VALENCIA, Spain, April 16 (UPI) -- Qualifier Nicolas Almagro of Spain beat Gilles Simon of France, 6-2, 6-3, Sunday in the final of the Valencia Open Tennis Tournament at Valencia, Spain.
It was the first career title on the ATP Tour for the 20-year-old Almagro, who is ranked 77th in the world and was playing in his first career final.
He is the first qualifier to win an ATP title since Jerome Haehnel won a tournament in Metz, France, in October 2004. He had beaten two-time Grand Slam champion Marat Safin in the semifinals on Saturday.
The win was worth $46,700, and likely softened Almagro's disappointment over his first-round loss in Valencia in 2004.
Almagro is the third native of Spain to capture the Valencia crown, joining Juan Carlos Ferrero (2003) and Fernando Verdasco (2004).
Simon, whose record for the year fell to 14-12, also was appearing in his first final.
