152 Facts About Andre Agassi

Andre Kirk Agassi is an American former world No 1 tennis player.

Andre Agassi is an eight-time major champion and an Olympic gold medalist, as well as a runner-up in seven other majors.

Andre Agassi is the second of five men to achieve the career Grand Slam in the Open Era and the fifth of eight overall to make the achievement.

Andre Agassi is the first of two men to achieve the career Golden Slam, as well as the only man to win a career Super Slam.

Andre Agassi was the first man to win all four singles majors on three different surfaces, and remains the most recent American man to win the French Open and the Australian Open.

Andre Agassi won 17 Masters titles and was part of the winning Davis Cup teams in 1990,1992 and 1995.

Andre Agassi reached the world No 1 ranking for the first time in 1995, but was troubled by personal issues during the mid-to-late 1990s and sank to No 141 in 1997, prompting many to believe that his career was over.

Andre Agassi returned to No 1 in 1999 and enjoyed the most successful run of his career over the next four years.

Andre Agassi has been married to fellow tennis player Steffi Graf since 2001.

Andre Agassi was born in Las Vegas, Nevada, to Emmanuel "Mike" Agassi, a former Olympic boxer from Iran, and American Elizabeth "Betty" Agassi.

Andre Agassi was given the middle name Kirk after Kirk Kerkorian, an Armenian American billionaire.

Andre Agassi describes memorable experiences and juvenile pranks with Roddy in his book Open.

When he was 13, Andre Agassi was sent to Nick Bollettieri's Tennis Academy in Florida.

Andre Agassi was meant to stay for only three months, because that was all his father could afford.

Andre Agassi turned professional at the age of 16 and competed in his first tournament at La Quinta, California.

Andre Agassi won his first match against John Austin, but then lost his second match to Mats Wilander.

Andre Agassi won his first top-level singles title in 1987 at the Sul American Open in Itaparica and ended the year ranked No 25.

Andre Agassi's year-end ranking was No 3, behind second-ranked Ivan Lendl and top-ranked Mats Wilander.

Strong performances on the tour meant that Andre Agassi was quickly tipped as a future Grand Slam champion.

Andre Agassi began the 1990s with a series of near-misses.

Andre Agassi reached his first Grand Slam final in 1990 at the French Open, where he was favored before losing in four sets to Andres Gomez, which he later attributed in his book to worrying about his wig falling off during the match.

Andre Agassi reached his second Grand Slam final of the year at the US Open, defeating defending champion Boris Becker in the semi-finals.

Andre Agassi lost the US Open final to Sampras in three sets.

Andre Agassi ended 1990 on a high note as he helped the United States win its first Davis Cup in 8 years on home soil against Australia and won his only Tennis Masters Cup, beating reigning Wimbledon champion Stefan Edberg in the final.

In 1991, Andre Agassi reached his second consecutive French Open final, where he faced fellow Bollettieri Academy alumnus Jim Courier.

Andre Agassi decided to play at Wimbledon in 1991, leading to weeks of speculation in the media about the clothes he would wear.

Andre Agassi eventually emerged for the first round in a completely white outfit.

Andre Agassi reached the quarterfinals on that occasion, losing in five sets to David Wheaton.

Along the way, Andre Agassi overcame two former Wimbledon champions: Boris Becker and John McEnroe.

Andre Agassi was named the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year in 1992.

Andre Agassi played on the United States' Davis Cup winning team in 1992.

Andre Agassi famously played the game wearing Oakley brand sunglasses, and a photo of him from the day appeared on the cover of Tennis magazine.

In 1993, Andre Agassi won the only doubles title of his career, at the Cincinnati Masters, partnered with Petr Korda.

Andre Agassi missed much of the early part of that year due to injuries.

Andre Agassi lost in the first round at the US Open to Thomas Enqvist and required wrist surgery late in the year.

Andre Agassi started slowly in 1994, losing in the first week at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Andre Agassi's comeback culminated at the 1994 US Open with a five-set fourth-round victory against Michael Chang.

Andre Agassi then became the first man to capture the US Open as an unseeded player, beating Michael Stich in the final.

In 1995, Andre Agassi shaved his balding head, breaking with his old "image is everything" style.

Andre Agassi competed in the 1995 Australian Open and won, beating defending champion Sampras in a four-set final.

Andre Agassi won three Masters Series events in 1995 and seven titles total.

Andre Agassi compiled a career-best 26-match winning streak during the summer hard-court circuit, with the last victory being in an intense late-night four-set semi-final of the US Open against Boris Becker.

The streak ended the next day when Andre Agassi lost the final to Sampras.

Andre Agassi reached the world No 1 ranking for the first time in April 1995.

Andre Agassi skipped most of the fall indoor season which allowed Sampras to surpass him and finish ranked No 1 at the year-end ranking.

Andre Agassi suffered two early-round losses to Chris Woodruff and Doug Flach at the French Open and Wimbledon, respectively, and lost to Chang in straight sets in the Australian and US Open semi-finals.

At the time, Andre Agassi blamed the Australian Open loss on the windy conditions, but later said in his biography that he had lost the match on purpose, as he did not want to play Boris Becker, whom he would have faced in that final.

The high point for Andre Agassi was winning the men's singles gold medal at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, beating Sergi Bruguera of Spain in the final.

Andre Agassi successfully defended his singles titles in Cincinnati and Key Biscayne.

Andre Agassi later confessed that he started using crystal methamphetamine at that time, allegedly on the urging of a friend.

Andre Agassi failed an ATP drug test, but wrote a letter claiming the same friend had spiked a drink.

Andre Agassi won no top-level titles, and his ranking sank to No 141 on November 10,1997, prompting many to believe that his run as one of the sport's premier competitors was over and he would never again win any significant tournaments.

In 1998, Andre Agassi began a rigorous conditioning program and worked his way back up the rankings by playing in Challenger Series tournaments, a circuit for pro players ranked outside the world's top 50.

In 1998, Andre Agassi won five titles and leapt from No 110 to No 6, the highest jump into the top 10 made by any player during a calendar year.

Andre Agassi won five titles in ten finals and was runner-up at the Masters Series tournament in Key Biscayne, losing to Marcelo Rios, who became No 1 as a result.

Andre Agassi became the only male player to win the Career Super Slam, consisting of all four Grand Slam tournaments plus an Olympic gold medal in singles and a Year-end championship.

Andre Agassi followed his 1999 French Open victory by reaching the Wimbledon final, where he lost to Sampras in straight sets.

Andre Agassi rebounded from his Wimbledon defeat by winning the US Open, beating Todd Martin in five sets in the final.

Andre Agassi ended 1999 as the No 1, ending Sampras's record of six consecutive year-ending top rankings.

Andre Agassi began the next year 2000 by capturing his second Australian Open title, beating Sampras in a five-set semi-final and Yevgeny Kafelnikov in a four-set final.

Andre Agassi was the first male player to have reached four consecutive Grand Slam finals since Rod Laver achieved the Grand Slam in 1969.

At the time, Andre Agassi was only the fourth player since Laver to be the reigning champion of three of four Grand Slam events, missing only the Wimbledon title.

At the inaugural Tennis Masters Cup in Lisbon, Andre Agassi reached the final after defeating Marat Safin in the semi-finals to end the Russian's hopes to become the youngest No 1 in the history of tennis.

Andre Agassi then lost to Gustavo Kuerten in the final, allowing Kuerten to be crowned year-end No 1.

Andre Agassi opened 2001 by successfully defending his Australian Open title with a straight-sets final win over Arnaud Clement.

Andre Agassi recovered from the injury and later that year defended his Key Biscayne title beating then rising Roger Federer in a four-set final.

At the US Open, Andre Agassi overcame No 1 ranked and defending champion Lleyton Hewitt in the semi-finals.

In 2003, Andre Agassi won the eighth Grand Slam title of his career at the Australian Open, where he beat Rainer Schuttler in straight sets in the final.

Andre Agassi had held the No 1 ranking for two weeks, when Lleyton Hewitt took it back on May 12,2003.

Andre Agassi then recaptured the No 1 ranking on June 16,2003, which he held for 12 weeks until September 7,2003.

Andre Agassi's ranking slipped when injuries forced him to withdraw from a number of events.

At the year-end Tennis Masters Cup, Andre Agassi lost in the final to Federer, his third time to finish as runner-up in the event after losses in 1999 and 2000, and finished the year ranked No 4.

In 2004, Andre Agassi began the year with a five-set loss in the semi-finals of the Australian Open to Marat Safin; the loss ended Andre Agassi's 26-match winning streak at the event.

Andre Agassi finished the year ranked No 8, one of the oldest players to finish in the top 10 since the 36-year-old Connors was No 7 in 1988.

At the time, Andre Agassi became the sixth male player during the open era to reach 800 career wins with his first-round victory over Alex Bogomolov in Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles.

Andre Agassi's 2005 began with a quarterfinal loss to Federer at the Australian Open.

Andre Agassi had several other deep runs at tournaments, but had to withdraw from several events due to injury.

Andre Agassi lost to Jarkko Nieminen in the first round of the French Open.

Andre Agassi won his fourth title in Los Angeles and reached the final of the Rogers Cup, before falling to No 2 Rafael Nadal.

Andre Agassi's 2005 was defined by an improbable run to the US Open final.

Andre Agassi finished 2005 ranked No 7, his 16th time in the year-end top-10 rankings, which tied Connors for the most times ranked in the top 10 at year's end.

Andre Agassi withdrew from the Australian Open because of the ankle injury, and his back injury and other pains forced him to withdraw from several other events, eventually skipping the entire clay-court season including the French Open.

Andre Agassi returned for the grass-court season, playing a tune-up, and then Wimbledon.

Andre Agassi was defeated in the third round by world No 2 Rafael Nadal.

Against conventions, Andre Agassi, the losing player, was interviewed on court after the match.

At Wimbledon, Andre Agassi announced his plans to retire following the US Open.

Andre Agassi played only two events during the summer hard-court season with his best result being a quarterfinal loss at the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles to Fernando Gonzalez of Chile, which resulted in him being unseeded at the US Open.

Andre Agassi had a short, but dramatic, run in his final US Open.

Andre Agassi won in five sets as the younger Baghdatis succumbed to muscle cramping in the final set.

Andre Agassi received a four-minute standing ovation from the crowd after the match and delivered a retirement speech.

The rivalry has been called the greatest of the generation of players competing in the 1990s, as Sampras and Andre Agassi were the most successful players of that decade.

Andre Agassi was favored as he was ranked No 4 at the time, compared to the No 12 ranking of Sampras and because Andre Agassi had defeated Sampras in their only previously completed match.

Andre Agassi lost the final to Sampras in straight sets.

Andre Agassi dug himself out from a two-sets-to-love hole, levelling the match at two sets apiece; however, Sampras prevailed in five sets, and went on to win his first Wimbledon championship.

Andre Agassi won three of the finals, including the Australian Open; however, Sampras took the US Open title, ending Andre Agassi's 26-match winning streak.

The next time Sampras and Andre Agassi met in a Grand Slam final was at Wimbledon in 1999, where Sampras won in straight sets.

For both, it was considered a career rejuvenation, as Sampras had suffered a string of disappointments in the previous year while Andre Agassi was regaining his status as a top-ranked player after winning the French Open.

In 2000, the top-ranked Andre Agassi defeated No 3 Sampras in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in five sets, which was an important win for Andre Agassi who had lost 4 of the previous five matches against Sampras.

Sampras had defeated No 3 Tommy Haas in the fourth round and future No 1 Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals, while Andre Agassi had defeated No 1 and defending champion Lleyton Hewitt in the semi-finals.

Michael Chang was the opponent Andre Agassi faced most frequently from all the players other than Sampras.

Andre Agassi won the first four matches including a straight-set victory in round 16 of the 1988 US Open and defeating Chang, the defending champion, in the 1990 French Open in a four-set quarterfinal.

Years after, Andre Agassi shockingly admitted in his book that he had lost the first of the matches on purpose as he did not want to face Boris Becker, who was awaiting the winner in the final.

Andre Agassi won the last four of their matches, with the last being in 2003 at the Miami Open with Chang being clearly past his prime.

Becker won their first three matches in 1988 and 1989 before Andre Agassi reversed the rivalry in 1990, and won 10 of their last 11 matches.

Andre Agassi, considered a baseliner with a playing style not suiting grass, shocked Becker, a three-time champion, in a five-set quarterfinal at Wimbledon in 1992 on his way to his first Grand Slam title.

Andre Agassi won the first two in 1993 and 1999, while Rafter took their 2000 and 2001 encounters, the latter two matches being gruelling 5-setters often being presented on the lists of best matches ever played.

Andre Agassi won both their meetings at the Australian Open, in 1995 and 2001, on his way to the title on both occasions.

Andre Agassi won their first three matches, but then went on to lose eight consecutive ones.

Andre Agassi defeated Federer at the 2001 US Open and the finals of the Miami Open in 2002.

At the 2005 Dubai Championships, Federer and Andre Agassi attracted worldwide headlines with a publicity stunt that saw the two tennis legends play on a helipad almost 220 meters above sea level at the hotel Burj al-Arab.

Since retiring after the 2006 US Open, Andre Agassi has participated in a series of charity tournaments and continues his work with his own charity.

Andre Agassi played an exhibition match at Wimbledon, teaming with his wife, Steffi Graf, to play with Tim Henman and Kim Clijsters.

Andre Agassi played World Team Tennis for the Philadelphia Freedoms in the summer of 2009.

At the 2009 French Open, Andre Agassi was on hand to present Roger Federer, who completed his Career Grand Slam by winning the tournament and joined Andre Agassi as one of six men to complete the Career Grand Slam, with the trophy.

Also in 2009, Andre Agassi played at the Outback Champions Series event for the first time.

Andre Agassi played the Cancer Treatment Centers of America Tennis Championships at Surprise, Arizona, where he reached the final before bowing to eventual champion Todd Martin.

Andre Agassi returned to the tour renamed for the PowerShares Series in 2011 and participated in a total of seven events while winning two.

Andre Agassi beat Courier in the final of the Staples Champions Cup in Boston and later defeated Sampras at the CTCA Championships at his hometown Las Vegas.

In 2012, Andre Agassi took part in five tournaments, winning three of those.

At the Camden Wealth Advisors Cup's final in Houston, Andre Agassi beat James Blake for a rematch of their 2005 US Open quarterfinal.

Andre Agassi defeated Blake again in Portland to win the title of the Cancer Treatment Centers of America Championships.

In 2015, Andre Agassi took part in just one event of the PowerShares Series, losing to Mark Philippoussis in the final of the Champions Shootout.

Andre Agassi returned to the tour in May 2017 in the position of coach to Novak Djokovic for the French Open.

Andre Agassi announced the end of the partnership on March 31,2018, stating that there were too many disagreements in the relationship.

Early in his career, Andre Agassi would look to end points quickly by playing first-strike tennis, typically by inducing a weak return with a deep, hard shot, and then playing a winner at an extreme angle.

Andre Agassi's favored groundstroke was his flat, accurate two-handed backhand, hit well cross-court but especially down the line.

Andre Agassi's forehand was nearly as strong, especially his inside-out to the ad court.

Andre Agassi's strength was in dictating play from the baseline, and he was able to consistently take the ball on the rise.

Gilbert encouraged Andre Agassi to wear out opponents with his deep, flat groundstrokes and to use his fitness to win attrition wars, and noted Andre Agassi's two-handed backhand down the line as his very best shot.

Andre Agassi was raised on hardcourts, but found much of his early major-tournament success on the red clay of Roland Garros, reaching two consecutive finals there early in his career.

Andre Agassi later switched to Head Ti Radical racket and Head's LiquidMetal Radical racket, having signed a multimillion-dollar endorsement deal with Head in 1993.

Andre Agassi renewed his contract in 1999, and in November 2003 he signed a lifetime agreement with Head.

On July 25,2005, Andre Agassi left Nike after 17 years and signed an endorsement deal with Adidas.

Andre Agassi was sponsored by DuPont, Ebel, Mountain Dew in 1993, Mazda in 1997, Kia Motors in 2002, American Express and Deutsche Bank in 2003.

Andre Agassi signed a multiyear contract with Twinlab and promoted the company's nutritional supplements.

Andre Agassi has appeared in many advertisements and television commercials with Graf.

Andre Agassi was married to Brooke Shields from 1997 to 1999.

Andre Agassi married Steffi Graf on October 22,2001, at their Las Vegas home; the only witnesses were their mothers.

Andre Agassi has said that he and Graf are not pushing their children toward becoming tennis players.

Andre Agassi said that he had always hated tennis during his career because of the constant pressure it exerted on him.

Andre Agassi said he wore a hairpiece earlier in his career and thought Pete Sampras was "robotic".

In 2017, Andre Agassi appeared in the documentary film Love Means Zero, which highlighted the troubled relationship between his coach Nick Bollettieri and him.

Andre Agassi has donated more than $100,000 to Democratic candidates, and $2,000 to Republicans.

Andre Agassi was awarded the ATP Arthur Ashe Humanitarian award in 1995 for his efforts to help disadvantaged youth.

Andre Agassi has been cited as the most charitable and socially involved player in professional tennis.

Andre Agassi's charities help in assisting children reach their athletic potential.

In 1997, Andre Agassi donated funding to Child Haven for a six-room classroom building now named the Andre Agassi Center for Education.

Andre Agassi's foundation provided $720,000 to assist in the building of the Andre Agassi Cottage for Medically Fragile Children.

In 2007, along with several other athletes, Andre Agassi founded the charity Athletes for Hope, which helps professional athletes get involved in charitable causes and aims to inspire all people to volunteer and support their communities.

Andre Agassi created the Canyon-Agassi Charter School Facilities Fund, now known as the Turner-Agassi Charter School Facilities Fund.

In February 2014, Andre Agassi remodeled the vacant University of Phoenix building in Las Vegas as a new school, called the Doral Academy West through the Canyon-Andre Agassi Charter School Facilities Fund.

Andre Agassi is the 5th of 8 male players in history to achieve this.