Age was nothing but a number when 15-year-old Coco Gauff stormed onto the Grand Slam scene this summer at Wimbledon, cruising through to the Round of 16 after defeating idol Venus Williams, as well as Magdalena Rybarikova and Polona Hercog, before falling to Simona Halep in the fourth round.
Even though playing on such a big stage on foreign ground was a new experience, the Delray Beach, Florida, native, who was born March 13, 2004, found the grassy vibe to feel just like home. "I really did feel like I was probably playing in New York somewhere," Gauff said at the time. "It was really surprising because you don't really expect this kind of support when you're in another country."
Her prowess on the courts has won her tons of fan support, even from celebrities ranging sports stars like Abby Wambach and Magic Johnson to performers like Jaden Smith, Snoop Dogg and the Spice Girls’ Geri Haliwell. And of course, there was that famous meeting with former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Here in Flushing Meadows for the 2019 US Open, the teenager is already showcasing her trademark power and spunk by weaving through to Round 3, where she plays fellow breakout favorite, No. 1 seed Naomi Osaka in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday.
If Gauff pulls through Week 2 and captures the title next Saturday, it would make her the youngest American—and the youngest player ever—to win a Grand Slam at the age of 15 years and 5 months.
Here, we take a look at the 10 youngest American-born women to have captured Slam titles in the Open era.
1- Tracy Austin
Title: US Open in 1979
Age at Win: 16 years, 9 months
The teen stunned No. 1 seed and four-time champion Chris Evert with a straight-sets victory, 6-4, 6-3.
2- Serena Williams
Title: US Open in 1999
Age at Win: 17 years, 11 months
Ranked No. 6 at the time, after a season that saw her claim titles in Paris, Indian Wells and Los Angeles, Serena claimed the Flushing Meadows crown, beating No. 1 seed Martina Hingis in the final, 6-3, 7-6—and making her the first black female Slam winner since Althea Gibson won Wimbledon in 1957 and 1958.
3- Chris Evert
Title: French Open in 1974
Age at Win: 19 years, 6 months
She made her first Slam appearance at the 1971 US Open when she was 16, making it to the semifinals, where she lost to Billie Jean King. Evert reached the finals of the French Open and Wimbledon in 1973 before winning the clay-court title the next year.
4- Venus Williams
Title: Wimbledon in 2000
Age at Win: 20 years, 0 months
Even though she had her earliest US Open exit in six years at the 2019 US Open, Venus won the first of her five wins on grass in 2000, in addition to two hard-court wins in Flushing (2000, 2001).
5- Lindsay Davenport
Title: US Open in 1998
Age at Win: 22 years, 3 months
The 6-foot-2 Californian won 55 titles, including three majors, first in New York in 1998, followed by wins on the other surfaces (Wimbledon in 1999 and Australia Open in 2000).
6- Barbara Jordan
Title: Australian Open in 1979
Age at Win: 22 years, 8 months
Jordan, who later worked as an attorney for the city of San Jose, California, scored a single Slam win after a 6-3, 6-3 victory over former Australian Open champ, American Sharon Walsh.
7- Sloane Stephens
Title: US Open in 2017
Age at Win: 24 years, 5 months
The No. 11 seed at the 2019 US Open was upset in the first round by Anna Kalinskaya this year, but emerged victorious in 2017, her only Slam title so far.
8- Billie Jean King
Title: Wimbledon in 1968
Age at Win: 24 years, 8 months
With 39 total Grand Slam titles (12 singles, 16 women's doubles and 11 mixed doubles) on both sides of the Open era, her first major win actually came at Wimbledon two years before the start of the Open Era.
9- Jennifer Capriati
Title: Australian Open in 2001
Age at Win: 24 years, 10 months
In 1990, a Sports Illustrated cover boasted, “And she’s only 13!” timed with her professional debut, before she went on to claim three Slam trophies.
10- Nancy Richey-Gunter
Title: French Open in 1968
Age at Win: 25 years, 10 months
The 5-foot-3 baseline powerhouse played in 12 major finals in singles and doubles, taking her first singles win the 1968 Roland Garros over Ann Haydon Jones of the United Kingdom, 5-7, 6-4. 6-1.
