Born in Omaha, Nebraska on August 30, 1982, Andrew "Andy" Stephen Roddick later moved with his family to Austin, Texas at age 4.
Before becoming a professional tennis player in 2000, Andy was the world number 1 in juniors tennis and won the junior singles titles at the Australian Open and the U.S. Open and was a quarter-finalist at the French Open that year. Also that year, he played in numerous Challenger Level Tournaments and a few ATP events.
Andy Roddick's junior titles and media-friendly charisma made him a celebrity when he was still a teenager.
In 2001, Andy's career started to take off, that year he became the youngest player at 19 years, 4 months to ranked in the ATP Top 20. He also won 3 tournaments in Atlanta, Houston, and Washington. At the U.S Open of that year, Andy made it the quarter-finals before being eliminated by Lleyton Hewitt. In 2002, he made it to the 2nd round of Wimbledon before being eliminated by Greg Rusedski and won 2 tournaments.
Roddick grew up in Texas and Louisiana and began playing tennis professionally at the age of 18. Three years later he was crowned US Open champion and had an ATP ranking of 1. In the run up to Wimbledon 2004 where he finished runner-up, Roddick served the fastest serve in history with a serve of 155 mph.
In his short professional career, Roddick has won 17 singles titles. His first grand slam title came in the 2003 US Open when he beat Juan Carlos Ferrero in straight sets. On August 31, 2004 he hit the fastest serve in US Open history - at 244 km/h (152 mph).
Known and liked for his relaxed demeanour, Roddick is a regular on American TV and was named "Sexiest Athlete" by People magazine in 2003. His nicknames include "A-Rod" and "Kid Roddick," and by the 2004 he had career winnings of more than $7 million. He was recently runner-up at Wimbledon where he was beaten by 'The Natural' Roger Federer.
Off the tennis court, Andy has done advertisements for American Express, was featured in various magazine and has won numerous awards, such as The Arthur Ashe Humanitarian award and the 2004 ESPY for Best Male Tennis player. Andy has also previously dated singer/actress Mandy Moore.
