Media Guide - North Carolina

Tripp Phillips
Assistant Tennis Coach
North Carolina ‘00
Second Season as Assistant
Coach at North Carolina
North Carolina alumnus
Tripp Phillips joined the
Tar Heel coaching staff in
2006 and in his year-anda-half
on the UNC staff he
has helped the tennis program
reach new heights.
In his initial year he
helped the Tar Heels
achieve a 24-4 overall
mark, a No. 10 final national ranking and an
NCAA Tournament bid as the Tar Heel integrated
four new singles players and three new
doubles player into the lineup.
Since his graduation from Carolina in 2000,
Phillips had been a highly successful professional
player, launching his career in 2001.
On October, 6, 2006, the talented right-hander
achieved his careeer high Stanford ATP Doubles
Ranking at No. 29.
Phillips was coached in the professional
ranks by both UNC head mentor Sam Paul
and by Calvin Davis. His career high INDE-
SIT ATP singles ranking came on May 19,
2003 when he achieved the No. 343 rating in
the world.
Phillips had a magnificent year in doubles
in 2006, going 22-17 overall and earning over
$120,000 in prize money. He had his greatest
success while playing with Australia’s Ashley
Fisher. The duo reached the semifinals of the
U.S. Open in September 2006, marking an
Tripp Phillips is seen in action at the 2006 U.S.
Open where he advanced to the semifinals in
doubles with Ashley Fisher of Australia. (Photo
by Alan Billing)
Assistant Coach Tripp Phillips
amazing accomplishment
for the unseeded team. In
other ATP events, he and
Fisher won the 2006
championship in Tokyo
and they reached the
semifinals at the event in
Thailand. Playing with
Australia’s Stephen Hess,
Phillips advanced to the
semifinals at Casablanca.
On the 2006 Challenger
series, Phillips won the
title at Mexico City with
Rogier Wassen of The
Netherlands; reached the
finals at Tallahassee, Fla.
with Bobby Reynolds of
the United States; and was a semifinalist at
Sunrise, Fla. with Ashley Fisher.
Phillips’ success on the professional tour
should come as no surprise to anyone who
saw him play at North Carolina from 1996-
2000.
At 6-1 tall and weighing 170 pounds,
Phillips was a tireless and intense competitor
and a valued team leader. Phillips, who came
to UNC from Charlotte, N.C., earned firstteam
All-America status his senior season
Tripp Phillips’ Career Highlights
• 2000 All-America and NCAA Singles
Quarterfinalist
• Singles Semifinalist in 2003 Forest Hills
event with wins over Michael Chang (career
high #2 ATP), Harold Levey (career high
#30 ATP), Oscar Hernandez (career high
#48 ATP)
• Quarterfinalist or better at 13 ATP Tour
events in 2006-07.
• While Assistant Coach at UNC in fall 2006
he won the $765K ATP Tour event in Tokyo,
Japan.
• 2006 U.S. Open Semifinalist
• Seeded at three of four Grand Slam
events in 2007
• Reached 2007 U.S. Open Round of 16
• His 2006-07 doubles wins included
matches against Tommy Haas, Fernando
Gonzales, Marcos Baghdatis, Andy Murray,
Fabrice Santoro, Nicolas Massu, Max
Mirnyi, Jarkko Niemenen, Jurgen Melzer,
Paradorn Srichaphan, Arnaud Clement,
Paul Henri Matthieu, Vince Spadea and
Benjamin Becker
when he played as a fifth-year senior. After
returning from a medical redshirt campaign,
Phillips had an outstanding senior season,
posting a stellar 25-6 singles record at the
No.1 singles position.
Phillips collected impressive victories over
nationally No.1-ranked Daniel Anderson and
No. 3-rated Shuon Madden that season.
Phillips’ vigorous leadership carried the Tar
Heels to a second-place ACC finish and a No.
16 national ranking. Phillips’ dominating 12-2
record against ACC competetion earned him
runnerup honors at No. 1 singles in league
competition.
Phillips saved his best performance of his
career for last as he advanced to the quarterfinals
of the NCAA Championships in singles.
Phillips’ performance elevated him in the ITA
rankings as he finished 2000 ranked No. 12
nationally in singles. Phillips’ career and character
were honored as he received the prestigious
Patterson Medal from Carolina and the
John Van Nostrand Award from the ITA. He
and UNC soccer player Lorrie Fair won the
2000 Patterson Medals as the school’s outstanding
senior athletes. He was the first tennis
player to win since Vic Seixas in 1950.
Phillips was born August 26, 1977 in Newport
News, Va. He grew up in Charlotte, N.C.
and now maintains his permanent residence
in Chapel Hill, N.C. Phillips was married to
Laura Zuger on November 4, 2006.
In 2000, Tripp Phillips won the Patterson Medal
as UNC’s outstanding men’s senior student-athlete,
the first Tar Heel tennis player in a half century
to win the award.
2008 UNC MEN’S TENNIS • PAGE 17