The Billionaire Playing Tennis Across the Street

By
E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy
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The International Tennis Hall of Fame. By Pernelle Voyage @ Adobe Stock

While Your Survival Guy was hard at work on Wednesday, this billionaire was creating a stir across the street, playing tennis in the Hall of Fame Open. Gareth Vipers of The Wall Street Journal explains:

Billionaire Bill Ackman likes to win at everything, but professional tennis was a step too far.

The 59-year-old hedge fund titan made his pro-tennis debut Wednesday, entering a competitive ATP doubles tournament alongside Grand Slam champion Jack Sock.

In a little over an hour it was all over, a straight-set defeat to Bernard Tomic and Omar Jasika. Former World No. 1 Andy Roddick, now a podcaster, described it as “the biggest joke I’ve watched in professional tennis.”

Ackman made his name and multibillion-dollar fortune as an aggressive boardroom slugger and founder of Pershing Square. He is also a critic of Harvard University, a prominent supporter of President Trump and a ubiquitous social media commentator with a cult following.

Ackman was confident before the match in Newport, R.I.

“I am playing the best tennis of my life and Jack is one of the greatest doubles players ever,” Ackman wrote in a social-media post announcing his entry to the ATP Challenger event.

You can watch some of the match here:

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Ackman recounted the event happily in a post on X.com, writing:

I can speak in front of an audience of a thousand people or in a TV studio on a broad range of topics without any preparation and without a twinge of fear, but yesterday I had my first real experience with stage fright.

I found myself on a tennis court in a live streamed professional tournament with a few hundred in the crowd. Throughout the match, my wrist, arm and body literally froze with the expected negative outcomes. I had difficulty breathing, and it was not a fitness issue. It got a bit better as the match progressed, but I was not able to overcome it.

I regularly play with mid-20-year-old D1 college players and recently retired pros on a familiar court with no audience with none of the same symptoms.

It was a very humbling experience that gives one even more respect for the pros who play for a living in front of the cameras and the crowds. We forget that they also need to manage the challenges of their carefully examined personal lives, their break ups, their emotions, financial stresses, and their mental health, family, and other challenges.

Tennis is one of the few sports where the athlete is out there alone in front of the klieg lights for hours operating with incredible intensity with barely a bathroom break. And they might have been awakened in the middle of the previous night for a drug test while staying far from home.

For all but the top players, they also struggle financially as they manage their small businesses working to recruit and retain talent, manage expenses, balance their budgets, and pay their taxes on time.

Whatever respect we already have for these incredible athletes, it is not enough. They deserve more of our applause and appreciation.

Before the match, Ackman was optimistic in telling the story of how he managed to end up in the tournament.

A tennis update. I met @NickKyrgios on @X and he proposed we play an ATP tournament together. Unfortunately, Nick got injured so our doubles hopes have been delayed, but fortunately fate intervened.

@JackSock managed to get a wildcard into the @TennisHalloFame Hall of Fame Open in Newport Rhode Island, an @atptour Challenger and @WTA 125 event, and invited me to be his partner. I of course accepted. Doubles matches begin next Tuesday, July 8th.

The International Tennis Hall of Fame is where the best of the best tennis players from around the world are recognized. @MariaSharapova and Bob and Mike Bryan were inducted this year. @rogerfederer will join the Hall of Fame in 2026. They also have a great museum of the sport, and do a lot to promote the game. It is a spectacular old world venue, and Newport is an amazing and charming town.

I just finished the Finance Cup tournament that was held at the Hall of Fame (Richey Reneberg and I lost in the semis 9-8 in a close one), and it is a superb venue for the players. The grass courts are of Wimbledon quality or even better. The management and staff are superb, and the place reeks of history, quality, and the best that tennis has to offer.

I strongly encourage you to visit the Hall of Fame, attend the tournament, and come to cheer us on (or boo me, if that is your point of view). If we win, I am pretty sure I will be the oldest person in tennis history at 59 to win ATP points.

I am playing the best tennis of my life and Jack is one of the greatest doubles players ever (he won @Wimbledon and the @usopen , and a gold medal in the Olympics), and we start practice this Friday, so you never know.

The Hall of Fame is small and intimate, and a great place to watch superb tennis. Daily capacity is only 3,100, which means there are no bad seats. You get to watch up close. The tournament is about 65% sold out with about 4,000 seats remaining across the tournament days, and it is a bargain.

The internet, however, was ruthless about Ackman’s involvement in the tournament. Here are some of the reactions on X.com:

Action Line: Whether or not you agree with Ackman’s inclusion in the tournament, the Tennis Hall of Fame is a great place to visit, and before you arrive, email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com to schedule a meeting across the street with Your Survival Guy. Click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.

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