ATP Tour

‘Hell yeah, I’m here!’: Holmgren’s journey from theatre student to Wimbledon winner

Milestones in tennis are sometimes like London buses. You wait a long time for one, and then two come along at once.

That has been the case for August Holmgren at 2025 Wimbledon. Last Thursday, the No. 192 player in the PIF ATP Rankings defeated Yosuke Watanuki in the final round of Wimbledon qualifying to seal his spot in the main draw at a major for the first time. On Tuesday, the Dane backed up that win by racing past Quentin Halys to earn his maiden Grand Slam match win.

At 27 years old, Holmgren had to be patient for his first taste of major action. When it arrived, he made winning on one of tennis’ biggest stages appear straightforward, defeating Halys 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-4.

“I was happily surprised. I’m very happy that I didn’t really have a dip in level in all three sets, which is uncommon for a five-set match,” Holmgren told ATPTour.com at Wimbledon. “On the one hand, I’m not surprised, because I have so much faith in my serve and my game. On the other hand, I’m really happy and ecstatic to be like, ‘Hell, yeah, I’m here!’”

_{^{August Holmgren in action against Quentin Halys at Wimbledon. Photo Credit: Dan Istitene/Getty Images}}

Hailing from Espergaerde in Denmark, Holmgren played college tennis from 2017 to 2022 at the University of San Diego, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in theatre arts and performance studies. In California, the Dane’s coaches and teammates quickly came to know him as an open-minded student-athlete with multiple interests, and someone who was not afraid to take on new challenges.

“[August] did everything,” recalled Ryan Keckley, men's tennis head coach at USD, who has been at Wimbledon this week watching both Holmgren and current USD star Oliver Tarvet. “He just loved USD. This is a guy who on a Tuesday would go like salsa dancing because it was in the room next to his dorm or something like that.

“On Saturdays in his junior year, he took a surfing class. He loved everything that was USD, [joined] every club he could. He filled his time from the moment he wakes up to the moment he goes to bed.”

For Holmgren, keeping up pursuits outside of tennis was, and still remains, an essential aspect of what made him a better tennis player.

“I think the most valuable thing I got from college was understanding that I need to have a balance with tennis and life off the court,” he said. “To make sure I was happy off the court, because I needed that in order to be happy on the court.

“Often in my life when I have some disruption, in my personal life, it reflects on my tennis. If I don’t do my hobbies and only focus on tennis, it has a negative impact on me. So I need to have those other things in life to balance it out.”

Holmgren’s desire to try new things should not be mistaken as lack of commitment to his tennis. The Dane, who is now coached by former Wimbledon doubles champion Frederik Nielsen, has competed relentlessly on the ATP Challenger Tour and ITF World Tennis Tour since leaving San Diego.

“His work ethic was insatiable,” remembers Keckley. “August is a guy who, any time he steps on a court, he’s going to make you a better tennis player just because of his attitude and his work ethic, and just his overall demeanour. He’s just a wonderful human being. A wonderful, kind, genuine human being.

“It doesn’t surprise me that this has unlocked for him this week. He’s got an incredible serve. He’s worked really hard on his game, and he’s got a great supporting cast with Freddie Nielsen, who obviously has experience at the highest level of the Tour, helping him along the way and navigating not only his tennis, but his mind, which is probably one of the most important things for the young men.”

Holmgren was willing to throw himself into new experiences and situations at college. While he is not sure that has had a direct impact on his ability to navigate the trials and tribulations of the pro circuit, he does think that his willingness to embrace ‘the moment’ is one of his strengths.

“I talk a lot with Freddie about who I want to be in big moments,” said Holmgren. “Am I going to be scared and hope my opponent is going to give me the match or am I going to go out and take it? How do I react to uncomfortable moments?

“Do I resign and let my ego tell the world that, ‘This is so unfair, I am usually much better. The world is mistreating me’? Or do I take responsibility and say that everything that happens here is something that I just need to deal with?”

Already up 39 spots to No. 153 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings after his win against World No. 46 Halys, Holmgren will hope to forge a third milestone moment in the space of a week on Wednesday. If he can upset 21st seed Tomas Machac on the All England Club’s No. 12 Court, it will be the biggest win of his career by PIF ATP Ranking.