Ohio State product Wolf reps Blue Jackets during U.S. Open run

J.J. Wolf is about as Ohio as they come.
The professional tennis player grew up in the Cincinnati area, the grandson of the former coach of the NBA's Cincinnati Royals and a member of one of the most prolific athletic families in southwest Ohio. He spent three seasons at Ohio State, earning All-America and Big Ten Player of the Year honors. Wolf still even lives in Columbus while trying to cement himself as one of the top players in the world.
And when given a chance to represent another Ohio team, Wolf took the opportunity and ran with it. He was in some ways the talk of the U.S. Open a week ago when he shocked the tennis world by winning his first two matches, and a union blue Columbus Blue Jackets sweater was along for the ride.

Provided with the sweater -- which had his last name and the No. 20 on the back -- by his agent going into the tournament, Wolf threw it in his tennis bag and decided to put it on after each of his victories, even wearing it during his post-match press conferences.
Wolf didn't grow up a huge hockey fan, but he's been converted in his time in Columbus. Fellow pro and Ohio State tennis alum Mikael Torpegaard is friendly with a few players -- Wolf has spent some time with Ryan Murray, calling him a "really nice guy" -- and Wolf has taken in a few games at Nationwide Arena over the years.

"I've been able to go to a couple of the hockey games and they are so much fun," he told BlueJackets.com. "I didn't grow up a big hockey guy, but the more I watch it, the more I think the game has so much energy. The Blue Jackets are so much fun to watch. I was like, 'I have to rep this.'
"I was just really excited about the jersey. I always really like repping Ohio, and people from Ohio are really proud of their sports teams. So being in Columbus, living in Columbus, going to Ohio State, Torp having all the friends on the Blue Jackets, I was proud to be a fan of the team and just tried to throw that out there."
It was hard not to hear about Wolf during the first week of action in Flushing Meadows. The 21-year-old who turned pro a year ago began his tournament with a four-set upset victory against No. 29-seeded Guido Pella of Argentina, ripping 13 aces and riding a 46-19 edge in winners to the victory. Two days later, Wolf took care of business in straight sets, beating Spain's Roberta Carballés Baena thanks in part to 13 more aces and 50 winners.
Wolf's personality caught the attention of the tennis world along the way, in part because of a flowing mullet that transported the sport back to the days of Andre Agassi. And as the world took notice, so did the state of Ohio, with Wolf's run gaining notice in the Columbus sports scene until his loss Saturday to the fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev of Russia.
"I definitely felt that (support)," Wolf said of the fact the Columbus sports community took notice. "Ohio is basically one big family. I know when anyone is from Ohio or went to school in Ohio or plays for any team in Ohio and does something cool or something we can be proud of, everyone always gets really excited. I'm lucky to be able to feel a little bit of that."
Ohio State's tennis program is one of the best in the nation under head coach Ty Tucker, routinely battling for national championships, though pro success can be tough to find. The path from college tennis to the pros is an arduous one, but it can be done, as top-ranked American John Isner played at the University of Georgia while two-time major finalist Kevin Anderson spent three seasons at the University of Illinois.
Wolf entered the U.S. Open ranked 138th in the world -- another former Buckeye standout, Blaz Rola, is 143rd, while Torpegaard is 174th -- but he should get quite a boon from his performance, which tied for the best ever of any OSU product at the tournament.
Reaching the round of 32, as he did, comes with $163,000 in prize money, and the confidence earned from both that showing and winning two matches at the Western & Southern Open -- the U.S. Open prep event usually held each August in Cincinnati but moved to New York this year -- will do nothing but help going forward.
"It's huge," he said. "I was in the bubble for the Cincinnati Masters before that, so I was kind of around all these guys that were used to being there. I got a feel for what the tour life is like for some of these top-level guys, and I definitely think it helped me feel like I belong there. I got very comfortable with it. I'm hoping I can spend a lot more of my time there. Getting a taste of a little bit of success really motivates you."