When I committed to playing a little tennis in some exhibitions, it was the best thing for me. It got me in shape. It got me out of the house. It got me doing something I love to do. – Pete Sampras
After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove. – Pete Sampras
It’s not easy to retire at 31. In one respect I was glad I was done. But after a few years of having fun, I got a little restless. When you’re 33, 34, and you don’t have a focus, you can get kind of lost. As a man, you feel a little bit unfulfilled. – Pete Sampras
The difference of great players is at a certain point in a match they raise their level of play and maintain it. Lesser players play great for a set, but then less. – Pete Sampras
I am going to hold serve the majority of the time. It is nice to have a little time to return serve. – Pete Sampras
Andre Agassi was my rival in the ’90s, and I think as we got older we sort of transcended the game. He was probably the best player I ever played over my career. There’s a list of players that were tough, but Andre, certainly, he was the most unique. – Pete Sampras
People know me. I’m not going to produce any cartwheels out there. I’m not going to belong on Comedy Central. I’ll always be a tennis player, not a celebrity. – Pete Sampras
In tennis, you can make a couple of mistakes and still win. Not in golf. I played three rounds in that Tahoe event, and I was drained. Mentally, not physically. – Pete Sampras
People wrote me off, but I believed in myself. I got the confidence back, and it grew and grew. I won my first major and my last at the place that changed my life. – Pete Sampras
I let my racket do the talking. That’s what I am all about, really. I just go out and win tennis matches. – Pete Sampras
If Davis Cup was a little bit less or once every two years, I would be more inclined to play. But the way it is now, it is too much tennis for me. – Pete Sampras
I never wanted to be the great guy or the colorful guy or the interesting guy. I wanted to be the guy who won titles. – Pete Sampras
Retirement is a work in progress. I try to figure out my day, and what I know about myself is that I need structure. – Pete Sampras
I’ve worked hard my whole life, since I was a little kid. But now it’s a point in my life now where I can just enjoy it, but at the same time I still need to work. – Pete Sampras
I did it my way, and I have no regrets when I look back on my career that it was just a big focus for me. – Pete Sampras
For so long people have just taken what I do for granted. It is not easy to do year-in, year-out, to win Grand Slams and be No. 1. – Pete Sampras
I can’t just wake up and watch TV and do nothing. I need a day off working out, seeing the wife, play a little golf, see my kids. – Pete Sampras
It’s not my place to tell you whom to vote for, to take any political stand, to tell you what religion to believe in. I’m an athlete. I can influence certain things, but when I see other athletes and celebrities telling you whom to vote for, I actually get a bit offended. – Pete Sampras
I don’t look at myself as a historical icon, but the reality of it is, yeah, I am playing for history now. – Pete Sampras