Andre Agassi

Andre Agassi is an American former professional tennis player and the author of Open: An Autobiography. Born in Las Vegas in 1970, he played professionally from 1986 until 2006. He won eight Grand Slam singles titles and an Olympic singles gold medal, and held the world number-one ranking during his career.

His father, Mike Agassi, had represented Iran as an Olympic boxer and introduced his children to tennis at an early age. Andre’s childhood training took place on a court built at the family home. He later attended Nick Bollettieri’s tennis academy in Florida before entering the professional tour as a teenager. His early public image was associated with unconventional clothing, long hair, and commercial endorsements, alongside his success as a returner and baseline player.

Agassi won his first major singles championship at Wimbledon in 1992. He subsequently won the US Open in 1994 and 1999, the Australian Open in 1995, 2000, 2001, and 2003, and the French Open in 1999. His victory in Paris completed his collection of the four major singles titles. Together with the gold medal he won at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, those results gave him a career Golden Slam.

His career included a decline in the world rankings during the late 1990s followed by a return to the top of the sport. He also represented the United States in the Davis Cup. His final professional tournament was the 2006 US Open, ending a tour career that had begun twenty years earlier.

Outside tennis, Agassi established a foundation focused on educational opportunities for children. His work included the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy in Las Vegas. He married fellow tennis champion Stefanie Graf, and they have two children. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011. His published autobiography describes his sporting career, childhood, relationships, and work outside competition; the shorter publication The Whirl reproduces a selection from that memoir.

Agassi worked with journalist J. R. Moehringer on Open, which appeared in 2009, three years after his retirement from the professional tour.

Tennis Books

Open: An Autobiography: Agassi recounts his upbringing under a demanding father, his years at a Florida tennis academy, and his development into a professional champion. The memoir follows his victories, losses, injuries, struggles with motivation, and uneasy relationship with celebrity. It also covers his marriage to Brooke Shields, his relationship with Stefanie Graf, and his interest in education and philanthropy. Written with J. R. Moehringer, the book describes the contrast between his public success and his private resentment of tennis, including his fall in the rankings and subsequent return to major-championship success.

The Whirl: This short publication is an extract from Open: An Autobiography, centered on Agassi’s childhood and his relationship with his father. Seven-year-old Andre wants to stop playing tennis, while Mike Agassi is determined to make his son the world’s leading player. The account describes the father’s background in Iran, his introduction to tennis, and the relentless training he imposes. Its subject is the conflict between a child’s wishes and a parent’s sporting ambitions, before the tournament victories and celebrity covered in the full memoir.