Andre Agassi: Open for the Holidays

by Ben Pronin | December 22nd, 2009, 2:28 pm
  • 43 Comments

The holiday season is finally upon us and there isn’t much tennis being played out there (unless you count the exhibitions where Henin is pummeling top players), so I figured I’d help Andre Agassi promote his memoir. ADHEREL

But before I get into that, I’d like to thank everyone who pushed me into professional blogging, Madmax, Jane, Kimmi, and all the other posters here who have supported me. In case it’s still not clear, it is me, devastatingdjokovic/sensationalsafin. I’m now an official blogger on tennis-x and I really would never have done it if you guys weren’t around to force me to come up with arguments and debates on the latest tennis issues. So thanks again, everyone.

Now back to Agassi and his publication, Open. Basically, if you still need to find a present for someone, this is it. If you have a lot of downtime and need to do something to fill the emptiness of no live tennis, buy this book. If you are extremely busy with hosting a Christmas/New Year’s/Hanukkah/Kwanza party for 50+ family members and guests and have no time for yourself whatsoever, then make time and buy this book and read it while you’re at the stove or in the bathroom. This is a must read for everyone and anyone, and that’s what makes it so special.


It’s a shame that some of the details of the book were revealed before the public had a chance to read it. The meth, hating tennis, crazy dad, too many spoilers that fortunately and unfortunately made a lot of people decide whether they were going to buy the book without even looking at it themselves. It’s a shame when book releases become like Hollywood movie trailers. You know, when the trailer shows the funniest three jokes and the best fighting sequence of the movie and sometimes even shows the daughter in the arms of her dad after he’s already saved her, too much, way too much.

However there is a silver lining in all this in that Agassi had so much going on in his life that those spoilers are not as revealing as they were made out to be. The meth thing was mentioned for maybe two paragraphs out of 400+ pages. And there is a lot more to him hating tennis and his dad than people can really understand without reading Agassi’s thoughts and explanations.

So what is so great about this book? I’m not going to give anything away because everything in Agassi’s life must be read within the context of his life in order to understand its significance. What I will say is that every single person on this planet can relate to multimillionaire, 8-time Grand Slam champion, and former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in one way or another. That is what makes this his story so unbelievably fantastic.

There are bad moments, terrible moments, good moments, great moments, and all kinds of other moments in Agassi’s life. He shows that no matter how rich or successful or talented you are, everyone deals with the same crap day in and day out. When I finished the book, I wanted it to keep going, rather, I wanted to fly out to Vegas, meet Agassi, and become his best friend in order to stay inside his fascinating world.

If you have any doubts about reading this book because of its content, well, forget it. Forget about everything you’ve heard and every critical thing you’ve read. Get this book, borrow it, buy it, just get it somehow, and read it. One thing I can assure you is that you will not be disappointed. Hate it or love it, you are going to have a lot of feelings while reading about Agassi’s life.


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43 Comments for Andre Agassi: Open for the Holidays

madmax Says:

Firstly,

Am I being tremendously thick or Ben Pronin are you devastating djokovic? Is this your pseudonymn?

DD,

If Ben Pronin is just a ruse, then I want you back here! like a poster! Does this mean now that I have to wait to hear from you when YOU write an article?! C’mon DD, this is just too much to bear! Have Tennis.x got you to sign a contract and are they paying you well?!!!! look after yourself. I would say look out for Number 1, but then I would be referring to the Fed!

DD, miss you already. xxxx


REMCOM Says:

ben’s enthusiasm for “open” is perhaps a tad understated. this is, easily, one of the best sports books to come out in years – in tennis or any other sport. without fail, agassi maintains a humble and razor-sharp view of life and his own mess-ups and triumphs (also amazing to realize this man has almost total recall from every day in his life). and, as the book points out, there are many of both.

an excellent read and – like ben said – you will be sorry when it’s over.


Tennisozzy Says:

Agassi comes across as extremely self-centered, hateful and completely immature for most parts of the book. I frequently felt the urge to slap him and tell him to grow the hell up while reading the book. Seemed to me Agassi made himself, every episode and everybody else in this book a lot more black and white than he really thinks they are, just to sell more copies.


Ben Pronin Says:

Understated? Damn. It’s not simply a great sports book, it’s a great story about a person. The tennis is just a part of it, but it’s so far from the center of the story.

Madmax, I’m confused. What do you mean a ruse? I was going to use a pseudonym but this is my real name. Kinda unfortunate, honestly. I’m still gonna post and stuff, there’s no reason for me not to. I only stop posting when Federer suffers a terrible upset :P


BPFanClub Says:

Dear Ben,
What took you so long to start blogging? I’ve been waiting. Can’t wait for your next post! And do you like Nadal’s book more? http://tinyurl.com/yeyltcs


Kimmi Says:

Jane Jane jane! where are you? You have to come back from your holiday break. Lets us welcome SS/DD or better Ben Pronin as a new member of tennis-x blogger. I would not have thought the connection when I saw your name on the “athlete of the decade” thread. No connection to DD at all, if you didn’t say here..there is no way I would have known.

Before I comment anything about the book, let me take this opportunity to welcome you and looking forward to read more from you in the coming season. Great job.


Long Live The King Says:

Good on you for taking the plunge, Ben. keep the posts coming :)

Hi Maxi. Love your posts and thanks for “taking care” of mem on the other thread ;)

xxx for your passionate posts :)


jane Says:

HI BEN!!! I am on hiatus, technically, and the in-laws are visiting, but I couldn’t pass this by without posting a huge CONGRATS to you – Ben, aka, SS, aka, DD – on your first “official” blog/post. It’s fantastic. I will definitely read Agassi’s book on your recommendation. WAY TO GO! You’re on your way to replacing Bodo in no time!

Cheers.


madmax Says:

Ben!

I WAS being tremendously thick! I had no idea you were one and the same – my friend DD and SS, and I dont know why I kinda feel a bit sad – but immensely happy that you are writing as an officianado!!!! Please post here as much as possible though, those stats are only on a par with I Am It! – where is he!? It seems longer than 2 months!

Long live, GREAT to see you again. My love and positive thoughts are sent right back atcha!

Jane, happy holidays to you – hope you are able to post (when you need a rest from the dinner table and the in-laws!).

Congrats once more Ben – I miss you already!


madmax Says:

Ben,

I wanted to tell you that the positive stuff you have said about Agassi, I have cut and pasted (a couple of paragraphs from your review above) and mentioned your name on tennistalk. I am really fed up with some of the writers over there – who continually bash agassi and kind of deviate from what the book is truly about – as you said a two paragraph reference to meth really does take things out of context and the book should be read as a whole, without concentrating on those two paragraphs. I dont think it is going to change anyone’s mind, but I think that the review of agassi given over there is so biased and fraught with negativity, that a less biased approach was needed.

I am off to buy the book – when i went to buy it – it had sold out – so am trying a different bookshop and crossing my fingers in the process.


Ben Pronin Says:

I did read some of the things they said about Agassi over there. Tennisozzy clearly doesn’t agree with me and honestly I understand. Like I said, “Hate it or love it, you are going to have a lot of feelings while reading about Agassi’s life.” What makes the book so amazing is that Agassi just lays it all out. Through just a book you can see what makes Agassi great and also all of his shortcomings. I’m just not one to jump all over a person for having shortcomings that are difficult to overcome. Just about 99.9999% of people are like that. I admire Agassi for always trying to find the best solution. He screws up a lot but he never gives in. I do find it kinda odd he’s gonna play on the senior tour but at the same time it makes sense because one thing for sure is that Agassi is still pretty young and he’s always trying to figure out who he really is. That’s just not an easy thing to do,

Anyways, madmax cmon. I’m still gonna post. Now I have the power to start conversations the way Sean and Dan normally do.


Texastennis Says:

Great review and agree with you on talktennis.

I think this is the reason he kept playing though and why he is going to play the odd exo/senior event now on – because what he does relish is raising money for the school, and the amount of money he has raised ($85 mil I think) and still needs to keep raising takes a hell of a lot of doing. And the best way for him to leverage the fund raising as I’m sure he recognizes and has recognized these last ten years is to keep his sponsors, donors, etc happy with his visibility in the public eye – ie tennis. The Agassi twitter posted a new slideshow on the school today, and I’m sure that’s what makes him play now:

http://twitter.com/AgassiAndre


madmax Says:

Whoop! whoop! Ben! Do I call you Ben now or is it back to DD? I kinda miss DD, so if you dont mind, I’ll continue with DD –

I think the thing that bugs me the most DD, is that a lot of the writers on TT are very biased (that is why I mentioned to you a while back, about the fact that you SHOULD write an article, get the job as “new tennis writer” over there, and bring a breath of fresh air to a very dogmatic and extremely biased approach. i say that because one of the posters over there, cheryl murray, is so pro rafa and anti roger, you may recall that contador (here), over there (zoey), said so, and I found that also. The same seems to be happening with the agassi saga – I mean Agassi is ONE MAN, ONE HUMAN BEING, and YES. A ROLE MODEL, but honestly, she just doesnt get it, or see it in an objective way at all. It’s not good.

As a professional blogger/journalist – by all means offer your opinion, but try not to drag on about it (not you – you have a very different approach). It gets very tiresome otherwise DD.

So, DD. Have you done your predictions yet for 2010 and will you be watching the fed match on 31 December, Abu Dhabi? Cheers DD xxx


Ben Pronin Says:

I’ll try to watch it but we’ll see.

Predictions for the top 10? No I don’t know if I will make them.


madmax Says:

AWARD just in for fedfans:

Roger Federer and Serena Williams have been named as 2009’s world champions by the International Tennis Federation after topping the year-end rankings.

Federer, who wins the honour for the fifth time, completed a career Grand Slam at Roland Garros before winning his 15th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon.

And Williams won the Australian Open and Wimbledon, her 11th major success.

The pair will receive their awards at the annual ITF world champions dinner in Paris in June.

Federer regained the world number one ranking from Rafael Nadal after his Paris victory and his Wimbledon win over Andy Roddick saw him surpass Pete Sampras’ haul of Grand Slam titles.

He was also runner-up at the Australian Open and the US Open and helped his country retain its Davis Cup world group status.

“It is an honour for me to be named ITF world champion for a fifth time. It was an incredible year for me both on and off the court,” said the 28-year-old Swiss star whose wife Mirka gave birth to twin girls in July.

“To win my first Roland Garros title, break the all-time Grand Slam record and regain the number one ranking is amazing. It means a lot to me to finish the year again at the top.”

sorry to post here people, it just seems to be the most “current” one to find you guys.


Cherie Says:

Ben; Right on! I sooo agree with everything you said in your blog! The book was wonderful and I felt the same way when it ended, I didn’t want it to end and like you I wanted to go to LAS or call him or something.


tenisbebe Says:

Ben – congrats on your new “job”. Have the book reserved at the library and look forward to reading it.

May I out it in my two cents regarding you continuing to blog as well as write for this site? I say no – do one or the other. It’s OK to chime in occasionally during a discussion but remember, the purpose of these sites is to let the readers kick around a topic without constantly being pinged by the writer and their opinions. imo keep your comments to a minimum and let the discussion roll. Good luck to you!


Ben Pronin Says:

But I like commenting…


tenisbebe Says:

Regarding “Open”, which I haven’t yet read… Well I own and read Feinstein’s Hard Courts in 1991 (a Christmas present) and he makes no bones in this book as to how Andre was regarded on the tour: with distain for his childish behavior, whining, tanking matches, the extensive entourage, avoiding Wimbledon by insisting he couldn’t wear white, etc, etc. Basically he was viewed with derision by players, TD’s, & journalists – obviously he was miserable. He eluded to that time in his life in the 2000’s when he was being revered a tennis legend/icon by the press, shaking his head in amusement at the irony of it all. It will be interesting to read what he was actually thinking during this period in his career. btw – I highly recommend HARD COURTS as a tennis read.


Voicemale1 Says:

…”maybe two paragraphs”?? Well, the excerpts at CNNSI were longer than that, so save us the whitewash. And save us all the slobbering you’re doing over someone who frankly doesn’t deserve most of it. You still don’t seem to get it as to WHY that particular revalation of the Meth obscures most of what he accomplished. It’s not about Crystal Meth – it was about the corrupt soul he revealed himself to be when the ATP finally did bust him. Not that he was alone; the ATP has still to this day LOTS of ‘splainin to do. Wouldn’t you just love to know how much money Agassi might have “diverted” to the ATP so as to keep this quiet? I mean, once the ATP found out he was using – and obviously buying – how is it in their interest to sweep it away? If the organization looked away from Agassi’s use & purchase of illegal substances back then, and anyone knew it, the ATP would have been subjected to not only a criminal investigation but also a host of lawsuits. It would have bankrupted them. What could have been in their interest to say nothing??$$$???

In case we need reminding on why Agassi lied to the ATP, we need look no further than Tiger Woods today, whose sponsors can’t bail on him fast enough. Every single celebrity endorsement contract has a lengthy section often referred to as a “morals clause”, which gives the sponsor immediate termination rights for things like, well, high profile infidelity in the case of Woods. But that would have been nothing compared to how fast Canon, Head, Slot Machine Makers and the rest would have dumped Agassi once his use of narcotics became public. And Agassi understood this fully – which also was not in his excerpts. Had he ADMITTED openly to lying to keep the money rolling in THAT would have been something worthwhile. But the fact he even skirted THAT (fooling nobody) tells you exactly the kind of guy he is. He’ll cop to the action, so long as no one makes him go near the question of motive. Yeah, real upstanding guy, that Agassi. So he lied to save his endorsement money. I don’t care what he writes in the rest of his self aggrandizing book; this is hardly the stuff of heroism. Agassi proved true the First Rule of Detecting – Follow the money. Especially true regarding him.

Andre Agassi is simple to understand: he’s a garden-variety narcissistic personality. He’s your typical celebrity constantly in search of any spotlight he can push his way in to. Everything he does has the same subtext screamed out to the world: LOOK AT ME!!!!! The very act of writing a tell all book like this has one is the perfect example of that very subtext. With Sampras and Courier making money & headlines with the Champions Tour & Exos, Andre The Giant Megalomaniac didn’t want to be left out. Agassi sincerely believes (wrongly) that the minutae of his life is something we just can’t wait to hear about. And this book has more than one specific aim: get in front of a story, probably trying to take the steam out of the forthcoming Perry Rogers tell-all. Word from the publishing world is that Agassi has a second purpose for such “confession” in book form today: he’s evidently testing waters politically. Which is remarkably perfect for him. Besides show business, there is no other profession more suitable to a grandiose-sized ego than politics. Come to think of it, his handling of the Meth incident is the perfect job pre-requisite for any Agassi political career. How appropriate for him to end up working in the same corrupt town with a doofus like Obama.

So Agassi put his contiually spotlight hungry life details on paper, just in case we missed any of it over the last 25 years? Yawn.


Ben Pronin Says:

Well if you read the book you’d know that Agassi actually detests the spotlight. Also, this talk about trying to take steam out of Perry Rogers’ book is nonsense because Agassi only said great things about Perry. There was no mention of the fallout. You can hate him all you want, but Agassi is great.


tenisbebe Says:

Ben – SHUT UP AND LET US DISCUSS>


tenisbebe Says:

Voicemail 1 – well, you are back. Thank God! As I said I have not read the book so I am somewhat reluctant to comment however, as you note, it is common knowledge that Perry Roger’s forthcoming book was going to expose much of the more titillating details revealed in OPEN and Agassi was just making an offensive play with his own book. Personally, the guy has a lot to answer for snowballing (maybe paying off?) the ATP re: his meth use. All of his sponsors would have ran away so his motives are questionable. The whole “I was in a crappy marriage” excuse is just lame. Was a huge fan of his thru the late ’80’s and early 90’s but became really sick of the drama fast…..


Texastennis Says:

Well the cnnsi excerpts were more than two pars but the book is almost 400 pages, so they certainly only showed a tiny slice. Strong opinions might be better served by reading the book.

Whatever on Agassi thought, the Rogers stuff here is off target:

1) The book ends in 2006 before they split and Roger is very favorably treated in the book as Ben notes.

2) Agassi agreed to do the book in the winter of 06-07 BEFORE the split. He didn’t agree to do it to stop Rogers outing him.

3) Rogers isn’t doing a book. The LV press reported that they’ve signed an agreement to settle their affairs that included a gag order for confidentiality on both sides. So all Rogers has said about the book is a statement that they were lucky to have those years together and he wishes Agassi well.

4) Plus if Rogers ever wants to be a big time sports agent again which I presume he does (although it seems to me he probably learned this year that Agassi is Agassi without Rogers but Rogers is nobody without Agassi), he is well aware that absolute confidentiality is the first requirement of an agent. No body would ever hire him if he sold out his biggest ever client to the
press.

IMO (having read the book) Agassi lied about the test because he was panicky (show me an athelet who hasnt paniced when they find out they’ve had a positive test and they all lie about it as far as I can see – can’t remember one who said “oh yes right.” They all make up some dog ate my homework excuse.) and because he was doing crystal meth. You show me a crystal meth user, I’ll show you a lier.

PS ATP – al that has been looked into very carefully in the press. There was no cover up. They followed the procedures they had at the time and an independent tribunal accepted his excuse. Gullible they may hev been but these accusations about the ATP being paid off etc are ridiculous. Was the ATP relieved to see his excuse accepted? No doubt. But that’s not the same thing.

PPS Tiger – looks just like Agassi in 1997 to me… substitute risky sex and vicodin/ambien/alcohol cocktails for crystal meth and there you are.


tenisbebe Says:

Texas – re: 1997 ATP. A different time for drug testing however, one has to wonder: why give the test at all if a player can say “It’s incorrect” and be believed without a through investigation. I mean, the test is for the presence of the substance, yes? So why blow off the results so quickly? Agree that the procedures were in favor of the players back then but Lordy, why test at all?

“PPS Tiger – looks just like Agassi in 1997 to me… substitute risky sex and vicodin/ambien/alcohol cocktails for crystal meth and there you are.” Interesting analogy…haha.


tenisbebe Says:

Oops s/b “thorough”


Sean Randall Says:

I’m about 75% thru the book, and it’s very candid. Some of the tales Agassi tells are borderline unbelievable. But so far it’s an entertaining read.

Also it’s remarkable just how intensely Agassi’s been promoting his book. Maybe he really needs the sales.


madmax Says:

Sean,

agassi doesnt need the sales, and you know it! Ridiculous. The guy is a multi million. I think you are looking far too deeply into this (everyone). It’s simple. When someone writes an autobiography, that’s exactly what it is. ‘A tell ALL about my life, warts and all’. It’s a cathartic tale of the rights and wrongs of what has happened to someone’s journey towards confession and redemption. Agassi felt he needed to do this, and why not?

Secondly, voicemale, anyone who refers to obama as a “doofas”, cannot be taken seriously – it is for this reason that I think your above post is seriously misguided.


madmax Says:

“multi-millionaire”


Voicemale1 Says:

Ben Pronin Says:

“Well if you read the book you’d know that Agassi actually detests the spotlight.”

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

This is utter nonsense. Then why does he keep finding ways to get in front of cameras and microphones even to this day? He chooses to write a book (which must include the promotion tour of the book – otherwise a publisher will not publish it); he’s STILL doing commercials years after his career is over (Longines); he did a heavy promo of this Exo with Sampras in Macau last October; and played yet more tennis with all the requisite TV & Print interviews on Courier’s Champions Tour. Just so you know: no one forces him into any of this – it’s all elective.

Yeah – loathes that spotlight. Right, Ben. And I have a bridge for sale in Brooklyn too. Like I said: Agassi is nothing more than a garden variety narcissistic personality. Whatever attention he gets, it’s never enough. He’s desperately trying to keep himself “relevant”.

And Agassi was taken to task for NOT mentioning the fallout with Rogers (by Jon Wertheim). The details of the split are undoubtedly coming in the Rogers Book since Rogers is the one who sued Graf for $50,000. Agassi’s reluctance to even mention the split in his book is what signals all isn’t that well. When you have someone who’s been that close to you over time like Rogers has been to Agassi (Agassi has even thanked Rogers BY NAME in Trophy ceremonies) then to ignore a split of that magnitude, a split everyone who buys his book knows about, is more than literary malpractice. It makes it obvious that whatever the details are, few if any are flattering to Agassi. Otherwise he’d have written about it ad nauseam.


Texastennis Says:

Voicemale1

Not having read the book and ignoring all clearly established facts, you continue to make statements that don’t stand up!

The book ENDS in 2006 – he and Rogers were still on fine terms then. Maybe he’ll explain the split in the sequel (which according to your scheme he’ll certainly be writing due to desire for publicity, having sold so many copies of this one). But I think not because of the gag order in their settlement. There’s no literary malpractice to not talk about something that had not yet happened in the period covered by the book.

There are so many details in the book that are so highly unflattering to Agassi, no need to worry what anyone else might say at this point.
Desire for publicity – you can’t raise $85 million for your foundation without a ton of publicity. That’s why he’s doing all of this imo. If as a side effect he enjoys the spotlight, whatever. The public good being done is still enormous and worthy. Presumably you think the same thing about Lance Armstrong. (Another clearly imperfect athlete but who nevertheless has done enormous public good.)

Rogers – there’s no Rogers book. See above.

Let’s try to discuss at least based on facts.

Ben – I like it when bloggers join in the comments. Bodo does that sometimes and I think he’s by far the most successful tennis blogger when measured by consistency of large number of responses. (Not that I always agree with him…) That’s one aspect of a blog – dialogue. Keep it and the generally fine blogging up.


madmax Says:

Well, it can be said for sure that if agassi didnt want to do an interview, or do promotion, then its up to him to say no. He doesnt have to do these things, but he is thinking of the bigger picture – he has had his career and from now on, it’s on his terms, when he wants to work, what tournaments he wants to enter, thinking that ultimately, the money will go to Los Angeles Kids. Good for agassi.

For voicemale to say that Agassi is doing this to get into the spotlight is just – well – crazy. THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS WHO AGASSI IS – HE’S BEEN IN THE SPOTLIGHT SINCE HE WON HIS FIRST SLAM! – C’MON!

Like I said, when you write an autobiography, you write it to “tell the truth about your life”, else why write an autobiography in the first place? Makes no sense to me otherwise.

You write a book to “tell all”. And, well, if the sales of the book go towards helping the kids in the poorer part of Los Angeles, then Agassi is a philanthropist – not an antagonist – he is someone who wants to “right” any of the wrongs he has done in his life, and he has that opportunity. Not many people will have that stage that he has built through his own hard work since he has been playing tennis – so I say, give the guy a break.

Have you seen all the autobiographies out there already – go read some – are they any different? John McEnroe’s “serious”, I think tenisbebe mentioned another one from Pete Sampras, and Hey, what about Boris Becker? They are no different –

I dont think so, they retell a tale of love, of loss, of mistakes, of redemption. This is the nature of autobiographies. Agassi is no different –

I am sure he will feel a whole weight off his shoulders for off loading what he felt to be a lead balloon, it’s done now. He is happy with the consequences, and that is all that matters.


Ben Pronin Says:

Sampras’s was a tell-none. I read his when it came out and I enjoyed it just the same but it was a very different book from a very different person. Even in their autobiographies, the difference between Agassi and Sampras is astonishing.


madmax Says:

DD,

my point is that when people write autos, they write from the heart and they tell it how it is, how their life is to them, warts and all – for any poster to criticise agassi for “telling it how it is” goes against the objective of writing an autobiography!


Voicemale1 Says:

Texastennis Says:

“The book ENDS in 2006 – he and Rogers were still on fine terms then.”

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

You cannot be stupid enough to actually stand by a statement like this as the explanation for the missing story of the falling out. It doesn’t matter when the time line of the book ends, genius. It was published and released a month ago. There was plenty of time to add it given the headlines it created, even as an end note or epilogue. It had nothing to do with the timeline he chose to end his discussion, which is obvious that 2006 was chosen since it was the end of his professional career.

Madmax:

Agassi is a media whore, plain and simple. A spotlight isn’t something you need or must stay in. You can walk away from a spotlight any time. The fact that he doesn’t gives the lie to his loathing of the spotlight Ben claims Agassi advocates. And you can raise money without any of it ever making news. People do it all over the world every single day for all kinds of reasons: universities, charities, causes of all kinds. Get it through your head: Agassi’s continued fame is ELECTIVE, it’s not required for anything. And he fosters it every chance he gets. He could do a lot philanthropy without a camera or a microphone anywhere near him; millions of people do it all the time. He actively seeks notoriety for all the philanthropy he does – which proves my point. That he chooses to shove his mug everywhere he can speaks volumes about just how narcissistic he is. Period.


JoshDragon Says:

I agree, with you Ben. Andre’s book is unbelievably good. I just started reading it a couple of days ago. There’s still some secrets in the book that weren’t leaked by the media.


madmax Says:

Voicemale 1,

Your words that agassi is a “media whore”. What’s your problem? Firstly, Agassi is ALREADY FAMOUS, get it?. You cannot lose that curtain of recognition. He is famous. Whatever he does in the sporting world, will always make news, no matter whether he wants it or not. And anyhow, if you hate the guy so much, STOP READING about him.

Voicemale says:

Get it through your head: Agassi’s continued fame is ELECTIVE, it’s not required for anything. And he fosters it every chance he gets. He could do a lot philanthropy without a camera or a microphone anywhere near him; millions of people do it all the time. He actively seeks notoriety for all the philanthropy he does – which proves my point. That he chooses to shove his mug everywhere he can speaks volumes about just how narcissistic he is. Period.

Your point is not proved in the slightest. It’s called mutual respect. If Agassi wants to publicise the work that he does, or give the money that he has made from his book to better causes, then why not? He is in a position to do so, and it is for the greater good. He doesnt need the money, he doesnt need the publicity. He got it the first time he won his slam, many years ago. It’s weird actually when you say he “puts his mug about”. Well, I have seen Agassi twice this year,(on TV) once at the FO,at the presentation ceremony and secondly on the Jonathan Ross show (UK presenter), so I would hardly say that Agassi is “everywhere”. Slight exaggeration voicemale.

And like I said, if you cant stand the man, then stop reading about him, switch off the TV because you are in a minority in terms of the incredible book reviews that Agassi has received.


Texastennis Says:

Voicemale 1

You’re wrong (and rude). He doesn’t discuss anything at all post 2006 except – very briefly – the foundation, Graf and trying to find a more settled place with tennis. The structure of the book doesn’t allow or intend for more rumination on other things of the past three years. Perhaps he’ll satisfy you and write a sequel about post 2006, and talk about Rogers.

Philanthropy – first, millions of people do not do it at his level without publicity. Millions of people do a little with no publicity. Millions more do nothing. He and Armstrong are by far the most successful athlete philanthropists and what they have in common (apart from phases of very bad decision making…) is using the leverage of their fame very successfully to raise huge amounts of money that serve a greater good. If you think either of them could have raised the kind of money they have without publicity, you are indeed misguided. Nobody raises that kind of money without an enormous amount of time, effort and yes publicity. Good for them.


Ben Pronin Says:

Voicemale1, clearly you don’t like Agassi and there’s no changing your mind. I think it’s a shame that you have trouble accepting someone’s flaws. But trying to convince people to degrade a guy who’s devoted his life to helping other’s in need, well, it really makes one think.


andrea Says:

just finished andre’s book and it was awesome. it was written to be a page turner and really sheds a lot of light onto andre’s psyche and how his influences, good and bad, turned him into who he is today.

he does a great job recounting certain matches but it’s far less about diseccting tennis matches and much more about all the crazy characters that he has surrounded himself with and how they have shaped his life.

i also ordered jon wertheim’s book about the wimbledon men’s final ’08…can hardly wait to read that.

fyi…sports illustrated has named the wimmbledon men’s 08 final as the greatest sporting match of the decade! yeah!


madmax Says:

Hi DD!

Just heard that Nalbandian won his first tournament back after hip surgery – could you write a thread on that please, cos I love that man!


snowbirrd Says:

Voicemale, that you detest Agassi is more than evident,and that is your prerogative. However, your arguments about his craving the limelight lack merit. How long has it been since Andre retired and this is the first time he has appeared in the media. Do you suggest that Roger Federer is a media hound because he has his image plastered all over the place? No, of course not, it’s a ridiculous supposition. Also, you mention that fund raising doesn’t require media attention. Well why do you suppose that other celebrities lend their names for charitable causes. I guess Bob Hope , Wayne Gretzky, Steve Nash, Brad Pitt, etc etc are all megalomaniacs since they all have and promote charitable causes by their name recognition. Besides, Andre was self deprecating about his human flaws and that’s more than a lot of us can say. You don’t like him. I get it, however your arguments are tainted by your dislike


Andy Says:

This is an excellent book. I too wondered why he didn’t comment on his falling-out with Rogers.

And like Ben Pronin, I was struck by how the contrast between Agassi’s and Sampras’ on-court personas was evident in their autobiographies, too.

I put up a short post about how these differences manifested themselves in each player’s preparation for the French Open.

http://tenniswire.wordpress.com/2009/12/08/parisian-appetites/

–Andy

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