Justin O'Neal (born October 24, 1977) is an American former professional

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

player. O'Neal, an Ohio native, played collegiate tennis for the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...

and had to wait until the age of 30 to make his

ATP Tour The ATP Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for men organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals. The second-tier tour is the ATP Challenger Tour and the third-tier is the ITF Men's World Tennis Tour. The equivalent women's organis ...

main draw debut, having spent several years out of the game following graduation. His debut came at the

2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships The 2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 21st edition of the Indianapolis Tennis Championships, and was part of the International Series of the 2008 ATP Tour. It took place ...

, which he qualified for with wins over Jason Marshall and

Brendan Evans Brendan Evans (born April 8, 1986 in Pontiac, Michigan) was an American professional tennis player. He is currently a retired professional tennis player. Tennis career Juniors On the junior circuit, Evans reached as high as No. 2 in the combine ...

. He was beaten in the first round by world number 77

Lu Yen-hsun Lu Yen-hsun (; born 14 August 1983) is a Taiwanese retired professional tennis player, who goes by the nickname Rendy Lu. He won the most titles on the ATP Challenger Tour in tennis history. His favorite surface is hardcourt, though several of ...

in two tiebreak sets, failing to convert three set points in the second tiebreak. In 2013 he was announced as an inductee into the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

Athletics Hall of Fame. He was a three-time singles

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n for the Gators and retired with a record tally for career singles wins.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:ONeal, Justin 1977 births Living people American male tennis players Florida Gators men's tennis players Tennis people from Ohio Sportspeople from Lima, Ohio