J.J. Wolf made himself known at this year’s Australia Open, aged 24; the future is bright for the Ohio native.
He first displayed signs of excellence at Ohio State University, and he was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-Big Ten in 2017.
By April 2019, he was the No.1 ranked college player in the United States. The same year, he’d collected a 45-3 record between singles and doubles competition and was named Big Ten Men’s Tennis Athlete of the Year.
Wolf finished college at Ohio State as the No.1 ranked tennis player in NCAA, but as he sailed in Challengers, losing multiple games to Stefan Kozlov, many were surprised when it wasn’t the latter who became a breakout star in 2022.
Wolf rose into the top 50 ATP rankings in January 2023, following an impressive run where he reached the fourth round after defeating Jordan Thompson, 23rd-seed Diego Schwartzman, and Michael Mmoh before losing to Ben Shelton at the 2023 Australia Open. Currently, the 24-year-old has breached the top 40 at No.39.
He entered the 2023 Dallas Open with a No.6 seed. He reached his second tour-level semi-final appearance of his short career following wins over Brandon Holt, Radu Albot, and second seed Frances Tiafoe. He then went on the Delray Beach Open and reached the round of 16 but lost to Adrian Mannarino.
Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, Wolf has only been competing as a professional since 2019 but has already made his presence known – specifically because of his 2022 performance. Last February, in Acapulco, ranked outside the top 200, he defeated Kevin Anderson, Lorenzo Sonego, and Andreas Seppi. Returning to Indian Wells, he qualified and went on to beat Hugo Gaston in the first round before taking Roberto Bautista Agut to 76 in the third.
Those following the career of Wolf and banking on his success have found excellent betting odds during his come-up. Fans can use BetMGM Ohio promo codes to further boost the overall wagering value, but emulating his 2022 win/loss record may be challenging.
The elite-level wins continued following his Indian Wells success. A semi-final appearance in Phoenix, an R64 in Miami, and a three-set defeat to No.5 Tsitsipas. A win versus No.36 Brooksby in Houston, wins against Rune and Shapovalov in Washington, and then US Open successes against Tabilo and Agut before losing to Kyrgios. A finals game at the Florence 250, a 46-46 loss to Felix Auger Aliassime. All of these results saw him finish 15-13 in 2022 at the ATP level – impressive!
In conjunction with his 2023 success at the Australian Open and beyond, he’s had a taste of the big time and has continuously climbed the ATP elite pantheon. It’s hard to predict how far Wolf can go, but the ceiling is high given the consistent uptrend in progress and results as he continues to improve in the ATP World Tour alongside the biggest names in the sport. His shot power is phenomenal; he moves well on the court and boasts a mature, experienced attitude and IQ that could produce a future star.
While he may stunt with a flashy earring or two, this doesn’t reflect on Wolf’s professionalism. Thus far, he’s been serious, respectful, and drama-free and hasn’t shown an interest in needing his ego stroked via social media. The delivery on the court we’ve seen from him in the previous two years has shown glimpses of greatness.
Wolf has crossed paths, defeated, and threatened some of the best tennis players in the world. With added experience, his future accomplishments are limitless, as no expert or critic can truly predict how successful he can become over the next three years.
After defeating Schwartzman – one of his most challenging opponents to date – at this year’s Aussie Open, Wolf displayed his mature and humble attitude after the match:
“I don’t come out with many expectations. I’m just still trying to get better. I don’t think this will be my best year of tennis, so I’m trying to improve many things. I’d like to think that I’m gonna get a lot better. So, I try not to put too much emphasis on results right now.”
