Greenwood product Kent Kinnear shown playing in a tournament in Indianapolis during his pro career.
Submitted photo
The tennis prime of Kent Kinnear was good enough for the 1984 Greenwood graduate to eventually compete in singles against the likes of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and Stefan Edberg.
His prowess in doubles placed him across the net from Boris Becker, Edberg (again) and the lightning rod of controversy that was lefthander John McEnroe.
Now 57 and a quarter-century removed from his playing days, Kinnear remains a force in the sport, albeit in an entirely different manner.
Kinnear, who resides in Lake Mary, Florida with his wife Happy and their three children, has been head of men’s tennis for the United States Tennis Association, a job that requires him to travel for approximately 18 weeks a year, since October 2018.
Prior to his current post, Kinnear was the USTA’s director of ID and development.
“Right now, I still go to all of the Grand Slam events, and I go to the Davis Cup,” Kinnear said. “And I go to some smaller tournaments, too, but I’m still traveling a lot less than when I played.”
Kinnear, who played in a total of 38 Grand Slam events (including eight Wimbledons), figures the sport of tennis has taken him to approximately 50 different countries either as a player or part of the USTA.
Asked to describe Wimbledon, Kinnear offers the following:
“Incredibly traditional. A really quaint English town that’s just up the hill,” he said. “Beautiful manicured courts and incredible history. Just a pretty magical place. To be able to play there was a big honor.”
Kent and Happy Kinnear will be married 24 years in October. The family includes daughter Anika, 19, and sons Etienne, 17, and Inali, 12.
Happy is an ordained minister and the associate pastor at Markham Woods Presbyterian Church in Lake Mary, a city of roughly 17,000 residents about 20 miles outside of Orlando.
Kinnear’s tennis roots, however, are in a far different location.
“I started playing my first tournament when I was 7,” Kinnear said. “I lived in Downers Grove, Illinois, until we moved to Greenwood when I was 10. That wasn’t an easy move, but I love basketball, and my dad told me how big basketball was in Indiana.”
Kinnear was a two-year starter on the hardwood for the Woodmen, playing forward and some center. Tennis, however, was the sport with which he most connected.
“I always used to tag along with my mom, and she played tennis a lot,” said Kinnear, the youngest of Herb and Betty Kinnear’s four children. “I loved it, and I did pretty well at it. I loved watching Breakfast at Wimbledon, Borg vs. McEnroe, and things like that.”
Kinnear became an instant varsity starter as a Greenwood freshman, playing No. 1 singles throughout. By the time he was a junior, Kinnear worked his way to the 1983 state championship match in singles before losing to three-time champion Paul Koscielski of South Bend Adams, 6-3, 6-3.
Kinnear was the first Johnson County boys player to make it to the singles final, starting a list that has since grown to include five winners and three runners-up.
He then shifted his focus to playing at Clemson University for coach Chuck Kriese.
All these years later, Kinnear can still be found in the Tigers’ record books in categories such as most single-season tiebreakers won (first), doubles winning percentage (fifth), doubles sets won (third) and career doubles victories (ninth).
He played for the Tigers from 1985-88, putting together a career that got Kinnear inducted into Clemson’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2016.
As a professional, the 6-foot-5 Kinnear achieved his highest ranking as a singles player at 163rd. He retired in 1999 at the age of 33.
“I just felt like I was ready for the next chapter,” Kinnear said. “At that point, that’s the age when it seemed a lot of guys would retire. I just felt it was a good time to move on.”
Herb Kinnear passed away in 2011 at the age of 88. Betty Kinnear is now 96 and lives in Valparaiso with Kent’s sister Kathy and her husband.
Kent Kinnear occasionally makes it back to Johnson County, a place he’ll forever hold close to his heart.
“Those were great years,” Kinnear said. “I loved growing up in Greenwood, and am very thankful. A great community.”
