Kelly Jones (born March 31, 1964) is an American former doubles world No. 1

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. Jones reached the finals in doubles at the

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

and US Opens in 1992. He is currently the Head Men's Tennis Coach at

Furman University Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...

Biography

Jones played varsity tennis at

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. Pepperdine's main campus consists of 830 acres (340 ha) overlooking the Pacific Ocean and t ...

from 1982 to 1985, where he won the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division 1 doubles title in 1984 and 1985. He was a member of the

1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

U.S. tennis team. Jones joined the professional tour in 1986. He won his first top-level doubles title in 1987 at

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

. In 1988, Jones finished runner-up in the mixed doubles at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

, partnering Gretchen Magers. Jones was runner-up in the men's doubles at both the

Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...

and the US Open in 1992, partnering

Rick Leach Rick Leach (born December 28, 1964) is a former professional tennis player and a coach from the United States. A doubles specialist, he won five Grand Slam doubles titles (three at the Australian Open, one at Wimbledon, and one at the US Open) ...

. In October that year, he reached the World No. 1 doubles ranking for 1 week. After 12 years on the professional tour, Jones retired in 1998. During his career, he won eight top-level doubles titles. Jones also won a tour singles event in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, where he captured the title both in 1989 and 1990. His best singles performance at a

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

event was at the

1993 Australian Open The 1993 Australian Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at Flinders Park in Melbourne in Victoria in Australia. It was the 81st edition of the Australian Open and was held from 18 through 31 January 1993. Seniors Men's ...

, where he reached the fourth round. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 86 (in 1990). Jones' career prize-money earnings totaled US$1,165,009. Since retiring from the tour, Jones has coached high-profile players including

Mardy Fish Mardy Simpson Fish (born December 9, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. He was a hardcourt specialist. He is one of several American tennis players who rose to prominence in the early 2000s.Fish won six tournaments on the mai ...

Xavier Malisse Xavier Malisse (born 19 July 1980) is a former Belgian professional tennis player. Born in the north-western Flemish city of Kortrijk and nicknamed ''X-Man'', he is one of only two Belgian men (the other being David Goffin) to have been ranked i ...

and James Blake. Jones is married to

Tami Whitlinger Tami Whitlinger-Jones (née Whitlinger; born November 13, 1968) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. Prior to turning professional, Whitlinger was a two-time All-American at Stanford University. Her first tournament vict ...

, a former professional tennis player.

Career finals

Singles (2 wins)

Doubles (8 wins - 10 losses)

Doubles performance timeline

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Kelly American male tennis players American tennis coaches Olympic tennis players of the United States Furman Paladins men's tennis coaches Pepperdine Waves men's tennis players Tennis players from Tampa, Florida Tennis people from Georgia (U.S. state) Tennis players at the 1984 Summer Olympics 1964 births Living people Competitors at the 1986 Goodwill Games ATP number 1 ranked doubles tennis players