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MIKE AGASSI - TENNIS LEGEND BEING HONORED

By Ryan Wolfington

Mike Agassi , now 78 years old, loves nothing more than to sit around and watch tennis. No matter if it is TV, live, junior, adult, or professional level play, he is big on this game. "I could put my bed on the court and sleep there all night. I love this game," Mike said at a recent junior tournament. "This brings back great memories."

It started when Mike Agassi was a very poor child in Iran, and he was allowed to watch the US service men play on a shell court, as long as he fetched balls, and cleaned the court daily. This meant walking a mile with two buckets of water each day to keep the courts moist and playable. For his efforts, one day a soldier gave Mike his old tennis racket, which he never got to play with, but to him it was the greatest thing in the world. Soon after, to fend for himself in impoverished Iran, Mike had to learn how to fight. For fun the children would trade blows, either to defend themselves or to earn money at the local boxing club. This is when young Mike Agassi was discovered as a boxing talent and taken to an area training center until he became the best in his country. Even then he had to fight to be placed on the Olympic team, which he did by making a plea to the King of Iran at the time.

From day one Mike Agassi has had to fight for everything he has gotten, and as a result he became a fierce boxer, a fierce competitor, and someone who took no opportunity for granted. Choosing to leave his native country and tearfully say goodbye to his father and his family, what lured him away were the simple luxuries that the West takes for granted, like toilets, electricity, heat, and an abundance of food.

At this time the country did not allow many visa's but Mike, because of his boxing, had a passport. After each match he was suppose to turn in his papers, and he did. But soon after the official left the room, Agassi went back in and grabbed his back. The next morning he made the dangerous trek to the airport to try and make his escape. The airport officials noticing the famous boxer, greeted him and let him on his way, to Chicago, United States of America.

The first thing he did was find the local boxing gym where he found his confidence by winning countless Golden Gloves Championships; then a tennis court. Once he had the money, amazed that tennis could be played by anyone, he and his brother shoveled snow off the court and played for hours. Realizing he wanted to start a family and make tennis champions, he moved to Las Vegas knowing there was tennis weather year round. Here he was an elevator operator, then a waiter, till one day his luck changed. He had fought hard all his life to find a break and here it was. One night waiting tables a young lady was getting harassed by a guest at the café diner. Young Mike Agassi, still confident with a punch, walked up to the man almost twice his size and told him to knock it off. When the man continued Mike grabbed his neck and said, "Do it again and I'll knock your teeth down your throat."

Turns out, that was Kirk Kirkorian's wife, who would tell her husband of the waiter's efforts on her behalf and the two found out they are both from Iran. This sparked a lifelong releationship, and Mike Agassi still to this day works for Kirk at the MGM grand as a celebrity host.

He's still working at the age of 78 years old which is typical of Mike Agassi. A man who just 3 years ago was cutting down his own palm trees 75 feet in the air, when I came over to meet with him, a guy who refuses to sit back and retire. Mike has always done it himself, weather it is fixing his roof, building his house and the very court that Andre learned the game.
With a mind like an inventor, he took a machine that spit out tennis balls and added wheels to make it spin, controls to make it move up and down, and there you have the present day Match Play ball machine. The device that picks balls up from the court, these are just a few of his inventions. He looks at things and sees how he can make it better.

Looking at the game of tennis he always wondered why they did not take the ball on the rise, why not swing at the volley. He was mocked for these ideas and his fiesty behavior courtside at his children’s matches got him into a lot of trouble. He himself will tell you he pushed the opportunity he himself would have died for, onto his children, who were from America and did not realize how good they had it. They had never lived like Mike Agassi, they never fought on the street for food or walked to a community toilet in the ground. They never understood his struggle, they were just kids, in America.

Mike only knew how to fight, and sometimes he fought too hard, but what he was trying to do was break through. Mike wanted to make sure his children had a better life, even if that meant working all day at the Tropicanna as a pro, teaching tennis, a captain of a showroom all night, with 4-6 hours sleep a night. With the help of his loving wife Betty, he got these children trained and to tournaments each weekend, back during the times when the country club owned tennis and Iranian immigrants were not members. "I could not have done it without Betty, she is my everything," Agassi said. "I could not have done it without her."

It took all 4 of his children to succeed getting scholarships to college, or playing on the tour before Mike felt he had achieved what he set out to do. Many say Rita was as good or better then Andre, but sick of the game by her twenties; Phillip to this day has among the most wins in UNLV history, Tammy was a world class college player, and Andre everyone knows. But what they don't know is that Mike carved out a life for himself from nothing, stayed married to the same women his whole life and nothing means more to him then his family’s happiness and security, not even tennis.

Going back years Mike always took in the neighborhood kids, many who tell me to this day they credit him with their present day success, some doctors, some lawyers. People think of him as a tough tennis dad from years ago and have not seen the extremely kind person I have gotten to know. He never looks for the credit he so much deserves, always wants it for his children, his family. He is old school, believes in family, marriage and good old fashion American values. A hard day’s work is something he cannot live without and his kindness towards others, towards me and many of the children in this community is second to none.

This Saturday Mike Agassi is going to be honored on center court before the night session at the Darling Tennis Center, and I for one will be there to express my gratitude for what he has done for me and for the many children his support has helped.

Tennis without Mike Agassi would leave a very large hole.