Johnson announces retirement: 'I feel like I left no stone unturned'

Kathryn Riley/BNP Paribas Open

It was a memorable scene Monday evening at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden when an emotional Steve Johnson walked off Court 3 with his wife Kendall and daughters, Emma and Molly. The American had just played the final singles match of his career in qualifying at the BNP Paribas Open.

Emilio Nava defeated Johnson 6-7(6), 7-6(10), 6-4, but it was not about the scoreline. In fact, the wild card joked he would have preferred to lose 6-2, 6-2 rather than letting slip seven match points in the second set as he did. After playing doubles with Tommy Paul at his home ATP Masters 1000 event, the 34-year-old will retire from professional tennis.

“For me it's just the culmination of everything that's been basically my life, tennis itself, for multiple decades,” Johnson told ATPTour.com of the moment he walked off the court. “To have [my family] here, this is why this venue and this event is so special to me. I grew up coming here as a kid with my dad and family every year. To see how it's grown and see everything that this event has turned into, from where it started, this has always been my favourite place to be.

“There was no other place that I really wanted my last tournament to be. It was here, and I'm very fortunate that I was able to make that a reality.”

^{Dean Goldfine, Marc Lucero, David Nainkin, Peter Smith and Craig Boynton pose for a photo with Steve Johnson Monday evening.}
Johnson has become known as not just a fierce competitor on the court, but a friend to many in the locker room. It was fitting that many of his former coaches and friends from the tennis community watched him compete in singles for the last time.

It has been a special journey for Johnson, who spent four years competing at the University of Southern California, where he enjoyed one of the most successful careers in the history of college tennis. The Trojan led his team to four consecutive NCAA team titles, won the singles crown twice and completed his career with 72 consecutive singles wins.

Johnson then established himself as a consistent force on the ATP Tour with his devastating forehand and fighting spirit.

Highlights of his career include his four tour-level titles and a tremendous effort at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where he won the bronze medal in men’s doubles with Jack Sock and pushed eventual gold medalist Andy Murray to a final-set tie-break in the quarter-finals of the singles.

Johnson reached a career-high No. 21 in the PIF ATP Rankings in 2016 and that year became the No. 1 American. For five consecutive years from 2014-18 he finished inside the year-end Top 50 and always proved a tough out for any opponent.

“Maybe as a kid you set unrealistic expectations, because everybody dreams big. They want to be the best, as any kid I feel like should,” Johnson said. “Obviously hindsight is going to be important here, but I feel as if I sit here now very proud of what I accomplished, I felt like I did just about everything I could in my power to either rectify mistakes that I made, playing or all the things that go into playing tennis. I feel like I left no stone unturned. And for me, that's the most important piece.

“I don't want to look back and have any regrets or wish I would have done X, Y and Z. So for me, I feel very proud of what I accomplished. To have the career I had, the accomplishments and everything is super fun to look back on. But knowing that my wife and girls may not ever remember me playing tennis, but they will [see those things], that means the most to me.”

For most of last season, Johnson struggled with a knee injury. It prevented him from not just competing to the level he wanted on the court, but also preparing to the best of his ability off of it.

“That started to take a toll, because I couldn't do what I needed to do to be the player that I wanted to be, so that made it hard,” Johnson said. “I enjoy the chaos that life brings with two kids and being home and I found especially at the end of last year, I really didn't enjoy being on the road, playing tournaments. I did it, but my mind wasn't there.”

Johnson took three months off and underwent procedures on his knee to help fix the health side of things. He did not pick up a racquet for three months and admitted he “was not itching to get back”.

“I knew that was a pretty big sign,” Johnson said regarding his retirement. “I've not wanted to be somebody who limped across the finish line, I wanted to walk across. Some guys like to play until the wheels fall off and I have a lot of respect for that. But for me, I was ready to be done, so we'll see what the next chapter holds.”

Sixteen-time ATP Tour titlist John Isner said: "Sharing the Tour with Stevie for so long was an absolute pleasure and honour. We both had similar paths to get to professional tennis and I enjoyed it with Stevie every step of the way. We were both groomsmen at each other‘s weddings, our wives are really close and our kids will be close in the coming years. I look forward to many amazing times with him and his family in the future. Stevie, congrats on an absolutely incredible career. You have accomplished so much, but more than anything you have an amazing family to live the rest of your life with. Love you buddy."

Ten-time ATP Tour titlist Sam Querrey said: ”Stevie and I have been playing tennis together since we were probably eight or nine years old so it’s been a fun ride and the dude is a competitor. Juniors he battled, college really battled. I think almost everyone would say he’s the greatest college player of all time with the four team titles, two individual titles and the run of 72 matches run a row. On the pro tour the guy was good. I think a lot of people would say he’s got one of the best slices of the past 10 years. Incredible athlete, big forehand huge kick serve and an all-around good guy. He was liked by all his peers. Everyone’s going to miss him. But for me personally, I’m excited to spend the next however much longer we have to live hanging out with each other. Our families are friends, we live pretty close to each other so hopefully we get to spend more time together. It’s been fun to play against him, but even more fun to watch him battle on the Tour these past 10 years.”

Former World No. 4 James Blake said: “When Steve Johnson turned pro, I spoke to his college coach and he said he had never seen a player so committed to winning. That he would be successful on Tour without a shadow of a doubt. He was very right and I always thought about how much he made out of his career and the work ethic it took. He is the epitome of a winner and the more I got to know him, the more I admired him off the court as well. A true gentleman that went through difficult times while he was on Tour and handled it better than almost anyone could. Good luck to him with the next chapter of his life that will be prioritised with his wonderful family.”

Yannick Hanfmann, fellow Top 50 pro and Johnson’s former college teammate said: “To me, Stevie was one of the best competitors I've ever seen and the way he carried himself on the court playing college matches, as I was his teammate, or playing competitive matches later on the pro tour, it was incredible. He was a huge inspiration for any competitors out there. What a joy to watch him grind in battle on the court. That's the playing side of him. The personal side of him, incredibly funny guy. Amazing to be with him. He always had a joke on his lips. He was just so much fun to be around. So he's going to be missed on the Tour and I'm just incredibly happy to have been a small part of his journey and I wish him all the best.”