Editor's Note: A version of this story appears in the 2023 US Open Program.
Collegiate tennis has long been a pathway to the pros, but in recent years it’s an alternative road that has become increasingly well traveled.
In generations past, legends of the game like John McEnroe (Stanford), Billie Jean King (Cal State LA), Arthur Ashe (UCLA), Althea Gibson (Florida A&M) and Stan Smith (USC) all played at the college level. More recently, James Blake (Harvard) and the Bryan brothers (Stanford) have continued the tradition, which has carried even more significance in the past decade.
At the conclusion of Wimbledon, 17 former collegians were among the singles Top 100 (13 men, four women) and 26 were inside the doubles Top 50 (18 men, eight women).
Among those names is 20-year-old American Ben Shelton, who soared as high as world No. 35 this spring. Less than two years before his breakout run to this year’s Australian Open quarterfinals, Shelton was playing for the Florida Gators at the USTA National Campus, battling in the bottom half of the team’s lineup at the 2021 NCAA Division I Championships in Lake Nona, Fla.
Playing under the tutelage of his father and head coach, Bryan Shelton (Georgia Tech), Ben scored the clinching point to earn the Gators their first national title in men’s tennis. The following season, he capped off his collegiate career as a sophomore by winning the 2022 NCAA singles title. (Coach Shelton has since left the Gators to work with his son on the ATP Tour.)
"I think college tennis is a great step to becoming a professional," Shelton said this year at the Aussie Open, looking back on his time with the Gators. "I think you learn about playing for something bigger than yourself and you learn a lot of things off the court as well, outside of tennis. Just life skills that help you along the way. I really enjoyed my time in college and I think that it’s beneficial for everyone who goes."
The Division I tournament returned to the USTA National Campus this past spring, this time alongside the Division II and Division III finales. It was a historic joint Championships, with the men’s and women’s team events for all three divisions hosted at the same site for the first time.
The DI team titles went to the Virginia men and the North Carolina women, with UNC’s Fiona Crawley and Carson Tanguilig also winning the doubles tournament. In the men’s individuals, Georgia’s Ethan Quinn claimed the singles crown.
Continuing a tradition for American NCAA individual champions, all three have been awarded main-draw wild cards for the 2023 US Open—Quinn in men’s singles, and Crawley and Tanguilig for women’s doubles.
Martin Blackman (Stanford), general manager of USTA Player and Coach Development called the awarding of wild cards to the trio reflective of "the USTA's continued commitment to supporting a pathway into pro tennis for our top-performing American collegians at the NCAA Division I level.”
That commitment has also helped players like Wimbledon quarterfinalist Christopher Eubanks (Goergia Tech) and J.J. Wolf (Ohio State) succeed on the ATP Tour, as well as fellow Americans like John Isner (Georgia), Mackenzie McDonald (UCLA), Marcos Giron (UCLA) and Maxime Cressy (UCLA). American doubles stars Austin Krajicek (Texas A&M) and Rajeev Ram (Illinois) have both enjoyed stints as world No. 1 following college careers.
On the women’s side, former college stars Danielle Collins (Virginia) and Jennifer Brady (UCLA) provided an example for Emma Navarro (Virginia) and Peyton Stearns (Texas), who won the 2021 and 2022 NCAA singles titles, respectively, before going on to crack the WTA’s Top 60 early in their pro careers. Desirae Krawczyk (Arizona State), a four-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, leads the way in doubles as a Top 10 fixture.
Ask any of those players about their time in college, and you’ll hear a number of different reasons as to why the pathway worked for them. Whether it’s the on-campus coaching and resources, the time spent maturing as a player and person, the financial savings or the team environment, there’s no shortage of perks to the college game for aspiring pros.
"No words can describe how much the team and staff have impacted my life for the better," Stearns said upon turning pro last summer, following back-to-back NCAA team titles with the Longhorns. "During the two years I spent at Texas, I found and established a second family. The team and staff helped me not only become a better tennis player, but more importantly, a better person off the court.
"I am so thankful for all the help and efforts put into my career goals while at Texas. I'm so happy that I decided to come to college, and even happier that I attended The University of Texas."
The 21-year-old reached her first WTA final this April in Bogota, then followed it up with a third-round run at Roland Garros. Now in her sophomore season as a pro, she'll hope to make the grade in her second US Open appearance by notching her first main draw win in New York.
