Mary Joe Fernandez was born on August 19, 1971, in the Dominican Republic and moved with her family to Miami when she was just 6 months old. Mary Joe got her start in tennis when, as a toddler, she followed her father and older sister to the local courts. She started taking lessons from a local tennis pro at age 5 and began competing in tournaments by age 6.
Mary Joe first came to the tennis world's attention as an outstanding junior player after winning four straight Orange Bowl junior titles. In 1985, at age 14, Mary Joe became the youngest player ever to win a main draw match at the US Open. The following year, Mary Joe turned professional.
During her very successful career, Mary Joe won 7 WTA singles titles, 17 doubles titles and two Olympic gold medals. She is a 3-time Grand Slam singles finalist and won two Grand Slam doubles titles.
After 14 successful years on the tour, Mary Joe retired in 2000. Mary Joe is fluent in Spanish and English and currently serves as a tennis commentator on ESPN, ESPN2 and CBS.
