John McEnroe Timeline

McEnroe won two singles rubbers in the final as the U.S. captured the Davis Cup for the first time since 1972, defeating Great Britain.

An epic performance was McEnroe's 6-hour, 22-minute victory over Mats Wilander in the deciding rubber of the quarterfinal win over Sweden in 1982.

McEnroe helped the United States win the World Team Cup in 1984 and 1985, defeating Czechoslovakia in both finals.

Image source: World Team Cup

McEnroe was named United States Davis Cup captain in September 1999, taking charge of the national team competition.

After narrowly beating Zimbabwe and the Czech Republic 3–2 in early 2000, McEnroe resigned in November 2000 after 14 months as captain, citing frustration with the Davis Cup schedule and format.

On March 3, 1980, McEnroe became the top-ranked singles player in the world for the first time.

McEnroe was named ATP Player of the Year and ITF World Champion three times each: in 1981, 1983 and 1984.

McEnroe's best season came in 1984, as he compiled an 82–3 match record that remains the highest single-season win rate of the Open Era.

In 1985, having lost in the semifinals at the French Open to Mats Wilander, McEnroe was beaten in straight sets by Kevin Curren in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon.

After the 1987 US Open, where he was suspended for two months and fined US$17,500 for misconduct and verbal abuse, McEnroe took another seven-month break from the game.

McEnroe lost three times at majors to Ivan Lendl, losing straight-set quarterfinals at both the 1987 US Open and the 1989 Australian Open, plus a long four-set match over two days in the fourth round of the 1988 French Open.

Image source: Ivan Lendl

When McEnroe returned to the tour later in 1986, he won three ATP tournaments, but in 1987 he failed to win a title for the first time since turning professional.

In the 1988 French Open, McEnroe beat 16-year-old Michael Chang in straight sets in the third round; Chang went on to win the title the next year.

Image source: Michael Chang

In 1989, McEnroe won a record fifth title at the World Championship Tennis Finals, defeating top-ranked Lendl in the semifinals. He had won three year-end titles at the Masters Grand Prix and five at the WCT Finals.

In his fourth-round match against Mikael Pernfors at the 1990 Australian Open, McEnroe was ejected from the tournament for swearing at the umpire, supervisor, and referee.

The last time McEnroe was ranked in the world's top ten was October 22, 1990; his end-of-year singles ranking that year was 13th.

In 1991, McEnroe won the last edition of the Volvo Tennis-Chicago tournament by defeating his brother Patrick in the final.

In 1992, McEnroe defeated third-ranked and defending champion Boris Becker in the third round of the Australian Open in straight sets before a sell-out crowd.

Image source: Boris Becker

McEnroe retired at the end of 1992 after a storied career that included multiple Grand Slam singles titles and five years finishing ranked world No. 1 (1981 through 1984).

McEnroe played in one singles tournament in 1994 as a wildcard at the Rotterdam Open, losing in the first round to Magnus Gustafsson.

McEnroe returned to the ATP Tour in 2006 to play two doubles tournaments, capturing a title — his first since winning the Paris Indoor doubles in November 1992 with his brother Patrick.

One of McEnroe's senior tour victories came at the Jean-Luc Lagardere Trophy in Paris in 2010, where he defeated Guy Forget in the final.

McEnroe won the over-45 legends doubles competition at the 2012 French Open, then won it again with his brother Patrick in 2014.

McEnroe's last and 26th Champions Tour win — a record since the ATP acquired the Champions Tour in 2001 — came at Stockholm in 2016 against Thomas Muster.

On April 2, 2023, McEnroe participated with Michael Chang, Andre Agassi, and Andy Roddick in the first live airing of pickleball on ESPN, the Million Dollar Pickleball Slam at Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

Image source: Pickleball

In 1986, McEnroe took a six-month break from the tour. On August 1, 1986, he married actress Tatum O'Neal, with whom he already had a son, Kevin.

In 1997, McEnroe married rock singer Patty Smyth, with whom he has two daughters.

Image source: Patty Smyth

After divorcing Tatum O'Neal in 1994, they were awarded joint custody, but in 1998 McEnroe was awarded sole custody due to O'Neal's addiction to heroin. They had three children: Kevin, Sean, and Emily.

Image source: Tatum O'Neal

McEnroe denied rumors at the time but later acknowledged in a 2000 interview that he had used cocaine during his career, although he denied that the drug affected his play.

In 2004, McEnroe said that during much of his career he had unwittingly taken steroids.

A collector of American contemporary art, McEnroe opened a gallery in Manhattan in 1993.

McEnroe's band toured for two years, but he suddenly quit in 1997 just before finishing his first album. Lars Ulrich complimented his natural instinct, though one bar owner said he couldn't sing to save his life.

McEnroe was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999, cementing his legacy as one of tennis's all-time greats.

Image source: International Tennis Hall of Fame

In 2002, McEnroe played himself in the film Mr. Deeds. He appeared again as himself in 2008 in You Don't Mess with the Zohan.

Image source: Mr. Deeds

In 2002, McEnroe hosted the American game show The Chair on ABC as well as the British version on BBC One, but the venture was unsuccessful.

Image source: The Chair (game show)

McEnroe published his first autobiography, You Cannot Be Serious (released as Serious in the UK), in 2002. His second, But Seriously, followed in 2017.

McEnroe played himself in the 2004 romantic comedy film Wimbledon.

Image source: Wimbledon (film)

In July 2004, McEnroe began hosting a CNBC talk show titled McEnroe.

In 2006, McEnroe appeared in a television ad campaign for National Car Rental, saying "Any Car? You cannot be serious!" He appeared the next year in an advertisement for Telstra in Australia.

In 2007, McEnroe received the Philippe Chatrier Award, the ITF's highest accolade, for his contributions to tennis both on and off the court.

In 2010, McEnroe founded the John McEnroe Tennis Academy on Randall's Island in New York City.

Image source: John McEnroe Tennis Academy

Commentating for ESPN in 2012, McEnroe heavily criticized Australian tennis player Bernard Tomic for "tanking" against Andy Roddick at the US Open.

Image source: Bernard Tomic

In late 2013, McEnroe starred in a television commercial campaign for the UK-based gadget insurance company Protect Your Bubble.

In 2014, McEnroe appeared as a guitarist on the solo debut album of Chrissie Hynde, lead singer of The Pretenders.

Image source: Chrissie Hynde

McEnroe was part of Milos Raonic's coaching team from May to August 2016, including during Raonic's strong grass-court season.

Image source: Milos Raonic

McEnroe published his second autobiography, But Seriously, in 2017, following his acclaimed first memoir You Cannot Be Serious from 2002.

Image source: ...But Seriously

McEnroe was portrayed by Shia LaBeouf in the Swedish biopic Borg vs McEnroe, released in 2017, depicting his rivalry with Borg and especially the 1980 Wimbledon final.

Image source: Borg vs McEnroe

McEnroe was a central figure for Australian television network Nine's coverage of the 2019/2020 Australian Open, in addition to his other commentary roles.

Image source: Nine Network

McEnroe performed as the off-camera narrator for four seasons (2020–2023) of the Netflix series Never Have I Ever, appearing in one episode in Season 1.

Image source: Never Have I Ever (TV series)