One of the greatest tennis players in UVA history, Brian Vahaly recently was elected chairman and president of the United States Tennis Association's board of directors. Vahaly, who played professionally for seven years, graduated from UVA's McIntire School of Commerce.
Wahoo Central Podcast
Wahoo Central Podcast with Brian Vahaly
(upbeat music) - Greetings from the grounds of the University of Virginia and welcome to the Wahoo Central Podcast. I'm Jeff White from VirginiaSports.com and this is episode 390. My guest today is a UVA alum who in November was elected chairman and president of the United States Tennis Association's Board of Directors and that is Brian Vahaly. Brian, congrats on this new role with the USTA and thank you for making time for this. - Yeah, thanks. I'm excited to be here. - So where are you zooming in from today? I know you've been on the go a lot. - I've been on the move, but right now I'm at home in Arlington, Virginia. - Okay. Do you have any ties to, I knew you grew up in Atlanta. Do you have any ties to Georgia? - Yeah, for sure. My family moved there when I was four years old, I believe. So that was actually, being in Atlanta was one of the big reasons I got into tennis. There are tennis courts everywhere. They're leagues, tournaments. So my family's still down there. So I still get down there a good bit. - So for listeners who are not well-versed in the mission of the USTA, can you kind of explain what that is and what role does the Board of Directors play in the whole thing? - Sure. So our responsibility and our job is to grow and develop the sport of tennis to inspire healthier communities and everywhere. And I would say for us, we are constantly looking at the participation of our sport and what can we do to grow it. As the national governing body, we also run and oversee the US Open. So as you think about the Board of Directors and our role and my future role as chairman and president, our goal is to really drive strategy. Making sure that strategically the Open is headed in the right direction. And as we look to grow our sport, how do we spend the profits of that sport effectively across the United States to get more rackets and kids hands and hopefully continue to inspire people well into their 60s, 70s and 80s. We think tennis is the sport of a lifetime. And frankly, we've got data now to show it's the world's healthy of sports. So we are very inspired to keep people playing. - Yeah, I was gonna say what is the state of tennis in the United States as we head into 2025? Is the sporting good health here? - Yeah, I mean, we, tennis sat stagnant for a really long time and I will say COVID really jump started the racket sports space. So for us and tennis, we went from around 17, 18 million players, which we had for a long time and we're up to a little over 25 million. So significant growth over the last four years, just more recently this last year, another 6%. So the sport is going exceptionally well. We now have pretty ambitious plans because we think people are seeing more and more the benefits, the health benefits of it. And frankly, we're tired of just going to the gym and the same pieces. There's a lot of great health benefits that come with our sport. And I don't know, racket sports are just seeing a boom over these last few years. - So you are currently the first vice president of the board, that's a two year term as well. How long have you been involved with the USTA from a non-playing standpoint? - Yeah, so I retired back in 2007. I was recruited to join the board of directors back in 2012. So it's been a long time, probably 10, 12 plus years. But yeah, they're incremental two year terms. The board members are up for election. And initially my focus was around as a former athlete and what I could do for the player development space. And that's just continued to evolve. And yeah, it elected to be the first VP back in 2023, which is essentially a two year term preparing yourself for the chairman and president role. - So as you mentioned, you grew up in Atlanta. I know you were a outstanding junior player with a lot of options. How did you end up in Charlottesville at the University of Virginia? - Yeah, good question. The school that high school I went to love it in Atlanta, we had a lot of kids who always wanted to go to UVA. So it was just always something we heard about. And for me, tennis was an opportunity to play a sport that I love to get into the perfect school for me. So I went on recruiting trips to Duke, North Carolina, Stanford, Georgia, Notre Dame, and Virginia. And when I went to Charlottesville, there was something about the campus when I walked on. I was meeting a lot of the fourth years. And I just thought to myself, this is, I love that I love the grounds here. I wanna be like these people when I grew up, all the fourth years that I met. And I just, I can't describe it other than the second I was there and throughout that weekend, I just knew it was where I was meant to be. And at the time, we didn't have a really strong program. If you look at all the other schools I was looking at, UVA was ranked 64th. So it really didn't make a lot of sense that I would even consider it. But I had a coach who went to UVA themselves so I was always sort of curious about it. And just being there, I knew. And I was really excited to try and see if we could build something great and start to build a great program there. - So you played for two head coaches at UVA, first Thomas Johnston, and then Dick Stockton. You had an incredible college career among your many accomplishments as a Cavalier. ACC Rookie of the Year, two-time ACC Player of the Year, three-time All-American NCAA singles runner-up in 2001, your fourth year, you and your doubles partner, Hunt Lee Montgomery, advanced to the NCAA semifinals that season, and you had your jersey retired here. In 2011, my apologies if I left something out. But from the athletic standpoint, what stands out to you when you look back on your college years? - It's really funny to hear you list all that. I guess I don't typically look back and think about that experience, think about all that. So my favorite part was the team. Tennis is an individual sport. And I really loved being a part of a team. I love being a part of the Virginia Collegiate Sports Group. You just met so many other athletes. You were so behind the university. Sure, there were great accomplishments along the way and great, but those, what I'm left with, and frankly, 20 years later, what I continue to dream about is what it's like to compete as a team on those courts. There was not a month that doesn't go by that I don't have this dream that the coach is gonna call me back for one year of eligibility. Honestly, God, I loved it. I loved every minute of it. I loved being in Charlottesville, but the team element of it was just so much fun. And for an individual sport like tennis, I just have such fond memories. So I don't always look back at the individual accolades. It's sort of funny to hear you list them. I just think about how much fun I had 'cause it was probably one of my most funics. Of the 26 years I played tennis, those were far and away my most fun four years. - You did more than play tennis at the university. You were kind of the epitome of the student athlete here. You graduated from the McIntyre School of Commerce, which is no small feat itself. Were you always conscious of making sure you prepared yourself for life after tennis? 'Cause a lot of athletes here and elsewhere just kind of think everything's gonna work out professionally and they don't necessarily need a plan B. - Yeah, I mean, listen, when I was on my recruiting trip, I was drawn to the McIntyre School. To be a professional athlete, the odds of less than a third of a 10th of a percent. So did I have the credibility at the time? Sure, but you could get injured a million things could happen. So I was always thinking about tennis as a means to get a great education. And I was really focused on that at school. Is it really hard to be a student athlete at UVA? Yeah, you gotta balance your time exceptionally well, especially if you wanna have fun with your friends at the same time. So it was a lot, but I knew I wanted to go to McIntyre. It was an exceptional experience. It was unbelievably hard, but the most defining as I think about life after tennis. I mean, thank goodness I did it because boy, I learned more in those two years than I probably had in any other educational time in my life, but I was very focused. My parents instilled a discipline for education. I always knew tennis would end probably by 30 years old and there's a long time afterwards. So yeah, it was exceptionally hard, but it was actually, you know, you talk about why I went there. I mean, what an amazing undergraduate business program. And I really wanted to be part of it. I just was concerned whether I could do it. And at the time, Tiki Barber was ahead of me a couple of years and he sort of said, hey, if you can do it, you know, if he can do it, why can't I? Right. So you were leaving, you left UVA right around the time that Brian Bolin was arriving. I don't know if you overlapped it all or you missed by a few months. Did you have any idea then that Virginia could become the national power in tennis that it has become? There was never a reason UVA could not be. I mean, when you look at the education, the infrastructure, what that school provides, I know tennis players and no tennis player is going to walk on that campus and not, you know, and not love it. So to me, it was just a matter of getting the right people. I did interview coach Bolin at the time and felt like he was the right person. He had a real passion for recruitment, real passion for culture. And to me, you create a great team environment and you recruit really hard. UVA is going to do a lot of the work itself. So I was really excited to have him on board. I often came, even as I was playing professionally, back to Charlottesville, to help on the tennis side as he was sort of getting up to speed on how to coach and train high performance athletes. So, you know, I certainly try to be engaged, but he did an unbelievable job, both recruiting and creating a strong culture. And that culture continues today underneath Andres Padroso, who I have known since I was 10 years old. So Andres and I text almost weekly as we think about ways to continue to improve the program, which I'm just incredibly proud to be part of the Virginia tennis. At this point, it's almost a dynasty. And I feel we just had exceptional coaches to help lead it. - Did you consider coaching at all yourself? - You know, I don't think I'd be a good coach. I have a very difficult time articulating what I see and feel on a tennis court. A lot of what I did came instinctively for me. And so, as I think about how to communicate that, you know, I'm just, I'm strong strategically, but oftentimes when there are technical issues, I have a really hard time with that. So, at times Andres tries to pull me in, but I just am not sure, I'm not sure I'd be that good at it, but maybe someday I'll head back that direction. - So you play after graduating from UVA, you play professional tennis for seven years. What was that experience like? I know there are highs for a player and there are lows. I've heard it described by some of our former players as a real grind and maybe more so than a lot of sports really professionally. 'Cause you're right. - Yeah, I mean, listen, you go right into the, yeah, you go right into the minor leagues by yourself and you're consistently in debt right off the path, right? So there's no contract you're signing to turn pro and theory anybody can. But that first tournament where there's 128 draw just to get into the tournament and then another 64 draw to win it. Assuming you make it across that 180 people and you're the one to win it, it's a $1,500 check waiting for you. So financially you're consistently getting hit on top of the consistent losses where you don't have your primary coach like you have in the juniors, you don't have your family like the juniors, you don't have your team like college and you're by yourself and you're starting ranked 1,600 in the world. And it's just a long and lonely climb. And you oftentimes lose people mentally because they can't handle that phase of the growth. And what we typically see and what we encourage people to USDA is you got to get out of those minor leagues fast. And what I'll share is I had some great advice given to me about how to do that, where to play and was able to get into the 200s, 300s fairly quickly. And then it's a grind, it is exceptionally hard. Getting to the ATV tour and what people see on TV, now that part's awesome. And I love playing at the Grand Slams, like I'll talk to you about it all day long. But man, those early days, there were players that were better than me that crashed out because they simply couldn't handle it mentally over this first year, year and a half. - So you played for the US on Davis Cup teams, you played against Andre Agassi at the Australian Open. You had great doubles achievements. What's your favorite memory of as a pro player? - Yeah, you know, it's a lot. Listen, anytime you're playing legends, like an Agassi on center court, you know, I play to the center court at US Open at Roland Garros, amazing memories just to play in front of crowds like that. I will tell you beating my childhood hero, which was Michael Chang and getting the chance to play against him and beat him is just a really, it's just unusual experience to sort of beat your role model. And I feel fortunate to have even had that opportunity. You know, for me, I had some great success at Indian Wells. And so beating three top 10 players in a row on center courts, you know, it's just, it's hard to explain, but I never saw, I never knew that I could sort of get to that level or achieve or have those types of wins. So it was one of the few moments where you're just so completely overwhelmed. When I think about the pressure and anxiety on a court, beating those top players in big moments pushed me to a level that I'm exceptionally proud to have overcome. So different moments for different reasons, but, you know, those big wins on big stages. I'm just, I look back, almost still getting goosebumps, thinking back to them. Much was made when you were on the tour of the fact that of the men ranked in the top 100, you were the only college graduate. Has that dynamic changed since you got off the tour? - Yeah, I mean, listen, I'm now sitting in the boardroom of the USTA and we're talking about collegiate pathway being one of the most important parts of their steps and growth. Back when I played, I was 17 in the world in juniors and top two or three in the United States. And the fact that I just chose to go to college, you know, I was sort of written off. And so now we've sort of seen a shift over the years. We've seen guys like John Isner, Steve Johnson, top NCAA athletes, Ben Shelton, more recently, who won the NCAA's at a University of Florida. He's now top 20 in the world. It's becoming a viable and almost necessary part. So at the time, it made me exceptionally unique. In interviews, people would ask me if I was gonna use big words 'cause they weren't used to college graduates in the room and the breast room. So I got teased about it a lot, but I felt it was really important. And now it's nice to see, 'cause I do think it's a critical part of your development. And also it's a lot of fun. And I just, it's a pain for me to see so many athletes skip college, try to play professionally, whether it be for injuries or whatever reason, not make it and then they miss out on it. So I'm excited about it. I'm now what used to be sort of a pioneer approach is now becoming the norm. And that feels good to be a part of. - Injuries, I know, cut short your playing career. When you stopped playing, what was next for you? Did you go into the workforce at that point? - Yeah, it was really frustrating. You know, at the time, my rotator cuff is what let me down. And back when I was playing, players were retiring at 30. So I was 27 at the time and it never crossed my mind to come back. So incredibly frustrating for 10 years to watch athletes now go on and play longer. I'm glad a lot of them have since retired. But I went back into my finance and business management degrees from Mac entire. And the interesting part was more, I had a really hard time getting a job. Everybody wanted to interview me because they wanted to know what it's like to play Agacy. But, you know, to go back to the consulting and investment banking, they're like, you're too old. And so I really had to work hard. And frankly, a lot of my initial jobs, I was saying, you know, I'll work for free. Just put me in. If anything, tennis teaches you is a lot of self-confidence and belief that if you work hard, then you can achieve something. So I started to get into the private equity game on the operational side, basically saying, don't pay me a salary, just let me work. I've been able to find a nice career coming out of that. - So how often do you get back to Charlottesville? And I want to ask you about the facilities. You played at Snyder. The program was based there for, you know, decades. What do you think of the new tennis facility at the Boers Head? - I mean, what an exceptional fundraising job they've done. I mean, I love going back to Boers Head. So I'm two hours away. I get to Charlottesville at least a couple of times a year. Last year I bought 10 acres out in Crozet. So I am in it for Charlottesville for the long haul. I absolutely love it there. I want my kids to go watch college sports. I've fallen in love with life even outside of the grounds and everything that Charlottesville, Crozet and areas have to provide. I want to support the tennis team the best way I can and provide the experiences I had on tour to help those guys who have, you know, big aspirations. So to say that I'm bought into that university, both as somebody who's trying to help on the fundraising side, you know, I love it there. And I really love being a couple of hours away. And it's, I'll tell you, walking on the grounds with my eight year old twin boys, amazing experience. - So after your election last month you named Andres as a USTA presidential appointee as our listeners now Andres is director of tennis and the head men's coach at UVA. What does that role, what will that role entail for him? - Yeah, he's a very, listen, he's already always functioned as a close advisor for me and from a USTA capacity. But, you know, we're trying to be really thoughtful about how we spend a 30 plus million dollar budget to support our high performance athletes. And I don't know anybody more passionate about our game and high performance than Andres. So as we, as a governing body, think about what our role should be in that support. I want Andres in that room providing guidance. I want his perspective on how the USTA should engage from a collegiate standpoint. There's a lot that's changing in college sports, it's changing in the NIL side. And so as all of that is continuing to evolve, Andres's point of view and perspective will be really critical to bring into the boardroom. So I don't think the university understands how lucky we are to have somebody like him in tennis. There are times when I think about how much I'd love to see his impact in a broader sense at the USTA. But selfishly, I want him in Charlottesville. He is so incredible for those student athletes who get the opportunity to work underneath him. So, but he can make such a broad impact. And so as a presidential appointee, I want to continue to expand on that and frankly learn from his expertise so that we're doing everything we can at the USTA is a governing body to support our athletes. Andres's counterpart on the women's side at UVA is Sarah O'Leary. Have you gotten to know Sarah over the years in your visits back to Charlottesville? Yeah, you know, I don't know Sarah as well. So I tend to spend most of my time with Andres. If Sarah wanted to get on a call, I'd jump on it in a heartbeat. I've certainly spent some time with Emma Navarro out on tour. I've seen Danielle Collins, so our UVA legacy is massive. I love that UVA comes up in the USTA boardroom as a great place for students to develop. I mean, I am exceptionally proud and if I can help Sarah, I will in a heartbeat. It's just hard to replicate, you know, I've known Andres for 35 years. So we just have a level of trust and comfort with each other that's hard to replicate. Yeah, I was going to ask you about Danielle and Emma to see them succeeding at the level they have. And Emma's just kind of in her infancy still as a professional. What's that been like? I was just watching her at Madison. Yes, she was just at Madison Square Garden playing an event with Carlos Alvarez. I mean, she's becoming a star. I watched her at the US Open for a while. And her dad, Ben, who owns the Cincinnati and Charleston tournaments. I mean, they're just, it's a tennis family with tennis DNA. She's an exceptional athlete. I, of course, want to talk her ear off about Charlottesville, but turns out she's got some big job and pressure on her hands. So I guess I need to stay out of her way. But I am a, I watch many of her matches and I will continue to just can't always with my UVA hat on. So your term as chairman of the board and president starts on January the 1st, you'll be the first member of the LGBTQ community to serve in that role. You've been something of a trailblazer in men's pro tennis on that front. Has that been a burden at all to bear? I don't know if it's a burden. You know, listen, any time you're sort of the new, the only guy in town, relationships are harder. The, you know, you don't have as much in common with people. There are challenges that come with that alongside it. It was difficult towards the end of my time on the tour. It was difficult in the business world. I'm in the finance space. I'm not sort of surrounded a lot there. And certainly in the boardroom. And certainly as I look across the Grand Slams, I'm the youngest chair across the Slams. I'm the only one representing that community ever in the Slam. So it's new, it's different. But, you know, listen, it's what a great UVA education and what tennis and sports teaches you to have the guts to be yourself and the confidence to go out there and get things done. So I'm not going to say that it's easy, but it's not something that I focus on. I am really focused on impact and I'm focused on doing a great job. And I want to be remembered for that, more than I want to be remembered for who I'm married to. So sure, it's important. And I think for my community specifically, it's great to show leadership there and say, hey, there's a spot for you in sports 'cause a lot of people don't feel like they can even play in the game. So I like the leadership element that comes with that, but I am more focused on delivering as an effective chair and effective president. And as somebody who can be a business leader and a sport that basically has defined my life up until this point. - So you mentioned that tennis is a lifetime sport. How often do you pick up a racket these days? - Thank God, you can't ask me that. I used to play all the time. I had eight-year-old twin boys now. When you think about your career, you think about the USTA, you think about being a present parent, is it easy to get a couple of hours to go out and play with somebody, not really? Fortunately now I get to play with my kids and take them out there. We grab red balls and play and hit back and forth. So that's really fun. I get out there a couple of times a year to play, but one of the fun things about sports is every time you play, you tend to get better. And for me, every time I play, I get a little bit worse. And so I still have this vision. I'm there watching at the US Open and I have the thoughts of like, get me on the court. I can beat these guys. I can beat these players. And then it's just such a sobering reality. - Than reality sets. - To go play and be so slow. And so I like the fantasies that I have in my brain that I'm still one of the top athletes and can compete when the reality is holy moly. My legs aren't as strong as they once were. - Well, anyway, I know you're busy. You have a lot of balls in the air right now. So I will let you go. Thanks again for your time. I am a long time Crozet resident. So I look forward to seeing you in the neighborhood around here. - Whatever that happens. But good luck with everything in your new role with the USDA. - Yeah, thanks, Jeff. I appreciate it. - Thank you. (upbeat music) And that will do it for this week. As always, we appreciate the support of everyone who's listening and as that you subscribe to and rate this podcast. We've had a fantastic fall with such guests as Ralph Sampson, Shannon Wells, Julie Myers, Gary Martin, Todd DeSorable and Kyle Guy. Those episodes and others can be found under the media button on the front page of VirginiaSports.com. And you can also locate them by searching your podcast provider for Wahoo Central Podcast. My articles are archived under the content button on the front page of our website. My handle on the X platform is @JeffWhiteUVA and links to my stories are posted there as well. If you haven't done so already, you'll wanna download the UVA Sports app from Google Play or the Apple Store for all the latest on Cavalier Athletics. We'll be back next week with another episode. Until then, stay safe and go Hoos. (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music)