Status: ATP#119 has career wins over Coria and Blake this week in Washington. 2005 U.S. Open junior boys champ (d. Chardy). Attended Univ. of Florida.
Ht: 6-5 Wt: 190
DOB: July 14, 1987 In: Nassau, Bahamas
Tennis Inspirations: “You gotta throw Sampras and Agassi in there, watching them growing up. Huge motivation. And I guess just seeing my mom (Cindy) be successful in life. Just, it helps me do what I’m good at and be successful in that.”
Hobbies/Interests: “Really laid back, go to movies, go to the beach. Really relaxed when I’m not on the court, not training. You rarely get time to just kick back. That’s mostly what I like to do, just relax.”
Nicknames: “No nicknames [smiles].”
Favorite Movies: “Let’s see…we gotta throw in Casino, Departed, 300, Office Space.”
Favorite TV Shows: “Friends, Prison Break, Lost, 24.”
Musical Tastes: “The Postal Service – really good. You gotta love U2. Pretty much anything and everything but country [smiles].”
First Tennis Memory: “Picking up a racquet and hitting my first tennis ball with my mom. First. I still remember it like it was yesterday. I was seven. (Remember what you did that first day?) Awful. I swung and I missed [smiles]. Swung and I missed. And I ran back to get the ball, instead of just having my mom hit me another one. I ran to get another one. (Good memory!) I remember it like it was yesterday. I really enjoyed it and grew to love it. I love it. It’s what I want to do.”
Favorite Meal: “My mom’s steak and mashed potatoes.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Cookies and cream.”
Pre-Match Feeling: “Focused. Very focused. Don’t hear anything, don’t talk to anyone. Listen to my music and get in the zone.”
Greatest Sports Moment: “My pro career – I really haven’t had too many highlights. Just getting to the second round of the U.S. Open, going five sets with Olivier Rochus who was #26 in the world, was a good feeling.”
Most Painful Moment: “Probably losing that five set match to Rochus. When I was up a break in the fourth set to win the match, when I started cramping.”
Favorite Tournament: “Flushing Meadows, New York, at the U.S. Open is my favorite.”
Best You Ever Felt On Court: “The second, the third and the beginning of the fourth set with the match against Rochus was the best tennis I’ve ever played in my life. I lost the first then I won the second and the third, up two sets to one and four games to two in the fourth when I started to cramp. But I played the best I’ve ever played that match.”
Closest Tennis Friends: “There’s three or four. Alex Kuznetsov, Scott Oudsema, Brendan Evans, Troy Hahn. Everyone knows everyone and everyone’s really friendly. The American guys stick together, we have a good group.”
Funniest Player Encountered: “All my friends I just named. We all laugh, we all joke a lot, they’re all the funniest ones.”
Toughest Competitors: “Let me think about it…Olivier Rochus is tough guy to play. The toughest guy I’ve played.”
Favorite Players To Watch: “I love watching Federer. I like watching Nadal especially on clay, he’s just amazing.”
Funny Tennis Memory: “It’s not a specific moment but probably being the practice partner for the U.S. Davis Cup team going over to Moscor and Czech Republic with Andy, James, and the Bryans and just playing points with them, interacting with them on the court was probably the funniest times because it’s serious times but there’s times when we joke a lot. I think those are the fun times, nothing specific.”
Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “No, no embarrassing moment.”
Last Book Read: “Angels & Demons.”
Last Vacation: “I can’t remember where I went. Probably a cruise in the Caribbean.”
People Qualities Most Admired: “Just really modest, humble, down to earth people are the people I like the most. People that aren’t too cocky or too much to say. Just basically people that are really down to earth, really real people.”
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Photo Credit: Ed Goldman
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