8. The top 2 players from the final 2011 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of MeritGreg Chalmers, Marcus Fraser


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
9. The top 2 players from the final 2011 Sunshine Tour Order of MeritGarth Mulroy, Hennie Otto


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Field
10. The top 2 players from the final 2011 Asian Tour Order of MeritTetsuji Hiratsuka, Juvic Pagunsan


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Round summaries, Final round
The 54-hole leader Bubba Watson stumbled early in the round and was 3 over par for the front nine, surrendering the lead to Keegan Bradley who was −3 after 7 holes. At one point Bradley led by 2 strokes but he stumbled on the back nine which included a three-putt from 4 feet and a 4 over par finish in the last 4 holes. Rory McIlroy also got into contention with an eagle on the 12th hole and was 1 back of the lead but a bogey on the 14th stopped his momentum.


2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship, Round summaries, Final round
Justin Rose grabbed the lead on the back nine and never relinquished it, though on the final hole, Watson hit a brilliant shot from the rough and around the trees to 8 feet, but missed the ensuing putt which would have resulted in him getting into a playoff with Rose. Tiger Woods withdrew from the tournament after the third round because of an Achilles injury.


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions
The 2012 WGC-HSBC Champions was a golf tournament played 1–4 November 2012 at the Olazabal Course of Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. It was the fourth WGC-HSBC Champions tournament, and the fourth of four World Golf Championships events held in 2012. The event was won by Ryder Cup star Ian Poulter who shot consecutive rounds of 65 (−7) on the weekend and broke the tournament scoring record with 267 (−21) for his second WGC win. Two strokes back were runners-up Jason Dufner, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson, and Scott Piercy.


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
The following is a list of players who have qualified for the 2012 WGC-HSBC Champions. Players who have qualified from multiple categories are listed in the first category in which they are eligible. The numbers of other qualifying categories are in parentheses next to the player's name.


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Luke Donald (5,12), Jason Dufner (12), Bill Haas, Marc Leishman, Phil Mickelson (12), Carl Pettersson, Scott Piercy, Brandt Snedeker (12), Kyle Stanley, Johnson Wagner, Nick Watney (12)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Robert Garrigus, Dustin Johnson (12), Louis Oosthuizen (8,10,12), Adam Scott (12), Lee Westwood (5,8,12)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Nicolas Colsaerts, Jamie Donaldson, Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño (10), Branden Grace (8), Peter Hanson (12), Paul Lawrie, Shane Lowry, Francesco Molinari, Julien Quesne, Álvaro Quirós, Richie Ramsay, Robert Rock, Marcel Siem, Jeev Milkha Singh, Thongchai Jaidee, Danny Willett


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
David Lynn, Graeme McDowell (12), Thorbjørn Olesen, Ian Poulter (9), Bernd Wiesberger (10)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Hiroyuki Fujita, Yuta Ikeda (OoM), Brendan Jones (OoM), Toshinori Muto, Tadahiro Takayama


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Thomas Aiken (OoM), George Coetzee (OoM), Garth Mulroy, Hennie Otto, Jaco van Zyl (OoM)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Robert Allenby (OoM), Greg Chalmers, Marcus Fraser (OoM), Brad Kennedy (OoM), John Senden (OoM)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Gaganjeet Bhullar (OoM), Scott Hend (OoM), Masanori Kobayashi (OoM), Jbe' Kruger, David Lipsky (OoM), Joost Luiten, Prom Meesawat (OoM), Siddikur Rahman (OoM), Thaworn Wiratchant (OoM)


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
Players in bold were added to the field through this category. Players listed in "()" already qualified in a previous category. Players listed with their name stricken did not play or were not listed as alternates when the field was announced.


2012 WGC-HSBC Champions, Field
12 players were appearing in their first WGC event: Robert Garrigus, Scott Hend, Hu Mu, Jang Ik-jae, Brad Kennedy, Kim Hyung-sung, Masanori Kobayashi, Han Lee, David Lipsky, David Lynn, Thorbjørn Olesen and Julien Quesne.


2012 WK-League
The 2012 WK League was the fourth season of the WK League, the top division of women's football in South Korea. The regular season began on 26 March 2012 and ended on 29 October 2012. Goyang Daekyo were the defending champions.


2012 WK-League, Playoff and championship
The playoff was played as a single leg and the championship final was played over two legs.


2012 WKU Hilltoppers football team
The 2012 WKU Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Willie Taggart and played their home games at Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium. They were a member of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 7–6, 4–4 in Sun Belt play to finish in fifth place. They were invited to the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, their first bowl appearance since joining FBS in 2007, where they were defeated by Central Michigan.


2012 WKU Hilltoppers football team
After a three-year record of 16–20, head coach Willie Taggart resigned in December to become the head coach at South Florida. Defensive coordinator Lance Guidry coached the Hilltoppers in Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Bobby Petrino was hired as the school's new head coach on December 10, 2012.


2012 WKU Hilltoppers football team, Game summaries, @ Kentucky
The win over the Wildcats of the SEC marks the Hilltoppers first ever win over a team from a Bowl Championship Series conference..


2012 WKU Hilltoppers football team, Game summaries, Central Michigan–Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
This will be the Hilltoppers first bowl game since becoming a member of the FBS in 2007.


2012 WNBA Finals
The 2012 WNBA Finals was the series for the 2012 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Minnesota Lynx, champions of the Western Conference, faced the Indiana Fever, champions of the Eastern Conference. The Fever defeated the Lynx three games to one becoming only the second Eastern Conference franchise to capture a WNBA title.


2012 WNBA Finals
The WNBA Finals were under a 2–2–1 rotation. The Lynx held home-court advantage as they had a better regular season record (27–7) than the Fever (22–12). The Lynx were defending their 2011 WNBA Championship. The Fever appeared in the 2009 Finals.


2012 WNBA Finals, Background, Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever finished 22–12, good for second place in the Eastern Conference. The Fever lost their first playoff game against the Atlanta Dream, but rallied to win two straight elimination games, setting up a conference final against the Connecticut Sun. Once again, Indiana lost the first game of the series, but rallied to win two straight to reach the finals for the second time in four years.


2012 WNBA Finals, Background, Minnesota Lynx
The Minnesota Lynx finished with the best record in the WNBA for the second straight year, finishing with a 27–7 record. The Lynx were taken to three games by the Seattle Storm, winning Game 3 by one point. The Lynx then swept the Los Angeles Sparks in the Western Conference Finals, which gave them a chance to defend their 2011 WNBA title.


2012 WNBA Playoffs
The 2012 WNBA Playoffs was the postseason for the Women's National Basketball Association's 2012 season. Four teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, seeded 1 to 4 in a tournament bracket, with the two opening rounds in a best-of-three format, and the final in a best-of-five format.


2012 WNBA Playoffs
The Minnesota Lynx qualified as the overall top seed, and the Los Angeles Sparks, San Antonio Silver Stars, and Seattle Storm also qualified in the West. The Connecticut Sun were the top seed in the East, joined by the Indiana Fever, Atlanta Dream, and New York Liberty.


2012 WNBA Playoffs
Minnesota won the Western Conference championship, and Indiana won the Eastern Conference championship. The Fever won the 2013 WNBA Finals, winning three games to the Lynx's one.


2012 WNBA Playoffs, Eastern Conference, Conference Finals, (1) Connecticut Sun vs. (2) Indiana Fever
The Connecticut Sun won 3–1 in the regular season series:


2012 WNBA draft
The 2012 WNBA draft was the league's annual process for determining which teams receive the rights to negotiate with players entering the league. The draft was held on April 16, 2012 at the ESPN studios in Bristol, Connecticut. The first round was shown on ESPN2 (HD), with the second and third rounds shown on NBA TV and ESPNU.


2012 WNBA draft, Draft lottery
The lottery selection to determine the order of the top four picks in the 2012 draft occurred on November 10, 2011. The Los Angeles Sparks won the first pick, while the Chicago Sky, Minnesota Lynx and Tulsa Shock were awarded the second, third and fourth picks respectively. The remaining first-round picks and all the second- and third-round picks were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win-loss records in the previous season.


2012 WNBA draft, Draft lottery
Below were the chances for each team to get specific picks in the 2012 draft lottery, rounded to three decimal places:


2012 WNBA draft, Invited players
The WNBA announced on April 11, 2012 that 15 players had been invited to attend the draft. Unless indicated otherwise, all players listed are Americans who played at U.S. colleges.


2012 WNBA season
The 2012 WNBA season was the 16th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on May 18, 2012.


2012 WNBA season, 2012 WNBA Draft
The WNBA Draft lottery was held on November 10, 2011. The lottery teams were the Tulsa Shock, Minnesota Lynx (from Wash.), Chicago Sky and Los Angeles Sparks. The top pick was awarded to Los Angeles.


2012 WNBA season, 2012 WNBA Draft
The 2012 WNBA Draft was held on April 16, 2012, in Bristol, Connecticut. Coverage of the first round was shown on ESPN (HD). Second and third round coverage was shown on ESPNU and NBA TV.


2012 WNBA season, Regular season
Due to the 2012 Summer Olympics, there is no All-Star Game this season as the Olympiad causes a break from mid-July through August.


2012 WNBL Finals
The 2012 WNBL Finals was the postseason tournament of the WNBL's 2011–12 season. The Bulleen Boomers were the defending champions but were defeated in the Grand Final by the Dandenong Rangers.


2012 WPA World Eight-ball Championship
The 2012 WPA World Eight-ball Championship was a professional eight-ball championship, organized by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), and held 11–18 February 2012 at the Fujairah Exhibition Centre of the Al Diar Siji Hotel in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. A total of 96 players from all of the WPA's six regions participated.


2012 WPA World Eight-ball Championship
Dennis Orcollo winner of the 2012 event lost in the round of 32 to Karol Skowerski. The event was won by Chang Jung-lin, who defeated Fu Che-wei in the final 11–6.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship
The 2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship (sometimes called the World Pool Championship 2012) was a professional nine-ball pocket billiards (pool) championship, sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) and organised by Matchroom Sport. It was held from June 22 to 29 in Doha, Qatar, hosted by the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation. Qualifying tournaments were held from June 20 to 22, with the Al Sadd Sports Club hosting both qualifying and final tournaments.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship
British Darren Appleton won the championship defeating China's Li Hewen 13–12 in the final. It was Appleton's second world title after having won the 2008 10-ball World Championship and his first world title in 9-ball. Defending champion Yukio Akakariyama was defeated in the round of 32, by future champion Thorsten Hohmann. A total of US$276,000 in prize money was distributed for the tournament, with the World Champion receiving $40,000.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, Format
The 128 participating players were divided into 16 groups, in which they competed in a double elimination tournamen against each other. The remaining 64 players in each group qualified for the final round played in the knockout system. The event was played under the alternating break format.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, Format, Prize Money
The event's prize money stayed similar to that of the previous years, with winner Darren Appleton winning $40,000.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, Tournament Summary
The event was played in the alternating break format. In the event's semi-finals, Li Hewen defeated Germany's Ralf Souquet, 11–6, whereas Darren Appleton defeated Japan's Naoyuki Ōi 11–7. In the final, Appleton would take a heavy lead, moving to 9–2 in front, and later 11–3 in a race to 13. Li would make a comeback, to 12–6, before Appleton had the opportunity to win the tournament with an open table in the 19th rack. Appleton would Snooker himself with just four balls left on the table, and Li would win the next 6 racks to make the tournament reach a decisive rack.


2012 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, Tournament Summary
Appleton would win the decisive frame, jump up onto the table, lifting his cue above his head. Appleton commented after the event that he was thinking "I can't lose, he needs a miracle" and, that at 12–10, he "started feeling the heat."


2012 WPS Draft
The 2012 WPS College Draft took place on January 13, 2012. It was the fourth college draft held by Women's Professional Soccer to assign the WPS rights of college players to the American-based teams.


2012 WPSL season
The 2012 Women's Premier Soccer League season is the 16th season of the WPSL. 2012 saw the formation of two new leagues within the WPSL structure: the WPSL Elite League and a U-20 League.


2012 WPSL season, Changes from 2011, New franchises
Note: A place for a St. Louis team was created on the WPSL website in early 2012 and remains there, but the team was not part of the 2012 season.


2012 WPSL season, Playoffs, Sunshine Conference
The Sunshine division championship was cancelled due to a high number of players returning to college.


2012 WSA World Series
The WSA World Series 2012 is a series of women's squash tournaments which are part of the Women's Squash Association (WSA) World Tour for the 2012 squash season. The WSA World Series tournaments are some of the most prestigious events on the women's tour. The best-performing players in the World Series events qualify for the annual 2012 WSA World Series Finals tournament. Nicol David won her second WSA World Series Squash Finals trophy, beating Laura Massaro in the final.


2012 WSA World Series, WSA World Series Ranking Points
WSA World Series events also have a separate World Series ranking. Points for this are calculated on a cumulative basis after each World Series event.


2012 WSA World Series, World Series Standings 2012
Bold – The first eight players present for the final


2012 WSA World Series Finals
The 2012 WSA World Series Finals is the women's edition of the 2012 WSA World Series Finals (Prize money : $50 000). The event took place at the Queen's Club in London in England between 2–6 January 2013. Nicol David won her second WSA World Series Finlas trophy, beating Laura Massaro in the final.


2012 WSA World Tour
The WSA World Tour 2012 is the international squash tour and organized circuit, organized by the Women's Squash Association (WSA) for the 2012 squash season. The most important tournament in the series is the World Open held in Cayman Island. The tour features three categories of regular events, the World Series, which features the highest prize money and the best fields, Gold and Silver tournaments. The Tour is concluded by the WSA World Series Finals, the end of season championship for the top 8 rated players.


2012 WSA World Tour, 2012 Calendar
The Women's Squash Association organises the WSA World Tour, the female equivalent of the PSA World Tour Listed below are the most important events on the tour.


2012 WSA World Tour, Retirements
Following is a list of notable players (winners of a main tour title, and/or part of the WSA World Rankings top 30 for at least one month) who announced their retirement from professional squash, became inactive, or were permanently banned from playing, during the 2012 season:


2012 WSBL season
The 2012 WSBL season was the 24th season of the Women's State Basketball League (SBL). The regular season began on Friday 16 March and ended on Saturday 28 July. The finals began on Friday 3 August and ended on Friday 31 August, when the South West Slammers defeated the Rockingham Flames in the WSBL Grand Final.


2012 WSBL season, Regular season
The regular season began on Friday 16 March and ended on Saturday 28 July after 20 rounds of competition. An additional round was added in 2012 to lighten the travel load of regional teams.


2012 WSBL season, Regular season
Due to an ineligible player taking part in an SBL qualifying game, the South West Slammers were deemed to have forfeited a round sixteen victory against the Wanneroo Wolves after they suited up a development player but failed to lodge a contract, player registration and proof of citizenship which are all documents required by the league before a player can take the court.


2012 WSBL season, Finals
The finals began on Friday 3 August and ended on Friday 31 August with the WSBL Grand Final.


2012 WTA 125K series
The WTA 125K series is the secondary professional tennis circuit organised by the Women's Tennis Association. The 2012 WTA 125K series calendar consisted of two tournaments, each with a total prize money fund of $125,000.


2012 WTA 125K series, Statistical information
These tables present the number of singles (S) and doubles (D) titles won by each player and each nation during the season, within all the tournament categories of the 2012 WTA 125s. The players/nations are sorted by: 1) total number of titles (a doubles title won by two players representing the same nation counts as only one win for the nation); 2) a singles > doubles hierarchy; 3) alphabetical order (by family names for players).


2012 WTA Premier tournaments
The 2012 WTA Premier tournaments are 21 of the tennis tournaments on the 2012 WTA Tour. The WTA Tour is the elite tour for women's professional tennis. The WTA Premier tournaments are divided into three levels which all rank below the Grand Slam events and above the WTA International tournaments.


2012 WTA Tour
The 2012 WTA Tour is the elite professional tennis circuit organized by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for the 2012 tennis season. The 2012 WTA Tour calendar comprises the Grand Slam tournaments (supervised by the International Tennis Federation (ITF)), the WTA Premier tournaments (Premier Mandatory, Premier 5, and regular Premier), the WTA International tournaments, the Fed Cup (organized by the ITF), the year-end championships (the WTA Tour Championships and the WTA Tournament of Champions), and the tennis event at the Summer Olympic Games. Also included in the 2012 calendar is the Hopman Cup, which is organized by the ITF and does not distribute ranking points.


2012 WTA Tour, Schedule
This is the complete schedule of events on the 2012 calendar, with player progression documented from the quarterfinals stage.


2012 WTA Tour, Statistical information
These tables present the number of singles (S), doubles (D), and mixed doubles (X) titles won by each player and each nation during the season, within all the tournament categories of the 2012 WTA Tour: the Grand Slam tournaments, the tennis event at the London Summer Olympic Games, the year-end championships (the WTA Tour Championships and the Tournament of Champions), the WTA Premier tournaments (Premier Mandatory, Premier 5, and regular Premier), and the WTA International tournaments.


2012 WTA Tour, Statistical information
The players/nations are sorted by: 1) total number of titles (a doubles title won by two players representing the same nation counts as only one win for the nation); 2) cumulated importance of those titles (one Grand Slam win equalling two Premier Mandatory/Premier 5 wins, one year-end championships win equalling one-and-a-half Premier Mandatory/Premier 5 win, one Premier Mandatory/Premier 5 win equalling two Premier wins, one Olympic win equalling one-and-a-half Premier win, one Premier win equalling two International wins); 3) a singles > doubles > mixed doubles hierarchy; 4) alphabetical order (by family names for players).


2012 WTA Tour, Statistical information, Key
To avoid confusion and double counting, these tables should be updated only after an event is completed. The tables are through to the tournaments of the week of September 9.


2012 WTA Tour, Statistical information, Titles information
The following players won their first main circuit title in singles, doubles, or mixed doubles:


2012 WTA Tour, Statistical information, Titles information
The following players defended a main circuit title in singles, doubles, or mixed doubles:


2012 WTA Tour, Rankings
The Race to the Championships determines the players in the WTA Tour Championships in October. The WTA rankings are based on tournaments of the latest 52 weeks.


2012 WTA Tour, Rankings, Singles
The following is the 2012 top 20 in the Race to the Championships and the top 20 ranked players in the world. Players must include points from the Grand Slams, Premier Mandatory tournaments, the Summer Olympic Games and the WTA Championships. For Top 20 players, their best two results at Premier 5 tournaments will also count. Gold backgrounds indicate players that qualified for the WTA Tour Championships. Blue backgrounds indicate players that qualified as alternates at the WTA Tour Championships.


2012 WTA Tour, Rankings, Doubles
The following is the 2012 top 20 in the Race To The Championships – Doubles and the top 20 individual ranked doubles players. Gold backgrounds indicate teams that have qualified for WTA Tour Championships.


2012 WTA Tour, Prize money leaders
The 2012 WTA Tour season was the first, and still only, season where 3 different players earned at least $6,000,000. The 2014 and 2017 seasons each had 3 different players earned at least $5,000,000. The top-16 players earned over $1,000,000.


2012 WTA Tour, Comebacks
Following are notable players who will comeback after retirements during the 2012 WTA Tour season:


2012 WTA Tour, Awards
The winners of the 2012 WTA Awards were announced throughout the last week of November.


2012 WTA Tour Championships
The 2012 WTA Tour Championships was a tennis tournament played at Istanbul, Turkey from October 23 to October 28, 2012. It was the 42nd edition of the singles event and the 37th edition of the doubles competition. The tournament was held at the Sinan Erdem Dome and was contested by eight singles players and four doubles teams. It was the larger of two season ending championships on the 2012 WTA Tour.


2012 WTA Tour Championships
The tournament featured the top eight singles players and the top four doubles teams in the race to Istanbul. Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Agnieszka Radwańska, Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitová, Sara Errani and Li Na qualified for the singles competition. Kvitová withdrew from the championships after one match and was replaced by Sam Stosur. Radwańska and Errani's round robin match set the record for the longest match in WTA Tour Championships history within the best-of-three system. Azarenka, Sharapova, Williams and Radwańska qualified from the red and white groups for the semifinals. This was the first time since 1989 that the world's top four ranked women's players all made it to the semifinals of the tournament and the first time since 2003 that the top four seeds made the same stage. Williams went on to win her third season ending championship.


2012 WTA Tour Championships
In the doubles Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká, Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond and Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova made up the teams. The competition started in the semifinals and it was the all-Russian pairing of Kirilenko and Petrova who claimed the title.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Tournament
The 2012 WTA Championships took place at the Sinan Erdem Dome 23–28 October 2012. It was the 41st edition of the event. The tournament was run by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and was part of the 2012 WTA Tour. It was the larger of the two season ending championships on the 2012 WTA Tour, the smaller being the latter was only for players who did not qualify for the WTA Championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Tournament, Format
The singles event featured eight players and began as a round robin event, split into two groups of four. Over the first four days of competition, each player met the other three players in their group, with the top two in each group advancing to the semifinals. The first-placed player in one group met the second-placed player in the other group, and vice versa. The winners of each semifinal met in the championship match.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Tournament, Format, Round Robin tie-breaking methods
The final standings of each group shall be determined by the first of the following methods that apply:


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Tournament, Format, Round Robin tie-breaking methods
The doubles competition has four teams playing in a straight knockout format from the semifinal stage.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Prize money and points
The total prize money for the 2012 WTA Championships was 4.9 million United States dollars.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
On September 6, Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova became the first two players to qualify for the championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Victoria Azarenka started the year strongly, winning the Apia International Sydney over Li Na, 6–2, 1–6, 6–3. She then followed this up by winning her maiden grand slam at the Australian Open, defeating Maria Sharapova, 6–3, 6–0. With the win, she claimed the no. 1 ranking for the first time. Her winning streak continued in the Qatar Total Open. She won the title without dropping a set, beating Samantha Stosur, 6–1, 6–2 in the final. She then won her fourth title of the year at the BNP Paribas Open, once again defeating Sharapova, 6–2, 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Her streak ended when she was defeated by Marion Bartoli in the quarterfinals of Sony Ericsson Open. During the clay season, she reached back-to-back finals, in Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, losing to Sharapova, 1–6, 4–6, and the Mutua Madrid Open, losing to Serena Williams, 1–6, 3–6. At the French Open, she lost in the fourth round to Dominika Cibulková, 2–6, 6–7(4–7). Seeded second at Wimbledon, she reached the semifinals, where she was defeated by Serena, 3–6, 6–7(6–8). At the Summer Olympics, she reached the semifinals, where she once again lost to Serena, 1–6, 2–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
However, she won the bronze medal match against Maria Kirilenko, earning Belarus their first tennis medal in history. She teamed up with Max Mirnyi for the mixed-doubles event, where she won the gold medal after defeating Laura Robson and Andy Murray in the gold-medal match. Seeded first at the US Open, Azarenka defeated the defending champion, Samantha Stosur, in the quarterfinals and Sharapova in the semifinals, but lost to Williams in her first US Open final, 2–6, 6–2, 5–7.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
She then won the China Open as the top seed, defeating Sharapova 6–3, 6–1 in the final and did not drop a set in the tournament. Azarenka won her sixth title of the year at the Generali Ladies Linz defeating Julia Görges 6–3, 6–4, after blowing a 5–0 in the second.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Maria Sharapova started 2012 by reaching the final of the Australian Open. Being the favorite for the title, she succumbed in a 3–6, 0–6 defeat by first time grand slam finalist, Victoria Azarenka, in the final. She followed up her consistent performance with back-to-back final appearances at the BNP Paribas Open, losing to Azarenka, 2–6, 3–6, and the Sony Ericsson Open, losing to  Agnieszka Radwańska, 5–7, 4–6. She then won her first title of the year at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, defeating world no. 1 Azarenka, 6–1, 6–4.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
She then also won the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, defeating Li Na, 4–6, 6–4, 7–6(7–5), coming back from 0–4 in the second set. At the French Open, she won her fourth grand slam singles title, defeating Sara Errani, 6–3, 6–2, in the final. The victory gave her a career grand slam and returned her to world no. 1. Entering Wimbledon as the top seed, Sharapova lost in the fourth round to Sabine Lisicki, 4–6, 3–6. She rebounded well at the Summer Olympics, winning the silver medal after being outplayed by Serena Williams in the final, 0–6, 1–6. Despite skipping the US Open Series, she reached the US Open's semifinals, but lost to Azarenka. She then reached the final of the China Open, once again facing Azarenka but lost 3–6, 1–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
On September 10, Serena Williams became the third player to qualify for the championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Serena Williams did not enjoy a good start of the season, injuring her ankle at her first tournament of 2012 in Brisbane and succumbing in the fourth round of the Australian Open to Ekaterina Makarova, 2–6, 3–6. In the clay season, she won her first title on clay since 2008 at the Family Circle Cup, losing only 15 games and defeating Lucie Šafářová, 6–0, 6–1, in the final. She then won the Mutua Madrid Open over Victoria Azarenka, 6–1, 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Coming to the French Open as a heavy favorite with a 17-match winning streak, Williams suffered a shocking first-round loss to Virginie Razzano, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 3–6. This marked Williams' first loss in the first round in a Grand Slam. However, she regrouped well and triumphed at Wimbledon by defeating Agnieszka Radwańska in the final, 6–1, 5–7, 6–2, for her 14th Grand Slam title, came back after losing a 4–2 lead in the second. The following week, she defended her title at the Bank of the West Classic, defeating Coco Vandeweghe, 7–5, 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
At the Summer Olympics, she won the gold medal after dominating Maria Sharapova, 6–0, 6–1, in the final. She lost just a total of 17 games during the event. This victory completed the career Golden Slam in singles, making her only the second woman (after Steffi Graf) to do so. She also won the doubles gold with sister Venus Williams for the third time, over Lucie Hradecká and Andrea Hlaváčková, 6–4, 6–4. Her 19-match winning streak ended at the Western & Southern Open to Angelique Kerber. At the US Open, she reached the final with the loss of just 19 games. In the final, she defeated world no. 1, Victoria Azarenka, 6–2, 2–6, 7–5, for her second Grand Slam singles title of the year and 15th overall.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
On September 24, Agnieszka Radwańska became the fourth player to qualify for the championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Agnieszka Radwańska began the season with a semifinal appearance at Apia International Sydney and a quarterfinal finish at the Australian Open. She claimed her first title of the year at the Dubai Tennis Championships over Julia Görges, 7–5, 6–4. She claimed her second title of the year at the Sony Ericsson Open by defeating Maria Sharapova in the final, 7–5, 6–4. In the clay season, she reached two semifinals, before losing in her opening match in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia to Petra Cetkovská, 4–6, 6–4, 1–6, her first lost to a player other than Azarenka in the year.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
However, she bounced back by winning the Brussels Open over Simona Halep, 7–5, 6–0. At the French Open, she fell to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the third round, 1–6, 2–6. At Wimbledon, she reached the first Grand Slam singles final of her career, losing to Serena Williams, 1–6, 7–5, 2–6. At the Summer Olympics, she was upset in the first round by Julia Görges, 5–7, 7–6(7–5), 4–6. At the US Open, she lost for the first time to Roberta Vinci in the fourth round, 1–6, 4–6. She reached the final of the 2012 Toray Pan Pacific Open, where she was the defending champion, but was upset in the final by Nadia Petrova, 0–6, 6–1, 3–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
On October 4, three more spots were filled, as Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitová, and Sara Errani qualified for the championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Angelique Kerber enjoyed her best season so far. She reached two semifinals in her Australian Open preparation, before losing in the third round of the Australian Open to Maria Sharapova, 1–6, 2–6. She then claimed her first career title at the Open GDF Suez, defeating Marion Bartoli, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–3. She won her second title of the year at the e-Boks Open, defeating defending champion Caroline Wozniacki, 6–4, 6–4. At the French Open, she fell in the quarterfinals to Sara Errani 3–6, 6–7(2–7).


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
In the grass season, she reached the final of the Aegon International, losing to Tamira Paszek, 7–5, 3–6, 5–7, despite having five match points and a 5–3 lead. At Wimbledon, reached her second Grand Slam semifinal, but ended up losing to Agnieszka Radwańska, 3–6, 4–6. At the Western & Southern Open, Kerber reached her first Premier 5 final and fourth final of the year, but lost to Li Na, 1–6, 6–3, 1–6. At the US Open, after reaching the semifinals the previous year, she fell in the fourth round to Errani, 6–7(5–7), 3–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Petra Kvitová came into 2012 as a strong contender. She began the year by winning the Hopman Cup with Tomáš Berdych over France's Marion Bartoli and Richard Gasquet. At the Australian Open, she reached the semifinals, losing to Maria Sharapova, 2–6, 6–3, 4–6. At Wimbledon as the defending champion, she lost to eventual champion Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, 3–6, 5–7. She then claimed her first title of the year at the Rogers Cup, defeating Li Na, 7–5, 2–6, 6–3, in the final. She claimed the US Open Series top spot, after winning the New Haven Open at Yale, defeating Russian Maria Kirilenko, 7–6(11–9), 7–5. At the US Open, she was upset by Marion Bartoli in the fourth round, 6–1, 2–6, 0–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Sara Errani is having a breakthrough season. She reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinals at the Australian Open, losing to Petra Kvitová, 4–6, 4–6. She then won her first title of the year at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, defeating Flavia Pennetta, 5–7, 7–6(7–2), 6–0. She then claimed the Barcelona Ladies Open over Dominika Cibulková, 6–2, 6–2. At the Budapest Grand Prix, the Italian claimed her third title of the year over Elena Vesnina, 7–5, 6–4.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
At the French Open, Errani made a surprising run, reaching the final and earning her first top-10 wins over no. 10 Angelique Kerber, 6–3, 7–6,(7–2) and no. 6 Samantha Stosur, 7–5, 1–6, 6–3, before losing to Maria Sharapova, 3–6, 2–6, in the final. The result broke her into the top 10. At Wimbledon, Errani was on the receiving end of the first golden set in a Grand Slam, when she lost to Yaroslava Shvedova, 0–6, 4–6, in the third round. However, she bounced back by winning her fourth title at the Internazionali Femminili di Palermo over Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová 6–1, 6–3. At the US Open, she reached her second Grand Slam semifinal, where she lost to Serena Williams, 1–6, 2–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
On October 5, after reaching the semifinals of the China Open, Li Na became the last qualifier.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
Li Na's season was rather lackluster. She started the year by reaching the final of the Apia International Sydney (where she was the defending champion), losing to Victoria Azarenka in the final, 2–6, 6–1, 3–6. At the Australian Open, she lost to Kim Clijsters in the fourth round, 6–4, 6–7(6–8), 4–6, after squandering four consecutive match points when ahead 6–2 in the second-set tiebreak. She reached her second final of the year at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, losing to Maria Sharapova, 6–4, 4–6, 6–7(5–7), despite leading 4–0 in the second set.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
At the French Open as the defending champion, she was upset by Yaroslava Shvedova in the fourth round, 6–3, 2–6, 0–6. At Wimbledon, she fell to Sorana Cîrstea, 3–6, 4–6, in the second round. She then reached her third final of the year at the Rogers Cup, losing to Petra Kvitová, 5–7, 6–2, 3–6. She won her first title of the year at the Western & Southern Open over Angelique Kerber, 1–6, 6–3, 6–1, placing her second in the US Open Series. At the US Open, she received a shock exit in the third round to Laura Robson, 4–6, 7–6(7–5), 2–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
The first alternate for the championships is Australian Samantha Stosur. Stosur reached 2 finals in the year, but failed to capture a title. She reached her first final of the year at the Qatar Total Open losing to top seed Victoria Azarenka 1–6, 2–6. She reached her second final at the Kremlin Cup losing to Caroline Wozniacki 2–6, 6–4, 5–7, despite leading 3–1 in the final set. She reached the semifinals of the French Open losing  to Sara Errani 5–7, 6–1, 3–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Singles
As the defending champion, she fell in the quarterfinals of the US Open losing to Azarenka 1–6, 6–4, 6–7(5–7). The second alternate is Marion Bartoli, who is an alternate for the second straight year. She reached her first final at the Open GDF Suez losing to Angelique Kerber 6–7(3–7), 7–5, 3–6. She reached her second final of the year at the Mercury Insurance Open losing to Dominika Cibulková 1–6, 5–7. She reached the quarterfinals of the US Open losing to Maria Sharapova 6–3, 3–6, 4–6.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
On September 6, Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci became the first doubles team to qualify for the championships.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci had a breakthrough season as a team winning 8 titles. They won their first two title of the year came back-to-back at the Monterrey Open over Date-Krumm & Zhang 6–2, 7–6(8–6) and Abierto Mexicano Telcel over Domínguez Lino & Parra Santonja 6–2, 6–1. They won their third title at the Barcelona Ladies Open over Pennetta & Schiavone 6–0, 6–2. They then won 4 titles in a row, this begun in the Mutua Madrid Open winning 6–1, 3–6, [10–4] and Internazionali BNL d'Italia 6–2, 7–5 both times over Makarova & Vesnina.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
They then won their first slam titles at the Paris against Kirilenko & Petrova 4–6, 6–4, 6–2. They continued their winning ways at the UNICEF Open defeating Kirilenko & Petrova 6–4, 3–6, [11–9]. They won their eight title and second slam at the US Open  against Hlaváčková and Hradecká 6–4, 6–2. They also reached two other finals both losing to Russian pairings, at the Australian Open to Kuznetsova & Zvonareva 7–5, 4–6, 3–6 and the Sony Ericsson Open to Kirilenko & Petrova 6–7(0–7), 6–4, [4–10].


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
On September 10, two more teams qualified for the championships. They were Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká from Czech Republic and Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond from the United States.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká had a solid season in 2012. They were able to reach 7 finals, winning 3 of them. Their first title came in ASB Classic over Görges & Pennetta 6–7(2–7), 6–2, [10–7]. They then won their second title at the Memphis International over Dushevina & Govortsova 6–3, 6–4. They did not reach a final until the grass season, however it came in with 5 straight finals. The first one in the Wimbledon losing to Serena & Venus 5–7, 4–6


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
They then won the silver medal at the Summer Olympics losing once again to Serena & Venus 4–6, 4–6 They then won their biggest title of the year at the Western & Southern Open defeating Srebotnik & Zheng 6–1, 6–3. The following week, they reach the final of the New Haven Open at Yale losing to Huber & Raymond 6–4, 0–6, [4–10]. They then reached their second slam final of the year at the US Open losing to Errani & Vinci 4–6, 2–6, their first loss to the team.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond started early parts of the year strongly, winning 4 successive titles. They won the Open GDF Suez over Grönefeld & Martić 7–6(7–3), 6–1 and the Qatar Total Open over Kops-Jones & Spears 6–3, 6–1. They then beat Mirza & Vesnina in the Dubai Tennis Championships 6–2, 6–1 and BNP Paribas Open 6–2, 6–3. They did not win any title until the New Haven Open at Yale over Hlaváčková & Hradecká 4–6, 6–0, [10–4]. At the Summer Olympics, they lost to Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova in the bronze medal match 4–6, 6–4, 6–1. They finished runner-up at three tournaments this year, at the Apia International Sydney losing to Peschke & Srebotnik 1–6, 6–4, [11–13], at the Aegon Classic to Babos & Hsieh 5–7, 7–6(7–2), [8–10], and Aegon International to Llagostera Vives & Martínez Sánchez 6–4 RET.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
On October 20, the final spot went to the Russian pairing of Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova after defeating co-contenders Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears in the semifinals of the Kremlin Cup


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova compiled a solid season. They won in their first final of the year at the Sony Ericsson Open defeating the Italian pairing of Errani and Vinci  7–6(7–0), 4–6, [10–4]. They reached their first slam final as a team at the French Open once again facing Errani and Vinci, but this time they lost 6–4, 4–6, 2–6. They once again faced Errani and Vinci for the third time in a final in the UNICEF Open, but once again fell short losing 4–6, 6–3, [9–11].


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Qualified players, Doubles
At the Olympics, the Russians claimed the bronze medals defeating Americans Huber and Raymond. Petrova paired with Vania King at the Mercury Insurance Open and reached the final losing to Kops-Jones and Spears 2–6, 4–6. Petrova also reached another final, this time with Katarina Srebotnik at the Rogers Cup losing to Klaudia Jans-Ignacik and Mladenovic 5–7, 6–2, [7–10].


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
The 2012 edition of the year-end championships featured three current or former World number ones, five Grand Slam champions, two Grand Slam finalists. Two competitors made their debut at the championships. The competitors were divided into two groups representing the colors of the flag of Turkey. The Red group consisted of no. 1 seed Victoria Azarenka, no. 3 seed Serena Williams, no. 5 seed Angelique Kerber and no. 8 seed Li Na. The White Group was composed of no. 2 seed Maria Sharapova, no. 4 seed Agnieszka Radwańska, no. 6 seed Petra Kvitová and no. 7 seed Sara Errani. Samantha Stosur and Marion Bartoli served as alternates.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
In the red group, their respective records in their group, World no. 1 Victoria Azarenka was 7–14, Serena Williams was 16–3, Angelique Kerber was 2–8 and Li Na was 10–10. Leading the group Azarenka, has a poor record against Williams being 1–10 lifetime against her and having lost their last eight encounters, 4 times in 2012. Most recently they met in the finals of the 2012 US Open with Williams winning 6–2, 2–6, 7–5. Against Kerber, she has a 2–0 record winning both encounters in 2012, the last in the quarterfinals of the 2012 London Olympics 6–4, 7–5.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
Against Li, their head-to-head is tied at 4–4 but Azarenka has won their last three encounters, 2 coming in 2012, last meeting a 3–6, 6–3, 6–3 win in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Mutua Madrid Open. Williams on the other hand, is tied at 1–1 head-to-head against Kerber losing their only encounter of 2012 at the 2012 Western & Southern Open 6–4, 6–4.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
Against Li, she is 5–1 lifetime having won their last four encounters, the last encounter coming at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships 7–5, 6–3. Kerber and Li, the head-to-head is 5–1 in favor of Li who has won their last two encounters. They met 3 times in 2012, most recently in the finals of the 2012 Western & Southern Open with Li winning 1–6, 6–3, 6–1.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
In the white group, in their head-to-heads with players within their group, Maria Sharapova was 12–4, Agnieszka Radwańska was 7–11, Petra Kvitová was 8–4, and Sara Errani was 1–8. Like Williams, Sharapova has a good record against each member of her group. Against Radwańska, she is 7–2 lifetime however lost their only encounter of 2012 in the finals of the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open 7–5, 6–4. Against Kvitová, Sharapova leads their head-to-head 4–2, winning their last three encounters most recently in the semifinals of the French Open 6–3, 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
Against Errani, Sharapova leads 1–0 winning their only matchup in the finals of the French Open 6–3, 6–2. Radwańska, on the other hand has a mixed record against Kvitová and Errani. She trails Kvitová 0–3, with their last encounter coming at last year's Championships 7–6(4), 6–3 in a round robin matchup. However, against Errani, Radwańska leads their head-to-head 5–1 winning their last four encounters, most recently in the second round of the 2012 Mutua Madrid Open 6–0, 6–1. In the match-up between Kvitová and Errani, the Czech owns a 3–0 record against Errani with all three meeting coming in straight sets all in 2012 most recently at the New Haven Open at Yale with a 6–1, 6–3 scoreline.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Groupings
The four doubles teams started the semifinals without group play.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Player head-to-head
Below are the head-to-head records as they approached the tournament.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 1
The action in this year's Tour Championships began with the White Group with Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwańska and 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová. The Czech entered the match with a 25-match winning streak on indoor courts with her last defeat coming in Moscow in 2010. Radwańska never having beaten Kvitová before raced out to an early 3–0 lead only to see Kvitová even things out at 3–3. Radwańska however regrouped to win the next three games to take the first set 6–3. Kvitová dropped her first two service games of the second, was able to break back once, but she was unable to threaten the steadier Radwańska who closed out the match with a 6–3, 6–2 scoreline.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 1
They were followed by Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic champion Serena Williams and Wimbledon semifinalist and first time qualifier Angelique Kerber. Similar to the first match Williams raced out to an early 3–0 lead only to see Kerber even things out at 3–3. However four games later Williams was able to break Kerber to win the first set 6–4. The first three games went on serve until Williams was able to break for a 3–1 lead. She held then broke Kerber again, serving out the match 6–4, 6–1.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 1
The final match for the day featured French Open champion Maria Sharapova and French Open finalist Sara Errani. It was a rematch of the 2012 French Open finals. They went on serve until Errani failed to convert either break point at 15–40 on the Sharapova serve. The Russian then broke serve at the eight game and closed it out 6–3. Sharapova then carried on into the second set winning it 6–2.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 2
The second day began with the Red Group with Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic champion Serena Williams and 2011 French Open champion Li Na. The match began with Williams breaking Li's serve to take an early 1–0 lead. However Li was quick to strike back reeling off four games to take a 4–1 lead only to see Williams comeback to take four straight games herself to take a 5–4 lead to serve for the set. Li was able to break at love for 5–5 but was broken right back.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 2
Williams again served for the set but was broken again at love to send the set into a tie-breaker. Williams won it comfortably 7–2 to take a one set lead. The second began in similar fashion with Li breaking for a 1–0 lead only to see Williams again reel off four games to take a 4–1 lead. The rest of the set went on serve until Williams closed out the match 7–6(7–2), 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 2
They were followed by World No. 1 and Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka and Angelique Kerber. Kerber raced out to an early 3–1 lead. Azarenka however was able to level the match at 4–4. The set went on serve and into a near-historic tie-break, where Kerber saved five set points - four with huge forehands - to claim it, 13–11. It was the equal-longest tie-break in the history of the tournament and the first time Kerber had taken a set off Azarenka in their two prior meetings.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 2
The second set began with Azarenka building a 4–2 lead only to see Kerber take three straight games to lead 5–4. Serving to stay in the match Azarenka saved 2 match points with some ferocious ball striking to even the set at 5–5. The set again went to a tie-break which Azarenka won 7–2. Both players went toe to toe in the final set until Azarenka was able to break for 5–3 to serve for the match. Kerber was able to break right back but was unable to hold serve while serving to stay in the match, with Azarenka closing out the 3 hour, 6 minute contest 6–7(9–11), 7–6(7–2), 6–4.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 2
The final match for the day featured Maria Sharapova and Agnieszka Radwańska. It was a rematch of the Sony Ericsson Open finals. The match began with eleven straight holds of serve until Radwańska was able to break Sharapova to take a one set lead 7–5. Sharapova broke Radwańska in the beginning of the first set but Radwańska broke back immediately, Radwańska then led 4–2 with a break, Sharapova then took 3 games in a row but got broken when serving for the set at 5–4. Sharapova then took the next two games to take it to a final set. At the third set both held serve until the fifth and sixth games where both traded breaks of serve. Sharapove then broke at the eleventh game of the set and served it out to win 5–7, 7–5, 7–5.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 3
The day began with the Red Group with Li Na and Angelique Kerber. Prior to the match Li lead their head-to-head 5–1, and both are looking for their first win in the event. Kerber after an amazing display against Azarenka in a 3-hour loss started well and led 4–2, however Li came back and won the first set 6–4 after a doubles fault from the German. Li then closed it out in the second set winning it 6–3.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 3
They were followed by Victoria Azarenka and Serena Williams in a rematch of the 2012 US Open finals. The match began with seven straight holds of serve until Williams was able to break for a 5–3 lead awith a chance to serve out the set. Azarenka was able to break straight back for 4–5 but was unable to hold serve, double-faulting to give away the set one 6–4. Azarenka began the second by reeling of three straight games for a 3–0 lead breaking Williams twice along the way.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 3
However she was unable to hold on as Williams won four straight games herself to take a 4–3 lead. Azarenka was able to hold for 4–4. Williams held for 5–4 with Azarenka now having to serve to stay in the match. She, however was not able to hold serve, double-faulting on match point. Williams have now improved her record against Azarenka to 11–1 and advancing into semifinals as the Red Group's top player with a 3–0 match win record and without the loss of a set. Azarenka will now have to defeat Li Na to advance to the semifinals and secure the year end No.1 or Maria Sharapova will have a chance to end the year at No.1 by winning the title.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Day-by-day summaries, Round Robin, Day 3
The final match for the day featured Sara Errani and 2011 US Open champion Samantha Stosur who entered the event as an alternate due to the withdrawal of defending champion Petra Kvitová. Errani won the match 6–3, 2–6, 6–0 with a doubles fault from Stosur. Stosur ended with 26 more winners but also 24 more unforced errors in an erratic display.


2012 WTA Tour Championships, Finals, Singles
It was Williams' seventh title of the season. It was her third WTA Championships title, having also won in 2001 and 2009.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Doubles
Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond were the defending champions, but lost to Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká in the semifinals. Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova won the title, defeating Hlaváčková and Hradecká in the final, 6–1, 6–4.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles
Petra Kvitová was the defending champion, but withdrew from the tournament after her first match because of nasopharyngitis.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles
Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova in straight sets in a rematch of their 2004 final. Williams did not lose a set in the entire tournament, and as of 2019 remains the most recent champion to do so.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles
Angelique Kerber and Sara Errani made their debut in the event.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles, Draw, Red Group
Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering Committee decision.


2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles, Draw, White Group
Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering Committee decision.


2012 Wagner Seahawks football team
The 2012 Wagner Seahawks football team represented Wagner College in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season as a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC). They were led by 32nd-year head coach Walt Hameline and played their home games at Wagner College Stadium. They are a member of the Northeast Conference. Wagner finished the season 9–4 overall 7–1 in NEC play to share the conference title with Albany. The Seahawks earned the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, the first playoff appearance in school history, where they defeated Colgate in the first round before falling in the second round to Eastern Washington.


2012 Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic season
The 2012 Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic season saw Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic compete in the 2012 ANZ Championship. With a team coached by Noeline Taurua, captained by Laura Langman and featuring Leana de Bruin, Irene van Dyk, Julianna Naoupu and Casey Williams, Magic eventually won the premiership. They became fifth team in as many seasons to win the title. Magic lost their first four matches. However, they subsequently won 12 matches in a row to finish third during the regular season and champions overall.


2012 Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic season
In the minor semi-final they defeated Adelaide Thunderbirds and in the preliminary final they defeated Northern Mystics after extra time. In the grand final they defeated Melbourne Vixens 41–38. As a result, they became the first, and only, New Zealand team to win the Championship. They were also the first and only team to start the season with four defeats and win the title and the first and only team to finish third in the regular season and win the title.


2012 Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic season, Tauranga Pre-Season Tournament
On 2, 3 and 4 March, Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic hosted a pre-season tournament at the TECT Arena in Tauranga. For the first time since 2008, all ten ANZ Championship teams competed at the same tournament. Magic finished the tournament in third place. The tournament was won by Queensland Firebirds who defeated Melbourne Vixens 50–30 in the final.


2012 Wainwright Roaming Buffalo Classic
The 2012 Wainwright Roaming Buffalo Classic was held from November 16 to 19 at the Wainwright Curling Club in Wainwright, Alberta as part of the 2012–13 World Curling Tour. The event was held in a triple knockout format, and the purse for the event was CAD$55,000. In the final, Mark Johnson's Seattle, Washington rink defeated Jamie King of Alberta with a score of 4–3 and won his third title at the Wainwright Roaming Buffalo Classic.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team
The 2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Jim Grobe, who was coaching his twelfth season at the school, and played its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference, as they have since the league's inception in 1953, and are in the Atlantic Division.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Previous season
They finished the 2011 season 6–7, 5–3 in ACC play to finish in a tie for second place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Music City Bowl where they were defeated by Mississippi State 23–17.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Before the season, Recruiting
On national signing day, the Demon Deacons received letters of intent from 19 players.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Liberty
2nd meeting. 1–0 all time. Last meeting 2006, 34–14 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, North Carolina
105th meeting. 34–68–2 all time. Last meeting 2011, 49–24 Tar Heels in Chapel Hill.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Florida State
31st meeting. 6–23–1 all time. Last meeting 2011, 35–30 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Army
12th meeting. 7–4 all time. Last meeting 2007, 21–10 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Duke
93rd meeting. 37–53–2 all time. Last meeting 2011, 24–23 Demon Deacons in Durham.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Maryland
61st meeting. 17–42–1 all time. Last meeting 2011, 31–10 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Virginia
48th meeting. 13–34–0 all time. Last meeting 2008, 28–17 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Clemson
78th meeting. 17–59–1 all time. Last meeting 2011, 31–28 Tigers in Clemson.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Boston College
20th meeting. 7–10–2 all time. Last meeting 2011, 27–19 Demon Deacons in Chestnut Hill.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, NC State
106th meeting. 37–62–6 all time. Last meeting 2011, 34–27 Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Notre Dame
2nd meeting. 0–1 all time. Last meeting 2011, 24–17 Fighting Irish in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team, Game summaries, Vanderbilt
15th meeting. 6–8 all time. Last meeting 2011, 41–7 Commodores in Winston-Salem.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's soccer team
The 2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's soccer team represented Wake Forest University during the 2012 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 49th season of the program. The Deacons played in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament, before losing to Coastal Carolina.


2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's soccer team, Roster
SourceNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2012 Wakefield Metropolitan District Council election
The 2012 Wakefield Metropolitan District Council election was held on 3 May 2012 to elect members of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council in West Yorkshire, England. One third of the council was up for election.


2012 Wakefield Metropolitan District Council election, Council Make-up
The make up of the Council after the election was:


2012 Wales Rally GB
The 68th Wales Rally GB is the tenth round of the 2012 World Rally Championship season and is held between 14 and 16 September 2012.


2012 Wales Rally GB
The rally is also the sixth round of the Super 2000 World Rally Championship.


2012 Wales Rally GB, Results, Power stage
The Power stage was a 15.33 km stage run through The Walters Arena. The three fastest crews through this stage were awarded by drivers' championship points. Mikko Hirvonen was the fastest driver through the stage, earning three additional championship points. Sébastien Loeb was second, while Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala finished third.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
In June 2012, Wales toured Australia as part of the 2012 mid-year rugby test series. They faced Australia in a series of three internationals across the eastern states, starting at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, then moving on to Etihad Stadium in Melbourne, before finishing in Sydney at the Sydney Football Stadium. In addition, they played a tour match against one of Australia's domestic clubs, the Brumbies, at Canberra Stadium.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
Before flying to Australia, Wales also held a one-off match at home so that Rob Howley, the caretaker coach, could finalise the squad. This was held at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff against the Barbarians.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
During this tour, Wales were attempting to regain the James Bevan Trophy they lost in 2009, when Australia beat them 33–12 in Cardiff. They had won it the previous year, 21–18. However, the last time Wales beat Australia in Australia was in 1969, when they won 19–16.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
This tour was the most keenly anticipated rugby tour of the 2012 tours, with Wales going into it as Grand Slam winners of the 2012 Six Nations and Australia as winners of the 2011 Tri Nations.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
Wales lost the series 3–0, continuing their history of not having won in Australia for 43 years. However, all matches were close encounters, and they scored 61 points to Australia's 72. They also played a return match in Cardiff in the 2012 Autumn Internationals that ended in a similar narrow defeat, 14–12.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia
In the last three matches between the two teams, Wales led with five minutes to go and Australia snatched victory from them.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Wales
Towards the end of May, the bulk of the Welsh squad left for Australia, leaving a handful of players to face the Barbarians. After Wales' win over the Barbarians, the few players who had earned their place in the squad during the game left for Australia to join up with the team. Caretaker coach Rob Howley announced a 35-man squad to take to Australia.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Wales
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Australia
Robbie Deans announced his squad to face Wales at the beginning of June. The public already knew that James O'Connor, Kurtley Beale and usual captain James Horwill would all be out of the tour due to injury. From this, Robbie Deans was able to announce his 40-man squad. On 19 June, it was revealed that Beale would return for the third and final test against Wales.


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia, Test matches, First test
Touch judges: Keith Brown Garratt WilliamsonTelevision match official: Vinny Munro


2012 Wales rugby union tour of Australia, Test matches, Second test
Touch judges: Craig Joubert Garratt WilliamsonTelevision match official: Vinny Munro


2012 Wallis and Futuna Territorial Assembly election
Territorial Assembly elections were held in Wallis and Futuna on 25 March 2012.


2012 Wallis and Futuna Territorial Assembly election
Among those to be defeated at the election was Victor Brial, a former member of the French National Assembly.