• Loading stock data...
Tuesday, September 9, 2025
Fox Analyst and Media Entrepreneur Greg Olsen to Speak at Tuned In Get your ticket now!
exclusive
Asset Class

Billionaire Bill Ackman Prepares for ‘Once in a Lifetime’ Tennis Match in Newport

The billionaire activist investor tells FOS his pro tennis debut at the Hall of Fame Open in Newport is his chance to become the oldest person to earn ATP points.

Bill Ackman
David Kenas

While the Wimbledon quarterfinals are underway next week, billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman will be competing in a different grass tennis tournament in Newport, Rhode Island.

The 59-year-old founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management will play in the Hall of Fame Open, an ATP Challenger event at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, where he’ll battle alongside doubles partner Jack Sock.

If the duo win their first match, Ackman said in a post on X that he’s “pretty sure” he’ll be the oldest person in tennis history to win ATP points. (ATP says that actually Gardnar Mulloy was the oldest player to earn a point at 63.) Victory would earn them 25 points each and prize money of $2,030, which Ackman says will go to Sock.

“I’ve never met Jack Sock,” Ackman said in an interview with Front Office Sports on Thursday. That’ll change on Friday, when the partners start training in Bridgehampton before traveling to Newport on Sunday ahead of the tournament. Doubles matches begin Tuesday.

The duo will be sponsored by Nike. The two have not discussed which side of the court they’ll take, but Ackman is prepared to be a team player: “I assume I’m playing on the deuce side because Jack prefers the ad side, so to accommodate Jack, I’ll switch.”

Ackman says he tries to hit for 90 minutes four to five times in a regular week and every day during the summer. He plays with a Tecnifibre racquet after switching from one made by Babolat within the past year on the recommendation of his coaches Olivier Morel and Georgy Chukhleb. 

“When my serve is on, it’s good,” says Ackman, a right-hander who has a one-handed backhand. He declined to identify the strongest part of his game. “I’m peaking next week,” he adds with a laugh.

Ackman says he doesn’t play on grass often, which puts him in the same camp as most ATP players, who spend the majority of the year competing on clay and hard courts. But he is at least familiar with the grass courts at the Hall of Fame, which last weekend hosted the “Finance Cup,” where Ackman and his partner Richey Reneberg reached the semifinals.

The Hall of Fame Open overlaps with the second week of Wimbledon, and often lures competitors who have made an early exit from the year’s third Grand Slam. Ackman has no plans to fly to London to watch; he says he’s hyper-focused on Newport, where he’s hoping for cooler temperatures and mild humidity.

“I’m going to try to have a lot of fun, we’ll do everything we can to win and put on a good show,” says Ackman. “It’s a once in a lifetime experience—unless we win.”

Nebraska-born Sock is an accomplished 32-year-old former pro who earned four ATP Tour singles titles and 17 doubles titles during his career. He retired in 2023 and now plays pickleball and hosts the Nothing Major podcast with former tennis players John Isner, Sam Querrey, and Steve Johnson. Sock is reemerging from retirement to play with Ackman.

So how did Ackman and Sock gain their wildcard entry to next week’s tournament?

“As a former champion here in Newport, Olympic gold medalist, and three-time major champion in doubles, the Hall of Fame was happy to support Jack Sock’s wildcard request,” a spokesperson for the International Tennis Hall of Fame tells Front Office Sports.

“Jack asked Bill Ackman to be his doubles partner, and the ATP approved the selection,” she added, highlighting that Sock is a fan favorite in Newport and that Ackman is a long-standing supporter of the Hall of Fame’s nonprofit mission. Sock lifted the men’s doubles title in Newport in 2021 alongside William Blumberg.

“I am playing the best tennis of my life and Jack is one of the greatest doubles players ever,” Ackman wrote on X. He said it was initially Nick Kyrgios who proposed they play in a tournament together, but Kyrgios’s injury delayed that plan.

Ackman, a longtime tennis aficionado who helped finance Frances Tiafoe’s junior career, has been across the net from some of the greatest ever to hold a racquet, including 20-time major champion Roger Federer. “I was so intimidated, I played poorly,” lamented Ackman.

The hedge fund titan did, however, get the better of Andre Agassi in a doubles match, and has practiced with professionals including Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas and Canada’s Vasek Pospisil, a co-founder of the Professional Tennis Players Association which counts Ackman as a backer. 

He’s also earned a doubles victory over former pro Noah Rubin, who reached a career-high singles ranking of 125. 

“He’s definitely accustomed to pressure,” Rubin tells FOS. “The first time we played, I was shocked by his serve—for a guy that didn’t really play his whole life, he can really pop a serve,” adds Rubin, founder of the media platform Behind the Racquet, who has known Ackman for roughly five years.

“If he’s accelerating and going for his shots, he can definitely surprise people,” Rubin says, noting that opposing players will face another type of pressure: not wanting to lose to Ackman. “I’m curious to see how he acclimates to the pressure of a tennis arena.”

Rubin will be on site in Newport as the coach of Eugenie Bouchard, a former Wimbledon singles finalist who is making a return to women’s tennis.

On Wednesday, Ackman encouraged his 1.8 million X followers to buy tickets to the event, but his presence has not yet shown signs of boosting the tournament’s bottom line—though it should certainly boost Tennis Channel viewership.

“Ticket sales have been strong the past several weeks,” the Hall of Fame spokesperson says, “and yesterday was no different heading into the holiday weekend.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Connecticut Sun

Connecticut Senators Rip WNBA Handling of Sun Sale

The Senators are urging the league to stay out of the negotiations.
April 27, 2025; Anfield, Liverpool, BRITAIN; Liverpool player Mohamed Salah scores the fourth goal against the Tottenham Hotspur in a Premier League match.

Tottenham Hotspur ‘Not for Sale’ Amid Takeover Interest

Two groups made offers in just the last week.

Alcaraz and Sinner Have More to Gain in 2025 After Splitting Slams

Alcaraz and Sinner have split the last eight Grand Slams.
Unrivaled

Unrivaled Hits $340M Valuation, Doubles Revenue Projections

The startup women’s basketball league is rapidly growing after one season.

Featured Today

Aug 23, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) leads the team onto the field for warm ups before a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.

Slow Burn: The NFL’s Private-Equity Era So Far

Three deals have been struck to date. But the league is bullish.
Tennis
September 5, 2025

The US Open Is Groaning Under the Weight of Its Own Success

New York’s tennis major is more popular than ever.
Dec 21, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) gets ready to take the field prior to a game against the Houston Texans at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
September 5, 2025

How Brazil Game Fits Into NFL’s Plans for World Domination

Friday night’s Chiefs-Chargers game in São Paulo is big by design.
Oct 13, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) and wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrate their touchdown pass during the second quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Lincoln Financial Field.
September 2, 2025

TV Ratings Just Changed Again. The NFL Will Be the Big Winner

Nielsen’s new viewership system will have a big impact on sports.
StubHub

StubHub Seeks Big Valuation in Revived IPO Despite $112M Loss

The ticket marketplace looks to raise as much as $851 million.
Aug 21, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) throws a pass during the first quarter against the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium.
September 4, 2025

Giants Sell Minority Stake to Kochs at Reported $10B Valuation

It’s the latest in a flurry of minority-stake deals for NFL teams.
Dec 21, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints wide receiver Marques Colston (12) makes a 12-yard touchdown catch in front of Detroit Lions defensive back Dwight Bentley (41) in the fourth quarter of the game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
exclusive
September 5, 2025

Marques Colston Wants You to Invest in Sports Assets With Him

The former NFL star is launching a fund anyone can invest in.
Sponsored

Trailblazer Cal Calamia Is Racing for ‘Advocacy, Storytelling, and Performance’

The marathoner wants excellence—not just inclusion—to be the goal for non-binary athletes.
August 31, 2025

MLB Extends Leaves of Clase, Ortiz as Betting Probe Continues

Their paid non-disciplinary leaves have been extended “until further notice.”
Puma headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany
August 28, 2025

Puma Up for Grabs As Largest Shareholder Considers Exit

Reports say the company could be up for sale. Experts aren’t surprised.
Mark Cuban
August 27, 2025

Mark Cuban Wishes He Had Put Mavs on Open Market

Cuban also thinks private equity has shifted the NBA’s priorities. 
Donald Trump Jr
August 26, 2025

Kalshi Advisor Donald Trump Jr. Joins Rival Polymarket Board

Polymarket appears to be on the verge of returning to the U.S.