John McEnroe
The important thing is to learn a lesson every time you lose. Life is a learning process and you have to try to learn what's best for you. Let me tell you, life is not fun when you're banging your head against a brick wall all the time.Collection: Time
Everybody loves success, but they hate successful people.Collection: Success
As I got older and started moving up the ranking, the matches got more important, and my emotions ratcheted up. I guess I hid my real feelings behind the anger.Collection: Anger
We should reach out to people to try to go after the fans the way other sports do. Because we can't just depend on the fact that it is a great game.Collection: Sports
I don't think enough players channel the energy of the crowd. If it's done properly, and you don't let anger overwhelm and distract you, it's like a shot of adrenaline in the arm, and it gets the crowd pumped up.Collection: Anger
I'll let the racket do the talking.Collection: Sports
The older I get, the better I used to be.
Tennis was a white, upper-class sport, and I wanted it to be treated like other sports were.
Things slow down, the ball seems a lot bigger and you feel like you have more time. Everything computes - you have options, but you always take the right one.
I think it's the mark of a great player to be confident in tough situations.
Why don't they go back to wood racquets? Then we would see the best tennis to be played.
There was a line call that didn't look so great. I went ballistic. Called the umpire a jerk. Whacked a ball into the stands. Then smacked a soda can with my racket, and got soda all over the King of Sweden, who was sitting in the front row.
What I've realised is that you can run miles, jump on a bike, lift weights, and all that other garbage, but the bottom line is that you get in tennis shape by playing tennis. You build the right muscles, and I don't believe people can do it as successfully any other way.
When I walk out there on court, I become a maniac... Something comes over me, man.
I did a terrible job of composing myself. I was a spoiled brat from Long Island who benefitted from the energy of New York.
I won't admit to having a poster of Borg on my bedroom door. But I certainly found him to be someone who got me way more into tennis.
The good part of having six kids is, there's always one who wants to hug you and say, 'Daddy, I love you.'
Do you have any problems, other than that you're unemployed, a moron, and a dork?
It seems like the richer you are, the more chance you have of paying less tax.
Roland Garros is the only one of the four majors that is 15 days, and that is too long.
Nadal is one of the great champions - a class act.
This taught me a lesson, but I'm not quite sure what it is.
I grew up watching Dr. J, and I was like, 'Oh my God, this guy is the greatest basketball player I ever saw.'
I'm generally happy, although my kids and wife may sometimes argue with that.
When I was eight and a half, my parents moved to a part of Queens where there was a club nearby. We joined, and if you believe in someone up above, I think I was meant to play tennis.
I had a similar year back in 1984 when I felt like I couldn't lose.
Do women golfers say they could go out and beat Tiger Woods?
I always got along with Borg, who was my greatest rival. People like to see me and Connors, me and Lendl, go at it. We didn't like each other.
Jack Nicholson didn't get anything until he was in his thirties. You have to persevere and put yourself in positions, and sooner or later, you will break through.
I'm a tell-it-like-it-is kind of person; I don't like being misled or someone not telling the truth. That upsets me.
I thought doubles was a good way for me to practice and get some reps in - I didn't like to train in the gym as much as players these days.
I didn't serve and volley until I got to Wimbledon in '77.
If, in a few months, I'm only number 8 or number 10 in the world, I'll have to look at what off-the-court work I can do. I will need to do something if I want to be number 1.
Well I think that's probably one of a few, where I grew up in the City of New York, it's got a lot of energy, my parents are Irish-American so there was a bit of yelling going on in my house but it seemed normal.
I think the players, I put in the book for example that we should go back to wood rackets, probably they laughed at me, I'm a dinosaur, but I think that you see these great players, have even more variety and you see more strategy, there'd be more subtlety.
To be involved in a senior tournament back in the States is very satisfying.
It means a lot to be back in New York. Particularly since one of the last senior event scheduled in the States was supposed to be here in New York. We were supposed to play in Central Park right after 9-11 and when 9-11 happened obviously things changed.
But these guys learn so fast now, they sort of soak up the information, they're fearless. Those are the guys who learn from their mistakes and come back strong the next time.
I haven't seen a professional player come out of New York in over 20 years since my brother Patrick came out. Blake spent a few years in Harlem, but he moved to Connecticut when he was a kid.
I believe there's only one autobiography you can do.
There's something deeply satisfying when it succeeds, but I'm not going to do another book just to put my name on something and make some money if it's not something I deeply care about.
I'd like to think I could have and should have won more, but that's not the point. And I was at the point where I was playing great tennis in the mid 80s - the type of tennis people hadn't seen before - and I was very proud of that.
If Roger stopped right now and never won another match, to me he'd already be one of the greatest players to ever play the game. To me, he's the greatest all around talent that I've ever seen.
What is the single most important quality in a tennis champion? I would have to say desire, staying in there and winning matches when you are not playing that well.
Believe it or not, I was a pretty shy youngster growing up.
It's one thing if you live in London and you're rooting for Chelsea or you're in New York and you love the Giants or Jets and no matter who's on the team you're into it. It's different in tennis; you're sort of your own guy, so you have to reach out and grab a person in a different way.
The only thing 'championship' about Wimbledon is its prestige.
No one cares about the Davis Cup. How many people know I won five Davis Cups and seven majors, but that I rarely played the Australian Open?
Maybe I should have played two more Australians and two less Davis Cups? I could have had more majors and still have three Davis Cups when most people don't have one.
When I was 25, if you'd have said I was going to be a commentator, that would seem like, 'Oh, my God. That's a huge step down.'