If you like tennis and dance — be sure to check this out
Jan 27, 2025
I tried to get my daughter to take up tennis. No dice. Instead of tennis, she loves to perform in dance competitions and group up with her friends doing TikTok dances. That said, watching Dancing with the Stars together has become a family tradition. So I was shocked to learn that one of the contestants on the show, Joey Graziadei, was a former teaching pro!
After some research, I discovered that Joey played college tennis at Division II West Chester University in Pennsylvania and worked in Hawaii teaching tennis at The Club at Kukuiʻula. He even appeared in a recent video with the USPTA (now RSPA) giving other teaching pros some solid tennis tips.
So how did things turn out for Joey on the most recent season of Dancing with the Stars? He won. Of course! He even did a tennis-themed final dance to snatch the iconic "Mirror Ball" trophy from the other competitors. As a former teaching pro, Joey's athletic ability, excellent coordination, and grace-under-pressure appeared to serve him well in the end.
Above: Joey Graziadei's finale freestyle on Dancing with the Stars. YouTube: Dancing with the Stars
Looking back, Joey has been touting his tennis credentials on other television programs too — he starred in The Bachelor in 2024 and even had tennis icons James Blake and Pam Shriver hanging out with him during a key episode. Before that, Joey was also a runner-up on season 20 of The Bachelorette.
Finally, my daughter had to admit that tennis was cool — all thanks to Joey! She was so inspired by the TV show that she asked for tickets to the Dancing with the Stars Live Show which has a few stops in Florida. Where? The show is stopping in Jacksonville (Feb. 27th), Hollywood (Feb. 28th), Clearwater (Mar. 1st), and Orlando (Mar. 2nd).
I'm taking the fam to the Hollywood show at the Hard Rock Hotel. It turns out that the DWTS dance champion (who plays some legit tennis) will be at all Florida stops. I'm not surprised that he's doing the Florida dates as the Sunshine State is the best destination for tennis. I wonder if he might be up for a hit with Florida Tennis Magazine? Or at least a conversation about his affinity for tennis... we'll see...
Regardless, you can catch Joey dancing alongside his partner (and dance pro) Jenna Johnson along with plenty of other stars from the show during all the upcoming Florida dates. To purchase tickets and to get the full list of all the tour dates ahead, visit dwtstour.com.
Count us in for the DWTS Live Show stop at the Hard Rock in Hollywood — Florida Tennis will officially be in the house!
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Written by Florida Tennis Editor and Publisher Matt Pressman. Above: Joey Graziadei going from tennis teaching pro to reality show star (seen alongside his dance pro Jenna Johnson in the final three photos). Photo credits: ABC/John Fleenor (first two photos); Disney/Eric McCandless (last three photos).