John McEnroe
John McEnroe is a former professional tennis player born on February 16, 1959, in Wiesbaden, West Germany. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s and 1980s, renowned for his intense competitiveness and unique playing style. McEnroe began playing tennis at age eight and quickly excelled, winning multiple junior titles before turning professional in 1978 after attending Stanford University. Over his career, he secured seven Grand Slam singles titles and nine Grand Slam men's doubles championships, positioning himself as one of tennis's greats.
His rivalry with Björn Borg became one of the sport's most memorable, highlighted by McEnroe's victories at Wimbledon and the US Open. After retiring from the men's tour in 1993, he transitioned to sportscasting and continued to compete in senior tournaments, achieving notable success even years after his peak. McEnroe's personality, marked by both brilliance and controversy, has made him a significant figure in tennis, as he often challenged norms and expectations in the sport. His recent activities include competing in pickleball and receiving accolades like the French Legion of Honour, reaffirming his enduring legacy in the world of sports.
John McEnroe
Professional Tennis Player
- Born: February 16, 1959
- Place of Birth: Wiesbaden, Germany
SPORT: Tennis
Early Life
John Patrick McEnroe Jr. was born on February 16, 1959, in Wiesbaden, West Germany (now in Germany), where his father served in the United States Air Force. He was the first of John Patrick and Kay McEnroe’s three sons. McEnroe was nine months old when the family relocated to Flushing in Queens, New York. When McEnroe was four, the family moved to Douglastown, Queens, where he grew up.
McEnroe discovered tennis when he was eight. His family joined the Douglastown Club, which had five tennis courts. When McEnroe showed an interest in tennis, his father began to play with him and regularly defeated him.
McEnroe attended Buckley Country Day School near his home until he was thirteen. He was a model child who was chiefly concerned with doing well in school and sports. He then attended Trinity School, the oldest continuously operated school in Manhattan, from which he graduated in 1977. He played tennis, football, and soccer at Trinity. Although he was already playing in advanced tennis tournaments, McEnroe never missed school and never fell behind in his academic work.
After Trinity, McEnroe attended Stanford University, where he was on the tennis team. He won the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship as a freshman. By 1978, however, tennis came to assume so important a role in McEnroe’s life that he left Stanford to join the professionals.
Competitive Career
While he was still at Trinity School, McEnroe won several US junior singles and doubles matches. By 1977, he had won the junior titles in the French Open mixed doubles and singles. The next year, after becoming a professional, he won the Italian Indoor Doubles Championship. He defeated Tim Gullikson in both the Stockholm Open and the Benson & Hedges Championships at Wembley in the same year. He also beat Dick Stockton in the TransAmerica Open. In 1979, he beat Vitas Gerulaitis in the US Open and Arthur Ashe in the Masters.
McEnroe, shorter than most of his peers and pudgy in his early teens, had an intensity that became legendary among tennis fans. His furrowed brow bespoke a seriousness and competitiveness seldom seen even in championship tennis circles. His jutting lip and chin suggested unbending determination.
Björn Borg was in many ways McEnroe’s most formidable opponent. Therefore, beating him in the World Championship of Tennis finals of 1979 was particularly sweet. The victory marked an important prelude to other impressive victories that placed McEnroe first among American tennis players and eventually first among all tennis players.
McEnroe defeated Borg in five sets in the men’s singles of the US Open the following year and again in 1981. He also prevailed at the US Open in 1984. In 1981, McEnroe claimed his most important victory over Borg at Wimbledon, where he and Peter Fleming had already taken the men’s doubles titles in 1979 and 1981. He trounced Borg in the men’s singles and won again in 1983 and 1984.
These victories over Borg were more important to McEnroe than his conquest of Jimmy Connors in the 1980 US Indoor Championship men’s singles in Memphis, Tennessee, or of Vitas Gerulaitis in the Custom Credit Australian Indoor Championship men’s singles in Sydney, Australia, the same year despite how impressive these victories were.
After winning the US Pro Indoor Championship from 1982 to 1985 and the US Indoor Championship in both 1980 and 1983, McEnroe slackened his pace during his courtship of actress Tatum O’Neal, which resulted in their marriage in 1986. The couple and their children settled in Malibu, California.
McEnroe prevailed, nevertheless, in the men’s singles competitions of the AT&T Challenge of 1987, in the Japan Open the following year, and in the US Hardcourt Championship of 1989. Fatherhood made McEnroe more attentive to his behavior on court. He began to create a more favorable image. Although his marriage ended in divorce in 1994, McEnroe said that rearing children helped him to become a more real person.
In 1988, when McEnroe played at Wimbledon after a two-year absence, he was in excellent form. He was, however, eliminated early in the competition and left England bemoaning the kind of tennis being played and muttering darkly about the future of the sport. The game of power and pace at which players like Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg, and Ivan Lendl excelled was a new brand of championship tennis that clearly delineated a new generation of tennis champions.
McEnroe may have mellowed through the years, but he did not lose his ardor. In 1992, McEnroe teamed with German Michael Stich to win the doubles title at Wimbledon in dramatic fashion with a 19-17 fifth set. In 1993, he retired from the men’s tour and became a tennis sportscaster for the USA Network. In 1994, he began playing on the Worldwide Senior Tennis Circuit. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999. He was also named captain of the US Davis Cup team in that same year, but he resigned from the position in 2000. A man of many interests, McEnroe also owned an art gallery in New York City and was involved with many charities through his own foundation.
In 1997, McEnroe married rock musician Patty Smyth. They had two daughters together. In addition to his business endeavors and charity outlets, McEnroe established himself as a brilliant tennis analyst on both network and cable television. He also found the time to compete on the senior tennis circuit. In 2006, he returned to the ATP Tour. McEnroe and Jonas Björkman played doubles together at the SAP Open in San Jose, California. In dramatic fashion, they won the tournament. Amazingly, this was the first title that McEnroe had won since 1992. With this win, he became the oldest player to win a prominent tournament in thirty years. In 2012 and 2014, he won the French Open over-45 legends doubles competition with his brother Patrick. With these victories, he had won doubles titles during the 1970s, the 1980s, the 1990s, the 2000s, and the 2010s.
Post-Professional Career
On April 2, 2023, McEnroe participated in the Million dollar Pickleball Slam at the Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida. It was the first live showing of Pickleball on ESPN. McEnroe competed with Michael Chang, Andre Agassi, and Andy Roddick. McEnroe and Chang lost the final match to Roddick and Agassi 3-1.
In 2024, McEnroe was awarded the French Legion of Honour by President Emmanuel Macron. A week later, during the French Open, he reminded fans and listeners of his crass and sometimes inappropriate behavior. While sportscasting the event, McEnroe criticized female winner Iga Swiatek, the number one player in the world at the time, for her appearance.
Summary
McEnroe has won nine Grand Slam men's doubles championships and seven in singles. Recognized as an unusually complex individual, McEnroe was a fierce competitor who expected perfection from himself on the court. Considered by many authorities to be one of the true geniuses of tennis, McEnroe left an indelible mark on the game that he loved. He is remembered as one of the best doubles players to ever compete in the game. His impact on tennis goes beyond just the court. Always forthright and articulate, McEnroe injected fresh and sometimes controversial ideas into tennis. He was a unique kind of champion who asked for better from himself and from those who dared to stand in his way.
Bibliography
Adams, Tim. On Being John McEnroe. New York: Crown, 2003. Print.
Drucker, Joel. “Mac the Nice.” Tennis 35 (June 1999). Print.
Esterow, Milton. “John McEnroe: From Center Court to Soho.” ARTnews 95 (Apr. 1996). Print.
Evans, Richard. McEnroe, Taming the Talent. Lexington: S. Greene, 1990. Print.
Leand, Andrea. “Watch Your Back Mac.” Tennis 36 (Feb. 2000). Print.
Lidz, Franz. “An Invasion of Privacy.” Sports Illustrated 85 (9 Sept. 1996). Print.
"McEnroe Brothers Reunite for Win." ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, 6 June 2012. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
“John McEnroe.” International Tennis Hall of Fame, www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/john-mcenroe. Accessed 19 June 2024.
"John McEnroe on How to Make Tennis More Exciting: Ditch the Umpires." Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 15 Dec. 2015. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
McEnroe, John, with James Kaplan. You Cannot Be Serious. New York: Putnam’s Sons, 2002. Print.
O'Kane, Caitlin. “John McEnroe Angers Fans with Comments about French Open Winner Iga Swiatek — and Confuses Others with Goodbye Message.” CBS News, 10 June 2024, www.cbsnews.com/news/john-mcenroe-french-open-iga-swiatek-makeup-commentating-retirement-goodbye-message-nbc-broadcast/. Accessed 19 June 2024.
Scanlon, Bill, Sonny Long, and Cathy Long. Bad News for McEnroe: Blood, Sweat, and Backhands with John, Jimmy, Ilie, Ivan, Bjorn, and Vitas. New York: St. Martin’s, 2004. Print.