Book: Open

Author

Andre Agassi

Summary

The life and career of Andre Agassi, former professional tennis player and ATP number one, told from his own perspective.

Takeaways

Andre Agassi played professional tennis from 1986 to 2006 and won eight Grand Slam single championships. He grew up under a dominant farther obsessed with tennis and the success of his children. Andre rose to fame early and struggled for a long time to find out who he was and what he stood for. People took his changing looks, clothes and hair, as a form of self-expression of a rebellious and excentric personality, when it was in fact a form of self-exploration.

Despite being famous, Andre cultivated only a small circle of close friends. The two greatest sources of strength and support were his fitness coach and surrogate father Gil Reyes, and his wife and former world class tennis player Stefanie Graf.

Quotes

“But I don’t feel that Wimbledon has changed me. I feel, in fact, as if I’ve been let in on a dirty little secret: winning changes nothing. Now that I’ve won a slam, I know something that very few people on earth are permitted to know. A win doesn’t feel as good as a loss feels bad, and the good feeling doesn’t last as long as the bad. Not even close."

“My father is what he is, and always will be, and though he can’t help himself, though he can’t tell the difference between loving me and loving tennis, it’s love all the same. Few of us are granted the grace to know ourselves, and until we do, maybe the best we can do is be consistent. My father is nothing if not consistent."

“The essence of good discipline is respect.
Respect for authority and respect for others.
Respect for self and respect for rules.
It is an attitude that begins at home,
Is reinforced at school,
And is applied throughout life."