Peter Fleming (tennis)

Peter Fleming

Fleming and Guy Forget, Wimbledon 2010
Full name	Peter Blair Fleming
Country (sports)	United States
Residence	Glen Cove, New York
Born	January 21, 1955 Chatham Borough, New Jersey
Height	6 ft 5 (1.96 m)
Turned pro	1976
Retired	1988
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money	$1,986,799
Singles
Career record	222–210 (ATP, Grand Prix, WCT & Grand Slam level & Davis Cup)
Career titles	3
Highest ranking	No. 8 (July 7, 1980)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	3R (1983)
French Open	2R (1977, 1980)
Wimbledon	QF (1980)
US Open	3R (1978)
Doubles
Career record	507–177 (ATP, Grand Prix, WCT & Grand Slam level & Davis Cup)
Career titles	60
Highest ranking	No. 1 (June 11, 1984)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	3R (1983)
French Open	SF (1987)
Wimbledon	W (1979, 1981, 1983, 1984)
US Open	W (1979, 1981, 1983)
Mixed doubles
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
Wimbledon	3R (1987)

Peter Blair Fleming (born January 21, 1955 in Chatham Borough, New Jersey) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. Fleming is best known for his successful doubles partnership with John McEnroe, with whom he won 52 titles, seven at Grand Slams (four at Wimbledon, three at the US Open). As a singles player, he peaked at World No. 8, winning three titles (including the 1979 Cincinnati Open).

Tennis career

Fleming attended Chatham High School, where he won the New Jersey high school individual championship in 1972, during his junior year.^[1]

Fleming was a highly successful professional tennis player. During the 1980s, Fleming teamed up with fellow American John McEnroe to dominate the men's doubles game. The duo won 50 doubles titles together, including four at Wimbledon (1979, 1981, 1983 and 1984), and three at the US Open (1979, 1981 and 1983). This success triggered Fleming's famous, and modest, quote that "The best doubles pair in the world is John McEnroe and anyone", though arguably Fleming provided a perfect physical, technical and mental counterpart to McEnroe.^[2]

Fleming also played on three American Davis Cup winning teams (1979, 1981 and 1982), and helped the US win the World Team Cup twice (1984 and 1985). Fleming reached the World No. 1 doubles ranking in 1984. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 8 in 1980, the year in which he reached the quarter-finals at the Wimbledon championships. Over the course of his career Fleming won three top-level singles titles and sixty doubles titles. Prior to turning professional, Fleming played tennis for the University of California, Los Angeles (after transferring from the University of Michigan), and won the National Collegiate Athletic Association doubles title in 1976.

Since retiring as a player, Fleming has become a tennis commentator for Sky Sports, Eurosport and the BBC.

Fleming is a keen golfer (handicap 10) and is an active member of The Stage Golf Society.

He was inducted into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Hall of Fame.^[3] On July 30, 2011, Fleming, the Farmers Classic 1979 singles and 1983 doubles champion, was named 2011 Farmers Classic Tournament Honoree.^[4]

WCT, Grand Prix, and Grand Slam doubles finals

Wins (60)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	1.	1976	La Costa, U.S.	Hard	Gene Mayer	Marty Riessen Roscoe Tanner	6–7, 6–7
Runner-up	2.	1977	Columbus, U.S.	Clay	Gene Mayer	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	6–4, 5–7, 2–6
Runner-up	3.	1977	Laguna Niguel, U.S.	Hard	Trey Waltke	James Chico Hagey Billy Martin	3–6, 4–6
Runner-up	4.	1977	Johannesburg WCT, South Africa	Hard	Raymond Moore	Marty Riessen Roscoe Tanner	6–7, 6–7
Winner	1.	1978	Monte Carlo WCT, Monaco	Clay	Tomáš Šmíd	Jaime Fillol Ilie Năstase	6–4, 7–5
Runner-up	5.	1978	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Bob Hewitt Frew McMillan	1–6, 4–6, 2–6
Winner	2.	1978	South Orange, U.S.	Clay	John McEnroe	Ion Ţiriac Guillermo Vilas	6–3, 6–3
Winner	3.	1978	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	5–7, 6–4, 6–4
Runner-up	6.	1978	Maui, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Tim Gullikson Tom Gullikson	6–7, 6–7
Winner	4.	1978	Cologne, Germany	Hard (i)	John McEnroe	Bob Hewitt Frew McMillan	6–3, 6–2
Winner	5.	1978	Bologna, Italy	Carpet	John McEnroe	Jean-Louis Haillet Antonio Zugarelli	6–1, 6–4
Winner	6.	1978	Johannesburg, South Africa	Hard	Raymond Moore	Bob Hewitt Frew McMillan	6–3, 7–6
Winner	7.	1979	World Doubles WCT, London	Carpet	John McEnroe	Ilie Năstase Sherwood Stewart	3–6, 6–2, 6–3, 6–1
Runner-up	7.	1979	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Wojtek Fibak Tom Okker	7–5, 1–6, 3–6
Winner	8.	1979	New Orleans, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	6–1, 6–3
Winner	9.	1979	Milan, Italy	Carpet	John McEnroe	José Luis Clerc Tomáš Šmíd	6–1, 6–3
Winner	10.	1979	Rotterdam, Netherlands	Carpet	John McEnroe	Heinz Günthardt Bernard Mitton	6–4, 6–4
Winner	11.	1979	San Jose, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Hank Pfister Brad Rowe	6–3, 6–4
Winner	12.	1979	Rome, Italy	Carpet	Tomáš Šmíd	José Luis Clerc Ilie Năstase	4–6, 6–1, 7–5
Winner	13.	1979	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	4–6, 6–4, 6–2, 6–2
Winner	14.	1979	Forest Hills WCT, U.S.	Clay	John McEnroe	Gene Mayer Sandy Mayer	6–7, 7–6, 6–3
Winner	15.	1979	South Orange, U.S.	Clay	John McEnroe	Fritz Buehning Bruce Nichols	6–1, 6–3
Winner	16.	1979	Toronto, Canada	Hard	John McEnroe	Heinz Günthardt Bob Hewitt	6–7, 7–6, 6–1
Winner	17.	1979	US Open, New York City	Hard	John McEnroe	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	6–2, 6–4
Winner	18.	1979	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Wojtek Fibak Frew McMillan	6–1, 6–4
Winner	19.	1979	Stockholm, Sweden	Hard (i)	John McEnroe	Wojtek Fibak Tom Okker	6–4, 6–4
Winner	20.	1979	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Tomáš Šmíd Stan Smith	6–2, 6–3
Winner	21.	1979	Bologna, Italy	Carpet	John McEnroe	Fritz Buehning Ferdi Taygan	6–1, 6–1
Winner	22.	1980	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	6–3, 7–6
Winner	23.	1980	Milan, Italy	Carpet	John McEnroe	Andrew Pattison Butch Walts	6–2, 6–7, 6–2
Winner	24.	1980	Forest Hills WCT, U.S.	Clay	John McEnroe	Peter McNamara Paul McNamee	6–2, 5–7, 6–2
Runner-up	8.	1980	Columbus, U.S.	Hard	Eliot Teltscher	Brian Gottfried Sandy Mayer	4–6, 2–6
Runner-up	9.	1980	US Open, New York	Hard	John McEnroe	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	6–7, 6–3, 1–6, 6–3, 3–6
Winner	25.	1980	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Gene Mayer Sandy Mayer	6–1, 6–4
Winner	26.	1980	Maui, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Victor Amaya Hank Pfister	7–6, 6–7, 6–2
Winner	27.	1980	Sydney Indoor, Australia	Hard (i)	John McEnroe	Tim Gullikson Johan Kriek	4–6, 6–1, 6–2
Winner	28.	1980	Hong Kong	Hard	Ferdi Taygan	Bruce Manson Brian Teacher	7–5, 6–2
Winner	29.	1980	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Bill Scanlon Eliot Teltscher	7–5, 6–3
Winner	30.	1981	Las Vegas, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Tracy Delatte Trey Waltke	6–3, 7–6
Winner	31.	1981	Forest Hills WCT, U.S.	Clay	John McEnroe	John Fitzgerald Andy Kohlberg	6–4, 6–4
Winner	32.	1981	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Robert Lutz Stan Smith	6–4, 6–4, 6–4
Runner-up	10.	1981	Montreal, Canada	Hard	John McEnroe	Raúl Ramírez Ferdi Taygan	6–2, 6–7, 4–6
Winner	33.	1981	Atlanta, U.S.	Hard	Fritz Buehning	Sammy Giammalva Jr. Tony Giammalva	6–4, 4–6, 6–3
Winner	34.	1981	US Open, New York	Hard	John McEnroe	Heinz Günthardt Peter McNamara	DEF
Winner	35.	1981	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Mark Edmondson Sherwood Stewart	7–6, 6–4
Winner	36.	1981	Sydney Indoor, Australia	Hard (i)	John McEnroe	Sherwood Stewart Ferdi Taygan	6–7, 7–6, 6–1
Runner-up	11.	1981	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Sherwood Stewart Ferdi Taygan	5–7, 7–6, 4–6
Winner	37.	1982	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Sherwood Stewart Ferdi Taygan	7–6, 6–4
Runner-up	12.	1982	Memphis, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Kevin Curren Steve Denton	6–7, 6–4, 2–6
Runner-up	13.	1982	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Paul McNamee Peter McNamara	3–6, 2–6
Runner-up	14.	1982	Toronto, Canada	Hard	John McEnroe	Steve Denton Mark Edmondson	7–6, 5–7, 2–6
Winner	38.	1982	Cincinnati, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Steve Denton Mark Edmondson	6–2, 6–3
Winner	39.	1982	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Heinz Günthardt Tomáš Šmíd	7–6, 6–4
Runner-up	15.	1983	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Kevin Curren Steve Denton	4–6, 6–7
Runner-up	16.	1983	Rotterdam, Netherlands	Hard (i)	Pavel Složil	Fritz Buehning Tom Gullikson	6–7, 6–4, 6–7
Runner-up	17.	1983	Milan, Italy	Carpet	Fritz Buehning	Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd	2–6, 7–5, 4–6
Winner	40.	1983	Los Angeles, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Sandy Mayer Ferdi Taygan	6–1, 6–2
Winner	41.	1983	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Tim Gullikson Tom Gullikson	6–4, 6–3, 6–4
Winner	42.	1983	US Open, New York	Hard	John McEnroe	Fritz Buehning Van Winitsky	6–3, 6–4, 6–2
Winner	43.	1983	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Ivan Lendl Vincent Van Patten	6–1, 6–2
Runner-up	18.	1983	Stockholm, Sweden	Hard (i)	Johan Kriek	Anders Järryd Hans Simonsson	3–6, 4–6
Winner	44.	1983	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Steve Denton Sherwood Stewart	6–3, 6–4
Winner	45.	1984	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Henri Leconte Yannick Noah	6–2, 6–3
Winner	46.	1984	Memphis, U.S.	Carpet	Fritz Buehning	Heinz Günthardt Tomáš Šmíd	6–3, 6–0
Winner	47.	1984	Madrid, Spain	Carpet	John McEnroe	Fritz Buehning Ferdi Taygan	6–3, 6–3
Winner	48.	1984	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	Pat Cash Paul McNamee	6–2, 5–7, 6–2, 3–6, 6–3
Winner	49.	1984	Toronto, Canada	Hard	John McEnroe	John Fitzgerald Kim Warwick	6–4, 6–2
Winner	50.	1984	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Mike De Palmer Sammy Giammalva Jr.	6–3, 6–4
Winner	51.	1984	Masters, New York	Carpet	John McEnroe	Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd	6–2, 6–2
Winner	52.	1985	Toronto Indoor, Canada	Carpet	Anders Järryd	Glenn Layendecker Glenn Michibata	7–6, 6–2
Winner	53.	1985	Houston, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Hank Pfister Ben Testerman	6–3, 6–2
Winner	54.	1985	Dallas, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Mark Edmondson Sherwood Stewart	6–3, 6–1
Winner	55.	1986	La Quinta, U.S.	Carpet	Guy Forget	Yannick Noah Sherwood Stewart	6–4, 6–3
Runner-up	19.	1986	Wimbledon, London	Grass	Gary Donnelly	Joakim Nyström Mats Wilander	6–7, 3–6, 3–6
Winner	56.	1986	Stratton Mountain, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Paul Annacone Christo van Rensburg	6–3, 3–6, 6–3
Runner-up	20.	1986	Los Angeles, U.S.	Hard	John McEnroe	Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd	6–3, 5–7, 6–7
Winner	57.	1986	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	Mike De Palmer Gary Donnelly	6–4, 7–6
Winner	58.	1986	Paris Indoor, France	Carpet	John McEnroe	Mansour Bahrami Diego Pérez	6–3, 6–2
Winner	59.	1986	Wembley, England	Carpet	John McEnroe	Sherwood Stewart Kim Warwick	3–6, 7–6, 6–2
Runner-up	21.	1987	Forest Hills, U.S.	Clay	Gary Donnelly	Guy Forget Yannick Noah	6–4, 4–6, 1–6
Winner	60.	1987	Washington, D.C., U.S.	Hard	Gary Donnelly	Laurie Warder Blaine Willenborg	6–2, 7–6

Grand Prix, WCT, and Grand Slam singles finals

Wins (3)

Outcome	No.	Date	Championship	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	1.	1978	Maui, U.S.	Hard	Bill Scanlon	2–6, 0–6
Winner	1.	1978	Bologna, Italy	Carpet	Adriano Panatta	6–2, 7–6
Runner-up	2.	1978	Montego Bay, Jamaica	Hard	Ilie Năstase	6–2, 6–5, 2–6, 4–6, 4–6
Runner-up	3.	1979	San Jose, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	6–7, 6–7
Winner	2.	1979	Cincinnati, U.S.	Hard	Roscoe Tanner	6–4, 6–2
Winner	3.	1979	Los Angeles, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	6–4, 6–4
Runner-up	4.	1979	San Francisco, U.S.	Carpet	John McEnroe	6–4, 5–7, 2–6
Runner-up	5.	1979	Maui, U.S.	Hard	Bill Scanlon	1–6, 1–6

Doubles records with John McEnroe

Tournament	Years	Record accomplished	Player tied
Grand Prix Tour Finals	1978–84	7 doubles titles consecutive and overall	John McEnroe
Grand Prix Tour Finals	1978–84	7 doubles titles consecutive and overall as a team	Stands alone
Grand Prix Tour	1979	14 doubles titles in 1 season as a team	Stands alone

References

1. Best Boys Tennis Team of the Century, The Star-Ledger. Accessed December 10, 2007.
2. McEnroe, John; James Kaplan (2002). You Cannot Be Serious. New York: Berkley Books. p. 109. ISBN 0-425-19008-0.
3. ITA Men's Hall of Fame
4. 2011 Tournament Honoree: Peter Fleming, FarmersClassic.com, July 30, 2011

External links

• Peter Fleming at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Peter Fleming at the International Tennis Federation
• Peter Fleming at the Davis Cup
• Top male tennis players from New Jersey