U.S. Open

Just 14 weeks after competing at the $15,000 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships in Vero Beach, Florida, J.J. Wolf has earned a main-draw wild card into the 2026 U.S. Open by winning the USTA’s U.S. Open Wild Card Challenge.

The former world No. 39 officially clinched the U.S. Open wild card by winning the most amount of ATP points over the post-Wimbledon period among players not directly accepted into the tournament. His best result was winning the Challenger title in Vancouver, Canada, as documented here https://worldtennismagazine.com/jj-wolf-comeback-continues-on-track-with-vancouver-challenger-title/

It is an extraordinary turnaround for a player who was once ranked inside the ATP Top 40 but was forced off the tour for a year with a severe shoulder injury. And Vero Beach was one of the stops during his comeback attempt to the upper levels of pro tennis.

Wolf, then ranked No. 947 in the ATP Tour rankings, was the headline player at the Sea Oaks Beach & Tennis Club last May and he dazzled fans with his powerful groundstrokes and booming serve. He advanced into the tournament’s quarterfinals with wins over Raphael Perot and Jordan Lee, (who went on to win the Wimbledon junior boys singles title in July.) In a quarterfinal evening match in front of an overflowing crowd at Sea Oaks, Wolf dominated Joaquim Almeida before the Brazilian found a rhythm and saved two match points before winning a second-set tiebreaker. Feeling pain in his troubled shoulder, Wolf retired from the match after just one game in the third set. Almeida went on to claim a miracle tournament title win two matches later, which you can re-live here: https://youtu.be/CAC5RuILkn4?si=GhnDthz54MdfBHCO

Wolf talked about his comeback after his first-round post-match interview at Sea Oaks here: https://youtu.be/aQMR5A8zRvo?si=HEoN4ijf08DUCyI6

A discussion on his track from injury to the U.S. Open is further explained here https://youtu.be/0Kq2itOdAbY?si=AszZQVjSVJWNos2H

From the courts of a $15,000 tournament in Vero Beach to the main draw at Arthur Ashe Stadium, J.J. Wolf’s journey is a powerful reminder of how quickly fortunes can change in professional tennis. And perhaps most remarkably, the comeback that began on the smaller stages of the sport has now earned Wolf a ticket back to one of tennis’ biggest stages.

By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
Vasil Kirkov has gone from the courts of Vero Beach to the courts of the US Open.
The 17-year-old, who reached the semifinals as a lucky loser in the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, competed in the qualifying rounds of the 2016 U.S. Open at the Billie Jean King USTA National Tennis Center.
Kirkov, however, suffered an early exit, falling 62 75 in the first scheduled match of the competition to Yannik Reuter of Belgium, ranked No. 242 in the world.
Kirkov, ranked No. 1146 in the world, played the match on Court No. 5 – the shadow of the new Arthur Ashe Stadium retractable roof – in front of an audience of about 200 people that included U.S. Olympic men’s tennis coach Jay Berger, former US Davis Cup Captain Tom Gullikson and Hallof Famer – and Vero Beach resident – Ivan Lendl, who works with Kirkov as part of his advisory role with the USTA Player Development program.
Kirkov was awarded a wild card entry into the U.S. Open qualifying tournament by the U.S. Tennis Association after, not only his strong result in Vero Beach, that saw his ATP ranking rise almost 1000 spots, but by reaching the final of the USTA National Boy’s 18 Championships in Kalamazoo, Mich., where he lost to another Vero Beach Futures alumnus Michael Mmoh.
Kirkov is expected to compete in the U.S. Open junior championships in two weeks.

U.S. Open

J.J. Wolf: From Vero Beach To U.S. Open Main Draw In 14 Weeks

Vasil Kirkov Goes From Courts In Vero Beach To The U.S. Open