Andrew Stephen Roddick was born on August 30, 1982, in Omaha, Nebraska to Blanche and Jerry Roddick. Blanche was a schoolteacher and Jerry was a businessman who struck it rich accumulating Jiffy Lube franchises. Rambunctious even as a newborn, Andy earned the nickname “Tiger” from the nurse who helped deliver him. To his mother’s amazement, Andy was lifting his head after just two hours.Older brothers Lawrence and John showed early promise in tennis, and their parents did what they could to foster their ambitions. Naturally, Andy wanted to do whatever his siblings were doing, and mimicked their strokes whenever he found an extra racket lying around. By his fourth birthday, he was banging the ball against the garage door, playing imaginary matches against Ivan Lendl and Boris Becker.

No one gave Andy much thought as a potential tennis star. His brothers were convinced their hammy younger sibling would become an actor. Or a baseball player. Andy had the skills and the bravado to back up just about any career aspiration. After he turned five, his mother found a legal pad with the words, “I can run faster, I can hit a ball far, I can catch every ball.That was the same year the Roddicks left Omaha for Boca Raton, Florida. There John and Lawrence were able to hone their tennis skills year-round on a backyard court. John stuck with the sport after the move (though he eventually was forced to quit because of a back injury), while Lawrence became more interested in competitive diving. That left an opening on the other side of the net for Andy, who by the age of eight could hold his own against his brother and other kids much older.In 1991, Andy’s parents gave him a fantastic birthday present: a trip to the U.S. Open in New York. That was the tournament that featured 39-year-old Jimmy Connors’s incredible run to the semifinals. Andy was captivated by Connors. He marveled at the veteran’s ability to stir up the crowd and then feed off its energy. That was the same kind of passion the youngster felt for the game.At age 10, Andy moved again with his family to Boca Raton, Florida, accompanied by his sports-minded brothers, John Roddick - later an All-American tennis player at University of Georgia - and Lawrence, an accomplished spring board diver and who later joined the U.S. Senior National Team.

It was Andy, however, who went on to enter the world spotlight when he turned professional tennis player in 2000 at age 18. That same year he became the youngest player in the ATP Top 200. A year later, he was in the Top 20. With one of the fastest serves in the sport, Roddick's career has skyrocketed on and off the court, including an appearance on Saturday Night Live, and media coverage by publications ranging from Rolling Stone Magazine to People Magazine, who named him 2002's "Sexiest Sports Star." 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).Most recently, Roddick has been making headlines at the Australian Open amid rumors that he and another tennis superstar Maria Sharapova, may be more than just friends, but a romantic couple off the court

Andy has the total package for tennis stardom. He is big and strong, moves around the court well, and uses his head to stay calm when the pressure is on. Andy’s serve is the most feared in tennis. When it tops out in the low 140s it is almost unreturnable. His second serve is no picnic either.Andy’s forehand is above average, while his backhand is superb when it’s working and less than superb when it’s not. The difference between Andy before he hooked up with Brad Gilbert and after is that when some part of his game is flat, he can manage points to minimize the damage.The X-factor for Andy is his enormous crowd appeal. Clearly, he feeds off the energy his presence creates. And although many opponents resent him for the connection he makes with fans, it is hard to imagine they need a special incentive to beat him. When you are going up against the guy who’s sitting atop the mountain, you’d better bring your A-game.