Everything you need to know about Cori “Coco” Gauff
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16th Jul 2019
Wimbledon 2019’s breakout star, Cori, though she prefers Coco, is the youngest player to qualify for the main Wimbledon draw since 1968. On July 1, Gauff beat out 39-year-old hero and five-time Wimbledon singles champion Venus Williams.
After her 6-4, 6-4 first-round victory against 39-year-old Williams, Gauff beat out Magdalena Rybarikova in a 6-3, 6-3 victory. For her third-round match, Gauff hit Centre Court where she played against Polona Hercog, beating the 60th-ranked tennis star. On July 8, competing against Simona Halep in the fourth round, Gauff lost the game to Hercog, who came out on top.
At the outset of this year’s Wimbledon, Gauff was ranked number 319 in the world. Now, she ranks number 139 in the WTA rankings, with reported earnings of AUD$314,448 as per The Guardian.
Born on 13 March 2004, Gauff is just 15 years old.
American-born Gauff is originally from Delray Beach, Florida. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia, the tennis star eventually moved back to Delray Beach to concentrate her energies on the sport.
At age seven, Gauff started playing tennis, inspired by her hero Serena Williams. At just 13, she made it to the girls’ final of the 2017 United States Open. Then in 2018, she won the girls’ final of the French Open, rounding out the year with her win at the Orange Bowl tournament.
The 12th youngest player overall to play at Wimbledon, Gauff is the only one that qualified. Back in 2009, then 15-year-old British player Laura Robson competed through a Wimbledon wild card.
Corey, Gauff’s father is Cori’s coach. She is represented by the agency Team8 (co-founded by Roger Federer) and has trained in southern France at the Mouratoglou Academy (run by Patrick Mouratoglou, Serena Williams’s coach) since she was 10.
Given her age, and the restrictions surrounding young players, it’s possible Gauff’s next competition will be the Washington Open at the end of July or the Cincinnati Open in August. In the interim, Gauff will take three weeks off to focus on school work.
At a press conference after the Hercog victory, Gauff confessed, “I know this is off-topic, but I wanted to say please stream Erys by Jaden Smith. His album dropped yesterday.” Earlier on in the tournament, Gauff highlighted the young singer’s Icon was playing in her head while participating in her first-round qualifying match.
The 15-year-old is set to earn AUD$1,420,050 as per Forbes. Sponsorships from New Balance, racket maker Head and Barilla will all contribute to this income.
As told to The Telegraph, Gauff explained: “I mean, I can’t buy a car because I can’t drive. I hate spending money to be honest. Maybe I’m going to buy some more MSFTSrep, which is Jaden’s line, buy some hoodies from that.”
Gauff’s father, Corey, was a basketball player at Georgia State and is also her primary coach. Candi, her mother, was a heptathlete and hurdler at Florida State. Interestingly, each of her immediate family members share the same initials CDG, including her brothers Cameron and Cody, who are both younger.
Just like any other 15-year-old, Gauff spent the day before her qualifying match at Wimbledon hard at work studying for her science exam, for which she received a B grade.
“Please tell me she’s a meme,” said Gauff at a press conference on the arm-waving victory dance her mother performed, as per The Telegraph.
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