PERSON: John McEnroe

Professional Tennis Player (Retired)

John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles (three at Wimbledon and four at the US Open), nine Grand Slam men’s doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. McEnroe also won a record eight season ending championships, comprising five WCT Finals titles and three Masters Grand Prix titles from 11 final appearances at those two events, a record he shares with Ivan Lendl. Additionally, McEnroe is a former junior Grand Slam champion. During his career McEnroe is listed to have won 77 singles titles by the ATP. In 1984 McEnroe recorded the best single season win-loss record in the Open Era at 96.47% (82/3). In 1981, 1983 and 1984 McEnroe was the ITF World Champion for Men’s singles. He was also named as the ATP player of the year in 1981, 1983 and 1984.

He is best remembered for his shot-making artistry and superb volleying; for his famous rivalries with Björn Borg, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl; and for his confrontational on-court behavior which frequently landed him in trouble with umpires and tennis authorities. McEnroe’s most famous confrontations include his tirade at an umpire during a match at Wimbledon in 1981 and for being disqualified from the 1990 Australian Open. McEnroe has been described as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.

McEnroe is a former Captain of the United States Davis Cup team. As a player McEnroe represented the States and was part of the winning team on four occasions in the Davis Cup. After retiring from professional tennis McEnroe participated in the ATP Champions Tour. McEnroe was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999 and received the Philippe Chatrier Award in 2007. Later in life McEnroe admitted to unwittingly using steroids whilst playing tennis. He however denied claims that he used anabolic steroids during his comeback to the tour. After his tennis career McEnroe became a television commentator a game show host and a chat show host. Additionally, McEnroe has appeared in several films and television shows as himself and has played music live.

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