In his two-decade transformation from tennis’ raging rebel to its respected voice of reason, Andre Agassi established a reputation as one of the most charismatic competitors of the Open Era.

He was once the sport’s biggest draw and greatest showman, but one of the most rebellious, reverential and redemptive acts of Andre Agassi’s life came off the court in his career-long quest to transform incarceration into inspiration.

In his new autobiography, Open, Agassi paints a revealing, compelling, entertaining and sometimes self-serving portrait of an ex-champ as ex-con.
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He stands 6-foot-6 and seemed to be swinging from a tree top when he launched his chiseled frame into a serve so massive he could make a tennis ball sound like a wrecking ball when it battered against the back wall and reverberated around the court. (more…)

Addicts who adhere to the 12-step program will tell you the first step toward recovery is admitting there’s a problem.

Enablers have a slightly different approach to problem solving: denial, obfuscation and cover up at all costs. (more…)

Tennis is all about problem solving and Donna Fales has spent the better part of four decades searching out solutions on and off the court. (more…)

There’s an old adage in gaming circles — the house always wins. In tennis, where there mere mention of betting is a welcome as the prospect of rotator cuff surgery for the Statue of Liberty, this adage is particulary true if the house happens to be in Southern California and Hall of Famer Pancho Segura is the one occupying it. (more…)

In the pass-fail world of professional tennis, top players often arrive in the fall season feeling down a break.

It has become a familiar refrain over the years — as familiar as a Vincent Price film festival during Halloween or a chorus of out of tune revelers stumbling through Auld Lang Syne as if navigating a lyrical obstacle course after the ball drops on New Year’s Eve.  (more…)

You’ve seen Roger Federer make the strings sing, but you haven’t really lived until you’ve seen the Swiss stylist in full song. (more…)

He is the voice many of the world’s top players hope to hear  in their head and now Sven Groeneveld is working to create a collective voice for elite professional tennis coaches. (more…)

Top tennis players can reside in that rare air that is their own personal never land. (more…)

Spitting showers continued for much of the dreary day outside, while the spinning statements commenced indoors as USTA officials were left to address scheduling and ceiling issues in the wake of this shower-stalled US Open. (more…)