From Home Hill to home hope, Aussie WC Walton making Slam debut

The Australian Open will serve as a homecoming for Adam Walton, the 24-year-old Home Hill native who will be competing in his first major as a wild card.

Walton has spent the past five years in the United States, where he enjoyed a standout career at the University of Tennessee, before turning pro in 2022 upon completing his Master’s degree in management & human resources. During his first full season on the ATP Challenger Tour last year, Walton achieved several career milestones, such as winning his maiden trophy at that level in August and later propelling inside the Top 200 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

After the Aussie completed a rigorous training session in December, Walton’s coach Adam Roberts delivered unforgettable news, telling his charge that he will be in the main draw of his home Slam.

“My coach found out mid-session and he didn’t tell me,” Walton told ATPTour.com on how he learned of his Australian Open wild card. “Then an hour after the session when I was cooling down, he said, ‘I’ve got some news for you.’

“When you get told for the first time that you have a wild card into a slam main draw, it’s something you’ll never forget.”

When Walton first made the 14,000-kilometre journey from the tropical north end of Queensland to Tennessee, he thought his tennis career would not go beyond college. Under the tutelage of head coach Chris Woodruff, Walton was a two-time ITA All-American, having won more than 100 matches in singles and doubles throughout his five years in Knoxville. A highlight came in 2021, when Walton and Pat Harper partnered in winning the NCAA doubles national championship. The results were evident, Walton had the level to play professionally.

“Even after my second to last year, I still wasn’t sure if I’d play pro,” Walton said. “It wasn’t until the end of my final year that I thought I’d give it a crack. Just being here in the situation I’m in is a bonus.” 

The Aussie, who last week made his ATP Tour debut as a qualifier in Adelaide, is looking forward to having his family in attendance at Melbourne Park, where he faces Italian Matteo Arnaldi in the opening round. It will be a full-circle moment for the Waltons, including Adam's father Ashley and mother Sherry, whom often made sacrifices to help their son achieve his dreams.

“My mum is a nurse and when we were growing up, she was doing a lot of night shifts so she could drive my brother Jack and I to where we needed to be, to school and back and training in the afternoon for different sports,” Walton said. “If she didn’t do that, I don’t know if we would’ve kept going in sports. I’m really grateful that she did that.”

One year ago, Walton was ranked outside the Top 400 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. He has made a rapid rise on the ATP Challenger Tour in the past six months, claiming the title in Cary, North Carolina and finishing runner-up in Tiburon, California.

Now the World No. 176 is one of 15 Australian men competing at the season's first major.

“I’m just going to give it my best and hopefully I can put on a good show for [the fans]. At the end of the day, I will just try to play my game and play the tennis that I know I’m capable of,” Walton said. “Whether that leads to being able to come out on top of that match, we’ll see, but I'm going to give it my best for sure.”