Open summary

When Agassi was just nine years old, he famously hustled legendary football player Jim Brown in three straight sets. But that was nothing compared to what happened a few days later. Agassi was beating his father 5–2 in the first set when Agassi senior suddenly abandoned the match.

Playing against older players was nothing new to Agassi. He’d already been playing in junior tournaments against older kids for a year by the time he beat his father.

Agassi turned pro on April 29, 1986, his sixteenth birthday. That day, he lost in the final of the Florida Masters tournament. He faced a dilemma. If he accepted the $1,100 second-place prize, it would mean accepting a livelihood as a professional tennis player.

Sure, it was great to have some much-needed money. But it didn’t make an iota of difference to his feelings about tennis. He still hated it, and he’d have to face that for the rest of his career. He took the money.

In 1987, Agassi shocked the world by taking home $90,000 from his first tournament win in Brazil. He was just 17 years old. He couldn’t resist splashing the cash and bought a white Corvette.

Success continued apace in 1988. But, after he lost in five sets to world number three Mats Wilander in the semi-finals of the French Open, it was clear his stamina and physical abilities needed to be worked on. He needed a trainer.

Reyes was the consummate professional, and before long Agassi’s game improved rapidly. The trainer even developed specific exercises that took account of Agassi’s lower back problems. Agassi had been born with spondylolisthesis, a slippage of the vertebrae that can be exceptionally painful. Reyes also blended a special sports drink to keep Agassi hydrated during and after matches. This was the famous "Gil Water,” a mixture of water, carbohydrates, salt and electrolytes.

The fundamentals were in place. But a grand slam title was still beyond Agassi's grasp. Achieve that, and he would finally gain the respect of his peers and the press.

After his Wimbledon success, Agassi’s life entered the realms of the surreal. The president invited him to the White House, and he had a brief but intense friendship with Barbara Streisand.

He was also introduced to and began dating Brooke Shields, an actress whom he'd had a crush on for years.

Soon after he got married, Agassi hit rock bottom. The tennis authorities informed him that he’d tested positive for an illegal drug. He ended up lying his way out of trouble, but he felt dreadful doing so, and his ranking dropped to 141.

But Agassi knew himself well. He needed to set himself a challenge, to aim for something. His goal would be to regain his number one spot in the rankings.

Steffi Graf, the German tennis great, was also due to play the 1999 French Open.

Gilbert had a hunch that Agassi and Graf would hit it off and so made sure to book Agassi's practice court right next to Graf’s. Things were slow and hesitant at first, just a little small talk, and Graf had a boyfriend whom she’d been with for years.

In early 2001, Graf was pregnant with their first child. Agassi responded by bouncing around that year’s French Open like a teenager. Sadly though, his body couldn't take the strain, and he crashed out in the quarterfinals to Pete Sampras.

Their first child, Jaden, was born soon after. A second daughter, Jaz Elle, followed in 2003. These two kept him motivated in his last remarkable years of professional tennis, despite the pain he was experiencing.