Tennis Is the Toughest Sport to Turn Pro — and Florida Leads the Nation

A new state-by-state study found that Florida produced more U.S.-born players who reached elite professional tennis benchmarks than any other state. But birthplace statistics only begin to capture Florida’s influence on the sport.  

Of the seven major professional sports examined in a new nationwide analysis, tennis offered the longest odds of reaching the highest level.

A study from The Sports Geek calculated that the national probability of producing a tennis player who met its elite professional benchmarks was approximately 1 in 764,285. According to the study, that is roughly 111 times more difficult than reaching the professional level in football.

Above: Of all sports measured in the study, tennis has the toughest odds when it comes to turning pro. Source: The Sports Geek.

But not every state faces the same odds.

The study tracked U.S.-born players who reached at least one major professional benchmark between 2006 and 2026: a top-25 ATP or WTA singles ranking, a Grand Slam singles quarterfinal, a year-end championship final or an Olympic tennis medal.

Florida produced 14 qualifying players—the highest raw total of any state identified by the study.

The Top Three States for Tennis

The per-capita rankings produced a few surprises. Wyoming finished first at odds of 1 in 67,935, benefiting from a small birth population and a few standout players. Nevada placed second at 1 in 239,804, while Florida ranked third at 1 in 329,382.

What sets Florida apart from the top two states is scale.

Wyoming and Nevada achieved their per-capita rankings from much smaller birth pools. Florida produced its 14 qualifying players from a birth pool of more than 4.6 million males during the study period.

Above: St. Petersburg native Danielle Collins after winning the Miami Open. Photo credit: Miami Open/Hard Rock Stadium.  

That gave Florida more than twice the national average rate while also producing more qualifying players than any other state. Its calculated odds were better than those of California at 1 in 466,263, New York at 1 in 521,341 and Texas at 1 in 995,345.

In other words, Florida did not lead merely because of a statistical advantage created by a small population. It combined the nation’s highest player total with one of its strongest per-capita production rates.

Born in Florida

The list of Florida-born players who've reached the study’s elite thresholds reads like a highlight reel of American tennis over the past two decades.

Coco Gauff, born in Delray Beach and raised in South Florida, has captured multiple Grand Slam singles championships and reached No. 2 in the world. Sloane Stephens, born in Plantation, won the 2017 US Open and climbed to a career-high No. 3. Danielle Collins, a St. Petersburg native, reached the 2022 Australian Open final, won the 2024 Miami Open and rose as high as No. 7 in the WTA rankings. 

Above: Bradenton's Sebastian Korda. Photo credit: ATP Tour.

On the men’s side, Sebastian Korda was born in Bradenton and has risen into the ATP top 15. Austin Krajicek, born in Tampa, became the world No. 1 in men’s doubles, won the 2023 French Open doubles championship and earned a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Fort Lauderdale native Robby Ginepri reached the 2005 US Open semifinals and climbed to No. 15 in the world.

The state’s history of producing champions also extends well beyond the study’s 2006 starting point. Fort Lauderdale native Chris Evert became world No. 1 and won 18 Grand Slam singles championships. Jim Courier, born in Sanford, also reached No. 1 and won four Grand Slam singles titles.

Together, Evert and Courier show that Florida’s emergence as a tennis powerhouse began long before the current generation.

Where the Best Come to Train

The study attributes players to their birth states, which actually understates Florida’s role in American and international tennis.

Many leading players were not born in Florida but chose the state as the place to train, live or build their professional careers.

Taylor Fritz, who was born in California, maintains a home base in Miami. Frances Tiafoe is a Boca Raton resident, while Jessica Pegula has also established Boca Raton as her South Florida base. Tommy Paul was based in Boca Raton for years and has maintained strong ties to the area.

Above: Reilly Opelka training in Florida with Jay Berger at Club at Ibis in West Palm Beach. Photo credit: Club at Ibis.

Reilly Opelka was born in Michigan but raised in Palm Coast from age four. Madison Keys moved from Illinois to Florida at age 10 and spent six formative years training at Evert Tennis Academy.

Amanda Anisimova moved to Florida as a young child and developed much of her game in South Florida, including years of work with coach Nick Saviano. Former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie “Genie” Bouchard also trained extensively with Saviano in South Florida.

Alycia Parks moved from Georgia to Florida at age 10 to pursue stronger training opportunities. Sofia Kenin was born in Moscow and moved to the United States as a baby before her family settled in Florida. The former Australian Open champion resides in Pembroke Pines.

Florida’s appeal extends well beyond American tennis. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has made Miami her home, while former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka has maintained strong South Florida ties.

Naomi Osaka’s family relocated to Florida when she was eight, and she developed on public courts and at academies throughout South Florida before becoming a four-time Grand Slam champion.

Above: Rick Macci with Venus Williams in the early days (left) and Serena Williams more recently at the King Richard movie premiere. Photo courtesy of Rick Macci Tennis Academy.

Looking back, Venus and Serena Williams moved from California to South Florida as juniors and worked with renowned coach Rick Macci. Macci also played a role in the early development of Jennifer Capriati and Andy Roddick, both of whom trained extensively in Florida before reaching world No. 1.

Capriati won three Grand Slam singles titles, while Roddick captured the 2003 US Open. Mardy Fish moved to Vero Beach as a child, later attended high school in Boca Raton and trained alongside Roddick before reaching No. 7 in the world and earning a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics.

South African Kevin Anderson made Gulf Stream near Delray Beach his longtime home base while rising to No. 5 in the world and reaching the US Open and Wimbledon finals.

Florida’s academy system has also shaped generations of elite players.

Above: Coco Gauff in her hometown of Delray Beach. Photo credit: New Balance.

German-born Alexander Zverev spent significant portions of his formative years training at Saddlebrook in the Tampa area before winning his first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros in 2026.

China’s Juncheng “Jerry” Shang developed his game at IMG Academy and has continued using Bradenton as a training base. Michael Mmoh moved to IMG as a young teenager, while Canadian Denis Shapovalov has also trained in Bradenton.

Russian-born Maria Sharapova arrived in Florida as a child, trained early with Rick Macci and later developed at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, now IMG Academy, before reaching world No. 1 and winning five Grand Slam singles titles.

Andre Agassi also developed under Nick Bollettieri in Bradenton before reaching world No. 1 and winning eight Grand Slam singles titles. German-born Tommy Haas moved to Florida at age 11 to attend the Bollettieri academy, finished high school in Bradenton and later rose to No. 2 in the world. Japan’s Kei Nishikori moved to IMG Academy at age 14 and later climbed to No. 4 in the world.

If the study measured where players were raised, developed, trained or established their professional bases—rather than only where they were born—Florida’s impact would be significantly greater.

Why Florida Continues to Lead

The reason is not one academy, one coach or one city. Florida possesses an interconnected tennis infrastructure that few places in the world can match.

Rick Macci Tennis Academy and Evert Tennis Academy have helped establish Boca Raton as an international center for junior and professional development.

Saviano High Performance Tennis Academy in South Florida has worked with players including Stephens, Gauff, Bouchard, and Anisimova during important stages of their development.

Saddlebrook Resort near Tampa has a history connected to champions including Courier, Sampras, Hingis, Capriati and Roddick.

IMG Academy in Bradenton grew from the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy and has trained generations of major champions and top-ranked players.

Those academies are complemented by private clubs, college programs, municipal tennis centers, USTA Florida’s extensive junior circuit and one of the deepest concentrations of professional coaches, fitness specialists and high-level hitting partners in the country.

Above: Coach Nick Saviano (middle) working with Amanda Anisimova (left) and Sloane Stephens (right). Photo courtesy of Saviano High Performance Tennis Academy.

Florida also offers dependable year-round outdoor training on both hard and clay courts. Players can compete, practice and condition outdoors during months when much of the country must move inside.

The state’s importance extends beyond player development.

The Women’s Tennis Association maintains its corporate headquarters in St. Petersburg, while the ATP maintained its U.S. headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach for decades.

The USTA National Campus in Orlando spans 64 acres and includes nearly 100 tennis courts, serving as its hub for player development, coaching, collegiate tennis, and national competition.

Florida also hosts the Miami Open, the Delray Beach Open and numerous professional, collegiate, junior and amateur events throughout the year.

The result is an ecosystem that surrounds players at virtually every stage—from their first junior tournament to the highest levels of professional tennis.

About the Study

The Sports Geek’s “Odds of Going Pro in Every State” study examined seven sports across all 50 states: football, basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer, golf and tennis.

For tennis, inclusion required a player to reach at least one of the following benchmarks:

• A top-25 ATP or WTA singles ranking
• A Grand Slam singles quarterfinal
• A year-end ATP or WTA championship final
• An Olympic tennis medal

Players were assigned to states according to their birthplace, not where they grew up, trained or currently reside.

The tennis list includes both men and women, while the state odds supplied with the study were calculated using CDC/NCHS male birth data from the corresponding period. That distinction is important when interpreting the results.

Above: Frances Tiafoe, seen here at the Delray Beach Open, is currently living and training in Boca Raton. Photo credit: Mauricio Paiz. 

The figures should therefore be understood as an estimate of the odds of producing a player who reached one of the study’s elite professional benchmarks—not the literal odds of playing a professional match or earning money at a lower-level professional event.

Even with those methodological limitations, the central finding remains compelling: Florida produced more qualifying U.S. tennis players than any other state.

And when the players who moved to Florida, trained in Florida or established their professional bases here are added to the equation, the case becomes even stronger.

Florida is not only one of America’s hottest tennis states. By both quantitative and qualitative measures, it stands at the center of the nation’s tennis development pipeline.

Source and editorial disclosure: The research referenced in this article was provided by The Sports Geek, a sports betting and casino information website. Florida Tennis received no payment for publishing this article and independently reviewed and edited the submitted material. Florida Tennis does not endorse or recommend any sportsbook, casino or gambling service. Photo credit (top): Julie Sd via Unsplash.

Responsible-gambling notice: In Florida, sports wagering is restricted to adults age 21 and older. Gambling involves financial risk. Never wager more than you can afford to lose. Anyone experiencing a gambling problem can call or text 888-ADMIT-IT for free and confidential assistance.