You see it when the cheerleaders come out during halftime. You see it on TV when the cameras point out the players’ wives. You see it in sports movies and TV shows. Sex and sports often coincide in the lives of many professional male athletes.
Both on the field and off, athletes are surrounded by sex. Some play the field and use their celebrity status to nab as many women as possible-namely Wilt Chamberlain, who claims he had sex with over 20,000 women (that’s not a typo: 20,000 women). Other athletes prefer to go domestic and get married.
Many athletes happily choose having a family over their careers, understanding the ramifications. Others try to do both and fail. For many, the cost of love is their success.
Two athletes in particular have watched their fantastic sports careers nosedive after finding love, and have taken criticism in the public eye for it.
Andre Agassi started his professional tennis career early at the young age of 16. After just two years he worked his world ranking up to fourth, winning his first Grand Slam title in 1992 by defeating Goran Ivanisevic to capture the Wimbledon crown. In the next three years he captured both the US Open title and the Australian Open title, and became the top player in the world in 1995. His fame and popularity soared, and in 1997 he married actress Brooke Shields; Agassi was seemingly on top of the world.
But then, he began to play in fewer tournaments and injured his wrist. In just a little over two years Agassi’s world ranking dropped from number one to 141. Finally, in April of ’99, Agassi filed for divorce with Shields, ending their short celebrity marriage. Magically, just two months later, Agassi became the fifth player to complete a Grand Slam, winning the French Open. By the end of 1999, Agassi was once again the top player in the world. Agassi has won three more Grand Slams over the past few years, and today remains one of the top contenders in the world.
Incredible, isn’t it? Agassi was the top player in the world just two years before and two years after Brooke Shields, yet during their marriage, he dropped to 141. Agassi is now married, with two kids, to Steffi Graff, herself a former women’s tennis star. Agassi couldn’t handle the life everyone seems to desire: fame, fortune and a hot actress wife.
Moving on, the name Tiger Woods has became synonymous with professional golf. A man who needs little introduction, Eldrick “Tiger” Woods redefined golf with his incredible play and explosive, fist-pumping attitude. From the moment he joined the tour in 1996, he became a force, winning his first Major Tournament in 1997 when he blew away the field at Augusta to win the Masters. Since then, he has won a total of eight major tournaments, and in 2001 became the first person to win all four major tournaments consecutively. Tiger worked his way up to the world’s number one ranking in 1997, a ranking he held onto until recently.
In November of 2003, Tiger Woods became engaged to gorgeous Swedish model, Elin Nordegren, and subsequently, his golf game began to decline. Although Tiger won the U.S. Open in 2002, he hasn’t won a major since. He was married in October of ’04, and one can’t help but wonder, “Where has his game gone?” Think about it. He most likely met his future wife in 2002, dated her for a year, became engaged and now he’s married. Looks like maybe Tiger traded a few green jackets for some black lingerie.
It is yet to be seen what Tiger will do, and whether or not he will regain his dominance over the sport of golf. Freshman Jake Greenblatt said it best, “If I was Tiger, I would spend less time with golf and more time with my wife.” (If you have seen Tiger Woods’ wife, I think you may agree with Jake.)
Although these are only two examples, they are proof that some men just cannot handle the pressure of having a successful sports career and having sex with a beautiful woman.
Jack Nicklaus, considered by many to be the greatest golfer of all time, once said that the only reason he didn’t win more majors is because he had a wife and kids. Clearly finding a balance is hard to do. Nevertheless, it seems some professional athletes need to make a choice: winning or a wife.