Steffi Graf

For the Austrian runner, see Stephanie Graf.
"Peter Graf" redirects here. For the German painter, see Peter Graf (painter).

Steffi Graf
Graf in 2010
Full nameStefanie Maria Graf[1]
Country (sports) West Germany (1982–1990)
 Germany (1990–1999)
ResidenceLas Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Born (1969-06-14) 14 June 1969 (age 55)
Mannheim, West Germany
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[2]
Turned pro1982
Retired1999
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
CoachPeter Graf
Pavel Složil (1986–1991)
Heinz Günthardt (1992–1999)
Prize money$21,895,277[3]
Int. Tennis HoF2004 (member page)
Singles
Career record900–115
Career titles107 (3rd all-time)
Highest rankingNo. 1 (17 August 1987)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (1988, 1989, 1990, 1994)
French OpenW (1987, 1988, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1999)
WimbledonW (1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996)
US OpenW (1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsW (1987, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996)
Olympic GamesW (1988)
Doubles
Career record173–72
Career titles11
Highest rankingNo. 3 (3 March 1987)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenSF (1988, 1989)
French OpenF (1986, 1987, 1989)
WimbledonW (1988)
US OpenSF (1986, 1987, 1988, 1989)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour FinalsSF (1986, 1987, 1988)
Olympic GamesSF (1988)
Mixed doubles
Career record9–7
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian Open2R (1991)
French Open2R (1994)
WimbledonSF (1999)
US Open1R (1984)
Team competitions
Fed CupW (1987, 1992)
Hopman CupW (1993)
Medal record
Representing  West Germany
Gold medal – first place 1988 Seoul Singles
Bronze medal – third place 1988 Seoul Doubles
Representing  Germany
Silver medal – second place 1992 Barcelona Singles

Stefanie Maria Graf (/ɡrɑːf, ɡræf/ GRA(H)F, German: [ˈʃtɛfi ˈɡʁaːf] ⓘ;[4][5] born 14 June 1969) is a German former professional tennis player.[a] She won 22 major singles titles,[7] the second-most in women's singles won since the start of the Open Era in 1968 and the third-most of all-time.

In 1988, Graf became the only tennis player to achieve the Golden Slam by winning all four major singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year.[8] She is the only tennis player, male or female, to have won each major singles tournament at least four times - a quadruple Career Grand Slam.

Graf was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for a record 377 total weeks.[9] She won 107 singles titles, ranking her third on the WTA's all-time list after Martina Navratilova (167 titles) and Chris Evert (157 titles). She and Margaret Court are the only players, female or male, to win three majors in a calendar year five times (1988, 1989, 1993, 1995 and 1996).

Notable features of Graf's game were her versatility across all playing surfaces, footwork and powerful forehand drive.[10] Graf's athletic ability and aggressive game played from the baseline have been credited with developing the modern style of play that has come to dominate today's game.[11][12][13][14] She won six French Open singles titles (second to Evert), seven Wimbledon singles titles, four Australian Open titles, and five US Open singles titles. She is the only singles player (male or female) to have achieved a Grand Slam across three surfaces (grass, clay, and hard courts). Graf reached 13 consecutive singles major finals from the 1987 French Open to the 1990 French Open, winning nine of them. She won five consecutive singles majors (1988 Australian Open to 1989 Australian Open), and seven out of eight, in two calendar years (1988 Australian Open to 1989 US Open, except 1989 French Open). She reached a total of 31 major finals in singles.

Graf retired at the age of 30 in 1999 while ranked as the world No. 3. Martina Navratilova placed Graf at the top of her list of the greatest players ever. In the year of Graf's retirement, Billie Jean King said, "Steffi [Graf] is definitely the greatest women's tennis player of all time."[15] In December 1999, Graf was named the greatest female tennis player of the 20th century by a panel of experts assembled by the Associated Press.[16] When asked in an interview to name the greatest players of all time, Serena Williams stated Graf and Roger Federer.[17] Graf married former world No. 1 men's tennis player Andre Agassi in October 2001. They have two children. Graf was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004. Along with Boris Becker, Graf was considered instrumental in popularizing tennis in Germany, where it remains one of the foremost national sports.[18][19][20]

  1. ^ Bob Carter. "Graf, queen of the lawn". ESPN. Archived from the original on 15 April 2005. Retrieved 29 May 2005.
  2. ^ "Player profile – Steffi Graf". Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  3. ^ "13 women have passed $20 million now". Women's Tennis Association (WTA). 3 November 2015. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  4. ^ "Duden | Steffi | Rechtschreibung, Bedeutung, Definition". Duden (in German). Archived from the original on 21 October 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  5. ^ Wells, John C. (2008), Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.), Longman, ISBN 9781405881180
  6. ^ "2022 Great Immigrants". 2022. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  7. ^ "Steffi Graf Year In Detail". Archived from the original on 22 July 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  8. ^ Greenstreet, Rosanna (22 June 2013). "Q&A: Steffi Graf". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 12 January 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  9. ^ "Steffi Graf". Grove.ufl.edu. Archived from the original on 30 December 1996. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  10. ^ "Steffi Graf". International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  11. ^ Australian Tennis Magazine (15 September 2016). "The 10 most influential players in the history of tennis". Suzi Petkovski. Archived from the original on 24 September 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2019 – via Tennismash.
  12. ^ Robin Finn (18 August 1999). "ON TENNIS; Graf Is Best, Right? Just Don't Ask Her". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 July 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  13. ^ "The Shadow of Steffi Graf: Before Serena, Women's Tennis Had Another Unconquerable Force «". Grantland.com. 27 August 2015. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  14. ^ Jeremy Eckstein (13 July 2016). "Remembering What Made Steffi Graf a Tennis Legend". Bleacher Report. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  15. ^ Finn, Robin (18 August 1999). "ON TENNIS; Graf Is Best, Right? Just Don't Ask Her". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference AP Century was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ "73 Questions with Serena Williams | Vogue". YouTube. 28 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  18. ^ Bernstein, Eckhard (2004). Culture and Customs of Germany. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. p. 47. ISBN 0-313-32203-1.
  19. ^ René Denfeld (4 October 2015). "Tennis in Reunified Germany: Then and Now – The Tennis Island". Thetennisisland.com. Archived from the original on 11 August 2018. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  20. ^ Kirkpatrick, Curry. "Serving Her Country A Grand Slam May Have Brought West Germany's Steffi Graf Fame And Fortune, But To The Delight Of Her Countrymen Who've Watched Her Climb To The Top, She Remains 'one Of Them'". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 19 September 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2021.


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