Craig Wittus: Open, An Autobiography by Andre Agassi
By Craig Wittus, Director of Tennis, The Westin Diplomat, Hallandale, Florida 33019
Title: Open, An Autobiography
Author: Andre Agassi
Publisher: Knopf 2009
I just finished reading Andre Agassi’s book “Open” I thought it was one of the best biographies I have ever read. Aided by ghost writer and Pulitzer Prize winner J. R. Moehringer, Andre tells us the truth about his life growing up in the professional tennis world. How many of us knew that Andre truly hated tennis? Did you know that his father (an expert Armenian wrestler) bought a house specifically so that he could have enough land to build a tennis court?
The realtor would bring him to a house and he wouldn’t even look at the house he would head towards the back yard to see if there was enough space. The senior Agassi also built a ball machine that shot balls out at 110 MPH.
Andre called it “The Dragon.” We constantly hear about the stories of these domineering fathers and how they have ruined their children’s lives.
Andre spent time at the Nick Bolletieri Tennis Academy in Florida where he polished his tennis, wore a Mohawk, eyeliner and earring, and learned other malevolent activities. Later he married actress Brook Shields, but the relationship failed and en route he turned to more drinking (hard liquor) and snorting crystal meth. This revelation is the one that has turned the tennis world upside down. Apparently Andre tested positive at a tournament and the Association of Tennis Profession (ATP), aware of this result asked for a reason. Again another revelation-Andre lied to the ATP saying that he accidentally drank a spiked soda, and the ATP accepted his claim, without supporting evidence. Andre drifted downward in the rankings and out of the top 100 players in the world. Drugs, drinking and a bad marriage heavily influenced his motivation and game. Then based on his incredible ability and resilience, he mounted a comeback to become the number one tennis player in the world. He married multi Grand Slam winner Steffi Graf, who also had a task master for a father, and now they live together with their 2 children in Las Vegas and have vowed to not have their children play tennis. His foundation, the Andre Agassi Foundation For Education has raised over 135 million dollars to support the “Andre Agassi Preparatory School” in Las Vegas, Nevada, a charter school dedicated to under privileged children in the Las Vegas area.
“Open” is a must read for every parent with a tennis child, hoping for the next “uber” star. It’s also for every young high school and middle school tennis player to read about one of the great professional tennis players of our time and what lessons we can all learn. Andre survived, but barely and transformed himself from a rebellious spoiled brat to an Ambassador of Tennis and a great humanitarian.
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