1961 U.S. National Championships – Men's singles

Roy Emerson defeated Rod Laver 7–5, 6–3, 6–2 in the final to win the men's singles tennis title at the 1961 U.S. National Championships.

Seeds
The seeded players are listed below. Roy Emerson is the champion; others show the round in which they were eliminated.


 * 1) 🇦🇺 Rod Laver (finalist)
 * 2) 🇺🇸 Chuck McKinley (third round)
 * 3) 🇦🇺 Roy Emerson (champion)
 * 4) 🇬🇧 Mike Sangster (semifinals)
 * 5) 🇦🇺 Bob Mark (fourth round)
 * 6) 🇺🇸 Frank Froehling (third round)
 * 7) 🇺🇸 Jon Douglas (quarterfinals)
 * 8) 🇺🇸 Ron Holmberg (quarterfinals)

Key

 * Q = Qualifier
 * WC = Wild card
 * LL = Lucky loser
 * r = Retired