Andy Roddick was one of the finest tennis players in the world in the 2000s.
During his career, he earned more than $20 million in prize money.
With so much money at their disposal, his parents encouraged and supported his wishes
to participate in sports and athletics.
Some may argue that Andy Roddick underachieved in tennis because he only won one Grand Slam,
but on the other hand, His financial account and entire résumé are pretty remarkable.
Let's take a closer look at this retired American tennis star.
ANDY'S EARLY LIFE AND BIOGRAPHY Andy was the youngest of three sons and was
born on August 30, 1982, in Omaha, Nebraska.
Jerry, his father, operated multiple Jiffy Lube car maintenance franchises.
The family first settled in Austin, Texas, where young Andy received tennis lessons with
two future professional athletes: Chris Mihm, who subsequently played for the Boston Celtics,
and Drew Brees, who later played quarterback for the San Diego Chargers.
Andy was not his family's first tennis prodigy, as he didn't have ambitions to pursue tennis
initially.
He was first inspired to play tennis professionally by his older brother John, who had been playing
since he was a kid.
John was around six years older than Andy, and after retiring from tennis due to a back
ailment, he then went on to open a tennis academy in San Antonio, Texas.
John competed on the junior circuit and was ranked in the top ten during his teenage years.
Since Andy and his brothers were rich, their family could afford the costly lessons and
equipment required for early tennis instruction.
From an early age, Andy took up a racket to follow in his brother's footsteps, and he
was fiercely focused.
On his ninth birthday in 1991, his parents took him on a trip to Flushing, New York,
where they watched the US Open Live.
In 2003, Andy won his only grand slam title, defeating Juan Carlos Ferrero in the US Open
final, and in that same November of 2003, he got to the top of the rankings.
He also reached the Wimbledon finals in 2004, 2005, and 2009, losing all three times against
Roger Federer, who was world number one at the time.
Unfortunately for Andy, he had the misfortune of playing during the Federer era.
His peak occurred at the same time as Federer's.
On top of that, Federer was somewhat superior at everything on the tennis court.
Beyond Federer, there was Rafael Nadal to deal with beginning in 2005, who swiftly ascended
to the No. 2 spot in the rankings.
Then came the arrival of younger players such as Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray made it
even more difficult for Andy to break through and reach the finals.
On the court, Andy was famous for his powerful serves and hits.
He was also a troublemaker of some sort.
The American was well-known in the media for his infamous playground outbursts, in which
he became enraged at the umpires and linesmen on the court.
In June of 2012, Andy chose to retire, having been suffering from various recurring injuries,
which was causing a setback in his career.
Andy then got married to the American model and actress Brooklyn Decker in 2009, and they
live together in Austin, Texas.
WHO IS BROOKLYN DECKER?
Brooklyn, Andy's wife, began her career as a model in the entertainment sector.
In 2006, 2007, and 2008, she was included in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition.
She has also been in a number of Victoria's Secret and Gap advertisements.
With cameo appearances on Chuck, Ugly Betty, The League, and Royal Pains, in addition to
working for Victoria's Secret, she was indeed living the life.
"Just Go with It" was her feature film debut, and she went on to star in "Battleship" and
"What to Expect When You're expecting."
In 2015, she was cast as Mallory Hanson on Netflix's Grace and Frankie as a series regular.
ANDY'S MARRIAGE TO BROOKLYN DECKER Andy first discovered Brooklyn Decker while
watching a CNN/Sports Illustrated show called "She Says."
After that, he developed a crush on her.
Brooklyn has previously explained how their relationship started.
She said she was hosting a football show which Andy watched every week.
Andy got his attorney to call Brooklyn's agent at the time.
She admitted that she thought it was very shady at first, and she did not call him back
for five months.
Brooklyn was living in New York at the time when her manager persuaded her to give Andy
a call because she had no friends.
Most of her friends were in North Carolina, where she grew up.
She eventually googled him and watched his press conference from the US Open.
She claims she found him funny and sarcastic and felt he could be a charmer.
So she made the phone call, and they have been together ever since.
Some people found it strange that Brooklyn and Andy were close to each other.
Of course, they were both popular, but their different professional paths would have led
others to believe they had nothing in common.
They began dating in 2007, and Andy announced their engagement on his website on March 31,
2008.
The couple finally got married on April 17, 2009, in Austin, Texas.
The couple's closest friends and relatives were in attendance.
Sir Elton John, Andre Agassi, his wife Steffi Graf, tennis stars Justin Gimelstob, James
Blake, and Mardy Fish were among the celebrities that attended the event.
Then the couple revealed they were expecting their first child on May 2, 2015, and On September
30, 2015, Brooklyn gave birth to their first child, Hank.
In an interview, while Brooklyn was pregnant with their first child, she characterized
Andy as the smartest person she had ever met.
She described him as clever and with a quick mind.
He also made her laugh a lot.
She appreciates Andy a lot as a person.
Brooklyn claimed she was fortunate enough to kind of be in the background and see all
of Andy from a really unique perspective.
There was something about Andy being a dad, according to Brooklyn.
And in July 2017, Andy announced that they were expecting their second child.
ANDY'S MOTHER, BLANCHE Andy's mother, Blanche, is a schoolteacher
who was born in Platteville, much like Andy's dad, and it was there that they met.
His dad was a first-year university student at the time, and his mom was a senior in high
school.
They fell, met, married, and had the three Roddick brothers we know today.
Blanche has been their main encourager and supporter since her boys first showed an interest
in tennis.
She stayed by their sides and learned how to be a greater inspiration whenever they
were struggling.
She is still very much close to Andy and his brothers, Lawrence and John, and loves them
unconditionally.
ANDY'S BROTHERS; LAWRENCE RODDICK AND JOHN RODDICK
Lawrence never really took to tennis like his other brothers.
The three boys grew up playing tennis in their garden, but Lawrence was soon taken over by
competitive driving.
Lawrence, who is now a chiropractor, was a springboard driver and also became a father
soon enough.
By the time his son J.C. was born, it had become obvious that Lawrence himself had passed
on the gene to his son even though he never manifested it.
JC loved tennis.
Lawrence has put his kid in as much training as possible since seeing this early interest,
and JC appears to be doing well.
The chiropractor in San Antonio is proud of his kid, but he wants him to enjoy the sport
rather than strive to be famous like his uncle, Andy.
The young Roddick is thought to be a natural, and his serving style and resolve have been
likened to Andy's.
John was the first in his family to start a tennis company; in fact, he had been playing
since he was a kid.
Andy's fascination with racquets may be traced back to him.
He continued to play tennis and went on to pursue a professional sports career.
His playing career was not as successful as his younger brother's, but he was still a
world-class player.
John had a promising career until he had a back injury that ended his professional tennis
career.
After retiring as a player, John decided to pursue coaching as a new career route.
What do you think about Andy Roddick's family?
Comment below!