Jesse Levine
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Jesse Levine (born October 15, 1987) is an American-Canadian former professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high singles rank of world No. 69 on October 1, 2012. Levine represented the United States through 2012, and he represented Canada starting in 2013. As a 13-year-old, in 2001 Levine won the U.S. Clay Court 14 Nationals singles championship, and as a 15-year-old he won the
USTA The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...
boys' 16s doubles championship with his doubles partner. As a 17-year-old, he won the 2005
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
boys' doubles championship. Playing one year of No. 1 singles as a freshman for the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
in 2007, he lost only one match, finishing his career with a 24–1 record. In June 2009, while representing the United States on tour, he scored his most significant victory to date, defeating world No. 24 (and former world No. 1)
Marat Safin Marat Mubinovich Safin ( rus, Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин, , mɐˈrat ˈsafʲɪn, Ru-Marat-Safin.ogg; tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөбин улы Сафин; born 27 January 1980) is a Russian retired world No. 1 tennis player an ...
at Wimbledon. The following month he defeated the second top-50 player of his career, world No. 48
Philipp Petzschner Philipp Petzschner (born 24 March 1984) is a retired German professional tennis player. He was known for his hard-hitting forehand and bursts of speed around the court. He reached a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 9, which he achieved in ...
. His most significant achievement in doubles was making the finals in the 2009 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships, losing to
the Bryan brothers The Bryan brothers, identical twin brothers Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, are retired American professional doubles tennis players and the most successful duo of all time. They were born on April 29, 1978, with Mike being the elder by two minutes. ...
. Levine was the coach of
Madison Keys Madison Keys (born February 17, 1995) is an American professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 7 by the Women's Tennis Association The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) is the principal organizing body of women's ...
from December 2015 to May 2016.


Early life

Levine was born in
Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, and grew up in Ottawa's
Centrepointe Centrepointe is a neighbourhood in College Ward in the west end of the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was formerly part of the city of Nepean, Ontario, Nepean. It is a newer residential subdivision in the west/central part of Ottawa, develop ...
neighbourhood. His father Nathan had played tennis for
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
. Jesse attended Hillel Academy of Ottawa. Off the court Levine, who is
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, keeps
kosher (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...
at home, and he plays with a
Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...
on his chain. He can read and write
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
. Levine, along with
Dudi Sela David "Dudi" Sela ( he, דודי סלע; born 4 April 1985) is an Israeli professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 29 in July 2009. Sela won the French Open 2003 junior doubles title. Representing Israel ...
,
Shahar Pe'er Shahar Pe'er ( he, שחר פאר, ; born ) is an Israeli retired tennis player. Pe'er won five singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as four singles and three doubles titles on the ITF circuit in her career. She reached ...
,
Sharon Fichman Sharon Fichman ( ; born December 3, 1990) is a Canadian-Israeli inactive tennis player. In 2004, at the age of 13, she was Canada's Under-18 Indoor & Outdoor National girls' champion, and also won the doubles title. In 2005, Fichman won the gol ...
, and
Camila Giorgi Camila Giorgi (; born 30 December 1991) is an Italian professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 26, achieved on 22 October 2018. She is the current Italian No. 2, after Martina Trevisan. After winning her fi ...
is one of a number of young Jewish tennis players who are highly ranked. "I have a lot of contact with the Israeli players, like Ram, Erlich, Sela, and Levy. They sometimes ask me when I will play for Israel in the Davis Cup", he said. He also appreciates the Jewish fans who cheer for him. At one tournament, they cheered and shouted out encouragement such as: "Come on, man, your opponent hasn't even had his bar mitzvah yet!" As a youth, Levine took tennis lessons at the Ottawa Athletic Club. He and his family moved to Florida in the US when he was 13 years old, because his younger brother Daniel suffers from
ulcerative colitis Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a long-term condition that results in inflammation and ulcers of the colon and rectum. The primary symptoms of active disease are abdominal pain and diarrhea mixed with blood (hematochezia). Weight loss, fever, and a ...
and the year-round warm weather was much better for him. Levine currently resides in
Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; es, Boca Ratón, link=no, ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It was first incorporated on August 2, 1924, as "Bocaratone," and then incorporated as "Boca Raton" in 1925. The population was 97,422 in the ...
. He said in 2009 that he at that point considered himself "100% American", saying that if he were to play
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
, it would be for the US.


Junior tennis career

In 2001 he defeated Donald Young in the final of the U.S. Clay Court 14 Nationals. He was trailing 0–5 in the final set when he came back for the win. In 2003 he won the
USTA The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...
boys 16s doubles championship with partner Jean Yves Aubone, and the Eddie Herr International Boys under-16s singles title. He finished the year ranked 11th in the USTA boys' 16 division. In 2004 he won the Eddie Herr International Boys 18s doubles championship with
Michael Shabaz Michael Shabaz (born August 20, 1987) is an Assyrian-American tennis player who won the 2005 Wimbledon boys' doubles championship with Jesse Levine. He is an NCAA tennis player for the University of Virginia Cavaliers. College career Shabaz tea ...
, an Iranian-born
Assyrian Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyrian ...
-American. At the 2005 USTA Junior Nationals, where he lost in the singles semifinals and doubles finals, both 7–6 in the third set, he was judged to have the best service return. He won the 2005 Wimbledon boys' doubles championship along with Michael Shabaz over
Samuel Groth Samuel Groth OLY, MP (born 19 October 1987) is an Australian politician and a former professional tennis player. Sitting as a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Groth represents the Liberal Party in the seat of Nepean. He is also the ...
of Australia and Andrew Kennaugh of Great Britain. "If you believe in yourself anything can happen", said Levine. He also reached the quarterfinals of the Junior Wimbledon boys' singles tournament that year. Levine was selected to go to the 2005
Maccabiah Games The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi-sp ...
just after winning the doubles, but decided against it as he was too tired. He finished 2005 ranked 23rd in the USTA national junior rankings. He was the runner-up at the 2006 U.S. Junior National Championship to world No. 1 Junior Donald Young, forfeiting in the finals due to
food poisoning Foodborne illness (also foodborne disease and food poisoning) is any illness resulting from the spoilage of contaminated food by pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food, as well as prions (the agents of mad cow disease) ...
. He was voted as having the best
backhand The backhand is a shot used in most racket sports, such as tennis and pickleball, where the back of the hand precedes the palm when swinging the racket. Except in the phrase ''backhand volley'', the term refers to a groundstroke (where the b ...
. His highest
International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...
World Junior Ranking was No. 14 (with a 61–27 singles win–loss record and a 61–22 doubles win–loss record). Junior Slam results – Singles: Australian Open: 1R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
)
French Open: 3R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
)
Wimbledon: QF (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
)
US Open: 2R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
) He attended Boca Prep International School on a soccer scholarship for a year and a half and switched to the
University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...
Online High School, where he was class of 2007. The online school offered an academic program for athletes who were too busy to attend traditional
bricks-and-mortar Brick and mortar (also bricks and mortar or B&M) refers to a physical presence of an organization or business in a building or other structure. The term ''brick-and-mortar business'' is often used to refer to a company that possesses or leases r ...
high schools. Levine did most of his junior training at the
Evert Tennis Academy Evert Tennis Academy is a tennis training center for developing collegiate and professional tennis players in Boca Raton, Florida. The academy was founded by professional tennis player Chris Evert and her brother John Evert. It opened in 1996. ...
in Boca Raton, which is adjacent to Boca Prep (where he received the senior male sportsmanship award from
Chris Evert Christine Marie Evert (born December 21, 1954), known as Chris Evert Lloyd from 1979 to 1987, is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. Evert won 18 major singles titles, including a record seven French Open titles and a joint-record ...
and was named the academy's Male Player of the Year by his peers), and the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in
Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...
for two years, and then decided to go to college.


College career (2007)

Levine enrolled in the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
in Gainesville, Florida during the Spring of 2007, and played for the
Florida Gators men's tennis The Florida Gators men's tennis team represents the University of Florida in the sport of tennis. The Gators compete in Division I (NCAA), Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). ...
team. He subsequently withdrew from the university in August 2007 to turn pro.


Singles

Levine was 24–1 playing No. 1 singles for the Gators as a freshman. He won all but 3 of his matches in straight sets. In March 2007 he beat 6' 9", 236 pound
John Isner John Robert Isner (born April 26, 1985) is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 8 in singles and No. 14 in doubles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Considered one of the best servers e ...
, a senior at
University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...
who was then the No. 1 player in college tennis, who had been undefeated in his prior 46 matches, and who did not lose another regular-season match all season. On May 23, 2007, Levine lost his first college match, in the quarterfinals in the NCAA Men's Singles to
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
's Alex Slovic. He was ranked # 3 in singles by the NCAA in the final May 2007 standings, only because he did not have as many matches against ranked opponents as the top two players (Isner and
Somdev Devvarman Somdev Kishore Devvarman (born 13 February 1985) is a former professional Indian tennis player. He hit the headlines for being the only collegiate player to have made three consecutive finals at the NCAA, winning back-to-back finals i ...
), and he was the only freshman in the top 22.


Doubles

Levine also played No. 1 doubles for the Gators with junior Greg Ouellette, and the duo was 21–3 in 2007, rising to # 3 in the final NCAA rankings. Levine and Ouellette were defeated in the quarterfinals of the 2007 NCAA Men's Doubles championships by the eventual winners,
Middle Tennessee State Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as well as a college of Postgr ...
's Marco Born and Andreas Siljestrom.


Awards

Levine was named the
Intercollegiate Tennis Association The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body and coaches association of college tennis, both an advocate and authority, overseeing men’s and women’s varsity tennis at all levels – NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NC ...
(ITA) 2007 National Rookie of the Year, and was one of 10 players nationally to be selected to the 2007 ITA All-America Team for NCAA Division I men's tennis in both singles and doubles play. Levine was named 2007
Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...
(SEC) Freshman of the Year and was named to the 2007 men's tennis All-SEC first team. He was named the SEC Men's Tennis Player of the Week twice in 2007.


Pro tournaments


2007

Levine missed the Gators' first dual match of the season, on January 31, 2007, because he was at the
Delray Beach International Tennis Championships The Delray Beach Open is an ATP World Tour 250 series men's professional tennis tournament held each year in Delray Beach, Florida, United States, and played on hard courts. It was previously known as America's Red Clay Championships, Citrix Ten ...
, where he defeated
Łukasz Kubot Łukasz Kubot (; born 16 May 1982) is a Polish professional tennis player who is a former world No. 1 in doubles. He is a two-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having won the 2014 Australian Open with Robert Lindstedt, as well as the 2017 Wi ...
of Poland (ranked # 118) 6–3, 6–2, and
Kevin Kim Kevin Kim (born July 26, 1978) is an American retired tennis player. Career He entered the top 100 in 2004, reaching a career-high singles ranking of World No. 63 in March 2005. In 1993, Kim won the USTA National Boys' 16 Indoor Doubles Champi ...
of the US (ranked # 107) 6–2, 6–2, but lost to
Benjamin Becker Benjamin Becker (born 16 June 1981) is a German retired professional tennis player who is known for defeating former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in the third round at the 2006 US Open in what was Agassi's last match as a professional player. Bec ...
of Germany (ranked # 54) 3–6, 3–6. He also received a wild card into the BMW Tennis Championship, where he lost 6–7(4–7), 6–7(3–7), to
Gaël Monfils Gaël Sébastien Monfils (; born 1 September 1986) is a French professional tennis player. He has been ATP rankings, ranked as high as world No. 6 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in November 2016. H ...
. In July 2007 Levine travelled to
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
when top-ranked
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
invited him there to practice for 10 days. "I thought it was a joke ... I thought it was one of my college buddies playing a prank on me, but it was for real", Levine said. Twice he and Federer played match sets, both of which Federer won, 6–4. Levine left college prior to play as a wildcard at the 2007 U.S. Open, his first professional tournament as a professional. He was defeated by world # 4
Nikolay Davydenko Nikolay Vladimirovich Davydenko ( rus, Никола́й Влади́мирович Давыде́нко ; born 2 June 1981) is a Ukrainian-born Russian former professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 3 i ...
in the first round, 4–6, 0–6, 1–6. "I was really nervous", Levine said, "but it was an amazing experience." In doubles, however, he won his first round match, pairing with
Alex Kuznetsov Alex Kuznetsov (born February 5, 1987) is a retired American professional tennis player. He is a former hitting partner of Maria Sharapova Personal life Kuznetsov was born in Ukraine. His family moved to the United States when he was 3 years o ...
, over
Dominik Hrbatý Dominik Hrbatý (; born 4 January 1978) is a Slovakian former professional tennis player. Hrbatý reached the semifinals of the 1999 French Open – Men's singles, 1999 French Open, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 12 in ...
of Slovakia and
Harel Levy Harel Levy ( he, הראל לוי; born 5 August 1978) is a retired Israeli professional tennis player, and the current captain of Israel's Davis Cup team. He reached the final of the 2000 Toronto Masters and achieved a career-high singles rank ...
of Israel, 6–1, 6–4, and their second round match upsetting 7th-seeded Frenchmen
Arnaud Clément Arnaud Clément (; born 17 December 1977) is a French former professional tennis player and Davis Cup captain. Clément reached the final of the 2001 Australian Open and achieved a career-high ranking of world No. 10 in April of that year. Par ...
and
Michaël Llodra Michaël Llodra (; born 18 May 1980) is a French former professional tennis player. He was a successful doubles player with three Grand Slam championships and an Olympic silver medal, and has also had success in singles, winning five career titl ...
7–6(7–5), 6–4, before losing in the third round to 9th-seeded Czechs
Lukáš Dlouhý Lukáš Dlouhý (born 9 April 1983) is a retired professional Czech tennis player on the ATP Tour. A doubles specialist, Dlouhý reached a career-high ranking of World No. 5 in June 2009. Career Dlouhý has been part of two long-term doubles ...
and
Pavel Vízner Pavel Vízner (born 15 July 1970) is a retired professional male tennis player from the Czech Republic. Vízner has reached the French Open final twice, having had turned professional in 1990 and achieved a career high doubles ranking of World ...
, 4–6, 5–7. In November 2007, Levine won his first pro title, the $75,000 Music City Challenger in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
, along the way beating world # 109
Robert Kendrick Robert Bradley Kendrick (born November 15, 1979) is an American retired professional tennis player. He turned professional in 2000. His career-high singles ranking is World No. 69, achieved in July 2009. Early life Robert Kendrick was born to T ...
of the US, 7–5, 6–4, # 148
Sam Warburg Sam Warburg (born April 29, 1983) is an American retired tennis player. College career Warburg was a 4-time All-American for Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research ...
of the US, 4–6, 6–3, 6–3, and # 170
Dušan Vemić Dušan Vemić ( sr-cyr, Душан Вемић; born 17 June 1976) is a Serbian tennis coach and former professional tennis player. Professional career His professional tennis career started in 1995, and his career high was No. 146 in singles (re ...
of Serbia, 6–2, 7–5. "That first pro title was a big deal for me", Levine said. "I called my parents to tell them I'd won. I was pretty excited." That same month, Levine won the $50,000 JSM Challenger in
Champaign, Illinois Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...
, at the
University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...
. In the second round he defeated # 197 Kevin Kim, 6–1, 7–5, and in the semifinals he again beat Isner, now world # 118, this time 7–6(7–5), 6–3. In the finals Levine topped Donald Young (world # 106), 7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–4); he did not lose a set all week, and moved up in the rankings to # 192 in the world. Still later in November, he began the $50,000 Knoxville Challenger tournament in
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
by defeating former US Junior champion
Michael McClune Michael McClune (born August 22, 1989) is an American professional tennis player. He turned professional in 2007, was represented by IMG and signed a lucrative contract with Nike. Junior career Michael was a finalist at the 2007 Luxilon Cup ...
, 6–4, 6–1, in the first round, but three rounds later lost to Kevin Kim in the semifinals. The loss broke Levine's 16-match winning streak. In early December, he and
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals (Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Open ...
defeated Robert Kendrick and
Amer Delic Amer may refer to: Places * Amer (river), a river in the Dutch province of North Brabant * Amer, Girona, a municipality in the province of Girona in Catalonia, Spain * Amber, India (also known as Amer, India), former city of Rajasthan state ** Am ...
7–6, 6–4, in a fast-paced match on
Har-Tru A clay court is one of the types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Clay courts are made of crushed stone, brick, shale, or other unbound mineral aggregate depending on the tournament. ...
at the OMNI Healthcare/Harris "Rally with Roddick" charity tennis exhibition in
Indian Harbour Beach Indian Harbour Beach is a coastal city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 8,225 at the 2010 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne– Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is nort ...
. In late December Levine won a wild card berth into the main draw of the Australian Open. He won the spot by defeating
Wayne Odesnik Wayne Odesnik (born November 21, 1985) is a South African-born American retired professional left-handed tennis player, with a two-handed backhand. His highest singles ranking was No. 77 in 2009. Among his biggest upsets were a 2007 win over Iv ...
and Kuznetsov in a
round-robin tournament A round-robin tournament (or all-go-away-tournament) is a competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero ...
format. "It definitely feels good not having it just handed out", Levine said after defeating Odesnik 6–4, 6–0. He trained and played sets with
Max Mirnyi Maksim "Max" Mikalaevich Mirnyi ( be, Максім Мікалаевіч Мірны, ; russian: Максим Николаевич Мирный, ; born 6 July 1977) is a Belarusian former professional tennis player. Mirnyi became a doubles speci ...
,
Xavier Malisse Xavier Malisse (born 19 July 1980) is a former Belgian professional tennis player. Born in the north-western Flemish city of Kortrijk and nicknamed ''X-Man'', he is one of only two Belgian men (the other being David Goffin) to have been ranked i ...
,
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
, and
Tommy Haas Thomas Mario Haas (; born 3 April 1978) is a German former professional tennis player. He competed on the ATP Tour from 1996 to 2017. After breaking into the world top 100 in 1997, and reaching a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 in May ...
. Levine played qualifying in a couple of pre-Grand Slam tournaments in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
and Sydney. He still flew
coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...
Down Under The term ''Down Under'' is a colloquialism which is differently construed to refer to Australia and New Zealand, or Pacific Island countries collectively.Oxford English Dictionary (Electronic), Version 4.0, entry fordown under. The dictionary ...
. "I'll have to make a lot more money before I can go first class", he said. Levine ended the year with a 20–10 match record, and ranked # 192.


2008

In January 2008, at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, Levine beat
Martín Vassallo Argüello Martín Miguel Vassallo Argüello (born 10 February 1980) is a retired professional male tennis player from Argentina. His career-high ATP singles ranking is World No. 47, achieved in April 2009 shortly after reaching the semifinals of Acapulco ...
of Argentina, a 26-year-old veteran ranked # 77 in the world, to advance to the Open's second round. There, Levine played a scrappy match against fellow lefty, No. 24 seed
Jarkko Nieminen Jarkko Kalervo Nieminen (born 23 July 1981) is a Finnish former professional tennis player. His highest ranking of world No. 13, achieved in July 2006, is a Finnish record. He has won two ATP singles titles and five doubles titles in his caree ...
. But despite serving for the set at 5–3 in both the second and third sets, Levine went down 2–6, 5–7, 6–7(2–7) to the Finn. "I felt like I was right there, and definitely had my chances in the second and third (sets). I have to work on converting a little better", said Levine. "Maybe I got a little too antsy, and tried to go for a little too much, maybe stepped too hard on the pedal instead of taking a foot off." At the personal request of U.S. Davis Cup captain
Patrick McEnroe Patrick William McEnroe (born July 1, 1966) is an American former professional tennis player, broadcaster, and former captain of the United States Davis Cup team. Born in Manhasset, New York, he is John McEnroe's youngest brother. He won one ...
, Levine was a practice partner with the U.S.
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
team in early February in Austria, hitting with
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals (Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Open ...
, James Blake, and twins
Bob Bryan Robert Charles Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American former doubles world No. 1 tennis player. He has won twenty-three Grand Slam titles: 16 in men's doubles and 7 in mixed doubles. He turned professional in 1998. With his twin ...
and
Mike Bryan Michael Carl Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American former doubles world No. 1 tennis player. With his twin brother Bob, he was the world's top doubles player for more than nine years, first achieving the top ranking in Septemb ...
. "First of all, he's a lefty, but also, Jesse has shown a lot of promise since last summer, improved his ranking a lot, and he's a great kid and incredibly hard worker", McEnroe said. "Our guys have a good read on which young guys are working really hard, and they were pushing to invite Jesse. It will be a great experience for him, and he'll help our guys a lot." "One day I played four sets. It was a lot of fun, but my body was sore", Levine said. "The guys are so cool." In February Levine defeated # 81-ranked
Steve Darcis Steve Darcis (, born 13 March 1984) is a Belgium, Belgian retired professional tennis player. In his career, he won two ATP titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 38 on 22 May 2017. Personal life Steve Darcis was born in ...
of Belgium in the first round of the San Jose Open, 6–3, 2–6, 6–4, before losing to James Blake in the second round. In May he won all five of his matches, dropping only one set, to win the Bradenton, Florida Challenger event. He also won the Türk Telecom İzmir Cup challenger tournament in doubles in Turkey, with partner
Kei Nishikori is an inactive Japanese professional tennis player. He is the second male Japanese player to have been ranked in the top 5 in singles (after Jiro Sato), and the only one to do so in the Open Era. Nishikori first reached his career-high singles ...
of Japan. In June at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, after qualifying by winning three matches, and then getting "shivers" on his arms as he walked out for his opening match, he beat world # 85 Donald Young in the first round, 4–6, 6–2, 6–3, 6–4. It was the first four-set match he had ever played. The key was Levine's persistent net play; he approached net 32 times, winning 25 of the points. In the next round he lost, in his first five-set match ever, to
Jürgen Melzer Jürgen Melzer (born 22 May 1981) is an Austrian former professional tennis player. Melzer reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8 in April 2011, and a doubles ranking of world No. 6 in September 2010. He has a younger brother, Geral ...
6–4, 2–6, 6–3, 4–6, 1–6. In July in Newport on the grass courts at the
International Tennis Hall of Fame The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...
, he beat No. 5 seeded, world # 83 John Isner 6–3, 6–1. Later in the month he beat
Benjamin Becker Benjamin Becker (born 16 June 1981) is a German retired professional tennis player who is known for defeating former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in the third round at the 2006 US Open in what was Agassi's last match as a professional player. Bec ...
of Germany, 6–3, 3–6, 7–6(8–6), at the
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
in Toronto. In August at the
New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...
International Series, he beat world # 67
Guillermo García López Guillermo García López (, born 4 June 1983) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He has won five singles titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 23 in February 2011. As of 2021, he has collected thirteen w ...
of Spain 6–0, 6–3, and world # 61 Steve Darcis, 2–0, retired. He broke into the top 100, at 96, on August 25. In October Federer again invited Levine to join him for an extended practice session in Dubai, as preparation for the Australian Open.


2009

In April at the
US Men's Clay Court Championships The U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships is an annual ATP Tour tennis tournament that started in 1910. It is the last remaining ATP World Tour-level tournament in the United States to be played on clay courts. The tournament began in 1910 when the ...
in
Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, Levine, ranked 289th in doubles in the world, and doubles partner
Ryan Sweeting Ryan Sweeting (born July 14, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. Personal life Sweeting was born in Nassau, Bahamas. He has been living in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and registered as an American to the ATP. In September 2013 ...
from the Bahamas, ranked 405th in doubles, made it into the draw via wild card, and in the first round defeated 3rd-seeded world doubles # 40
Lucas Arnold Ker Lucas Arnold Ker (; born 12 October 1974) is an Argentine former professional tennis player. Arnold Ker started playing tennis in the Olivos Tenis Club of Buenos Aires, under coach Malcolm Campbell. He is the younger brother of Patricio Arnold ...
and world doubles # 61
Martin Damm Martin Damm Sr. (born 1 August 1972) is a former professional tennis player from the Czech Republic. He is best known as a doubles player (his highest ranking being No. 5 in the world in April 2007). His highest singles ranking was No. 42 in A ...
, 6–2, 6–4. In the quarterfinals they beat world doubles # 66
Jaroslav Levinský Jaroslav Levinský (born 11 February 1981) is a professional doubles tennis player from the Czech Republic. Levinsky reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 239, achieved on 23 September 2002. He also reached a career-high doubles r ...
and # 82
Pavel Vízner Pavel Vízner (born 15 July 1970) is a retired professional male tennis player from the Czech Republic. Vízner has reached the French Open final twice, having had turned professional in 1990 and achieved a career high doubles ranking of World ...
, 7–6(8–6), 6–4, and in the semifinals they defeated 2nd-seeded world doubles # 30
Ashley Fisher Ashley Fisher (born 25 September 1975) is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable do ...
and # 29
Jordan Kerr Jordan Kerr (born 26 October 1979, in Adelaide) is a retired Australian professional tennis player. Kerr reached a career high ATP singles ranking of World No. 356, which he achieved on 7 August 2000. Additionally, he reached a career high ATP ...
3–6, 6–3, 0–4 They lost to Americans
Bob and Mike Bryan The Bryan brothers, identical twin brothers Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, are retired American professional doubles tennis players and the most successful duo of all time. They were born on April 29, 1978, with Mike being the elder by two minutes. ...
, ranked # 1 in the world, in the doubles final, 1–6, 2–6. Levine qualified for the main draw at
Wimbledon 2009 The 2009 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 123rd edition of the Wimbledon Championships and was held from ...
, after defeating Australian
Samuel Groth Samuel Groth OLY, MP (born 19 October 1987) is an Australian politician and a former professional tennis player. Sitting as a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Groth represents the Liberal Party in the seat of Nepean. He is also the ...
6–4, 6–7(3–7), 7–5, German
Dieter Kindlmann Dieter Kindlmann (born 3 June 1982) is a German former professional tennis player. He reached his highest individual ranking on the ATP Tour on 26 July 2004, when he became World number 130. His best appearance at a Grand Slam came at the 2006 F ...
6–2, 6–3, and German
Matthias Bachinger Matthias Bachinger (born 2 April 1987) is a professional tennis player from Germany who turned professional in 2005. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 85, achieved in August 2011. Professional career In 2007, Bachinger qualified for ...
6–2, 7–5, 6–2. In the first round of the main Wimbledon draw, in the biggest win of his career Levine upset world # 24 (and former world # 1, and two-time
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
champion)
Marat Safin Marat Mubinovich Safin ( rus, Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин, , mɐˈrat ˈsafʲɪn, Ru-Marat-Safin.ogg; tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөбин улы Сафин; born 27 January 1980) is a Russian retired world No. 1 tennis player an ...
of Russia 6–2, 3–6, 7–6(7–4), 6–4. Levine was ranked 133rd going into the tournament. ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' described Levine as "a feisty little terrier who kept harrying away at his towering opponent", and ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' noted that "If you stand them side by side" Levine and Safin "look a little like
David and Goliath Goliath ( ) ''Goləyāṯ''; ar, جُليات ''Ǧulyāt'' (Christian term) or (Quranic term). is a character in the Book of Samuel, described as a Philistine giant defeated by the young David in single combat. The story signified King Saul's ...
. Levine ... is seven inches (178 mm) shorter and 45 pounds lighter than Safin, but when it counted ... the American was faster and stronger." When Levine clinched the win he looked up and pointed into the sky in acknowledgement of his grandmother Lillian Kimmel, who had died three years prior. Safin said that he had known before the match that Levine was a "talented lefty, tough player, fast ... gonna go for it. He's a tough one." In the second round Levine defeated Uruguay's top tennis player,
Pablo Cuevas Pablo Gabriel Cuevas Urroz (; born January 1, 1986) is an inactive Uruguayan professional tennis player. Cuevas won the 2008 French Open men's doubles title with Luis Horna. He has won six singles titles and has a career-high singles ranking of ...
, 6–2, 6–1, 4–6, 4–6, 6–3. "I think my win the other day against Marat really gave me a confidence booster", he said. It was Levine's first five-set victory, and only his second five-set match. "I could have played a little bit longer", he said, "But I'm glad I didn't have to." Levine and
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals (Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Open ...
were the only two American men left standing in the tournament, and Levine was also by far the lowest-ranked player left in the men's draw. Levine next faced Olympic gold medalist, world # 18, 19th seed
Stanislas Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ATP rankings, ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His ca ...
of Switzerland, in Levine's first trip to the third round in a Grand Slam. "Once again I'm the underdog", said Levine." "I've got nothing to lose, so I'll go out there swinging away. For the first set and a half of their match, Levine (described by ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' as having "the pugnacity of
Jimmy Connors James Scott Connors (born September 2, 1952) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He held the top Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) ranking for a then-record 160 consecutive weeks from 1974 to 1977 and a career total of 268 ...
and the fashion sense of
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
") looked as though it was he who was the top 20 player, as he hit low forehands and approached and dominated the net, but in the end Wawrinka prevailed, 7–5, 5–7, 3–6, 3–6, despite Levine saving 17 of 23 break points in the match. Levine next played in the
Hall of Fame Tennis Championships The Infosys Hall of Fame Open is an international tennis tournament that has been held every year in July since 1976 at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, the original location of the U.S. National Championships. The ...
in Newport, Rhode Island, making it as far as the quarterfinals, and along the way upsetting sixth-seeded world # 48 German
Philipp Petzschner Philipp Petzschner (born 24 March 1984) is a retired German professional tennis player. He was known for his hard-hitting forehand and bursts of speed around the court. He reached a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 9, which he achieved in ...
, 7–6(7–3), 6–2. It was his second win over a top-50 player in three weeks. In late July Levine qualified for the
2009 Indianapolis Tennis Championships The 2009 Indianapolis Tennis Championships (also known as the ''Indianapolis Tennis Championships presented by Lilly'' for sponsorship reasons) was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 22nd edition of the event known th ...
in singles. In doubles Levine partnered Israeli
Dudi Sela David "Dudi" Sela ( he, דודי סלע; born 4 April 1985) is an Israeli professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 29 in July 2009. Sela won the French Open 2003 junior doubles title. Representing Israel ...
, and defeated
Denis Istomin Denis Olegovich Istomin (born 7 September 1986) is an Uzbek professional tennis player. He has won two singles titles (at the 2015 Aegon Open Nottingham and 2017 Chengdu Open) and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 33 in Au ...
of Uzbekistan and
Josselin Ouanna Josselin Ouanna (born 14 April 1986) is a retired French tennis player. Biography Born in Tours and Guadeloupean origin, he was quickly spotted and integrates INSEP with her friends of "blackteam" Gaël Monfils (of Caribbean origin) and Jo-Wil ...
of France 6–4, 6–4 to make it to the quarterfinals. Entering the 2009 US Open via wild card, he won his first round match in straight sets over Russian
Teymuraz Gabashvili Teymuraz Besikovich Gabashvili ( rus, Теймураз Бесикович Габашвили, , tɛɪ̯mʊˈraz ɡəbɐˈʂvʲilʲɪ; born 23 May 1985) is a Russian professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of World No. 4 ...
7–5, 6–1, 6–2.


2010–11

Levine skipped the
2010 Australian Open The 2010 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place in Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, from 18 to 31 January. It was the 98th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam event of the year. In the singles competi ...
and
2010 French Open The 2010 French Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 114th edition of the French Open, and the second Grand Slam event of the year. It took place at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 23 May through ...
, and played some Challengers instead. In June, Levine reached the second round in doubles at the
2010 Wimbledon Championships The 2010 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 124th edition of the Wimbledon Championships and were held fro ...
, but lost in the first round in singles to
Feliciano López Feliciano López Díaz-Guerra (; born 20 September 1981) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high singles ranking of world No. 12 in March 2015 and doubles ranking of world No. 9 in November 2016.In 2005, López was t ...
6–7(2–7), 6–3, 2–6, 3–6. He lost in the final of the
Lexington Challenger The Lexington Challenger (previously known as the Kentucky Bank Tennis Championships and the Fifth Third Bank Tennis Championships) is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts. It is currently part of the ATP Challenger Tour ...
to Carsten Ball 4–6, 6–7(2–7) at the end of July. A week later he reached the doubles final of the Challenger in
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
. Levine had to withdraw in the second round of qualifying at the 2010 US Open to undergo emergency root canal surgery. At the beginning of 2011, Levine played on the ITF Futures Circuit to improve his ranking. In March, he reached the doubles final at the tournament in
Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...
. He won the Futures in
Indian Harbour Beach Indian Harbour Beach is a coastal city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 8,225 at the 2010 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne– Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is nort ...
in June, defeating
Jeff Dadamo Jeff Dadamo (born July 17, 1989) is an American former professional tennis player who competed mainly on the ATP Challenger Tour and ITF Futures, both in singles and doubles. Dadamo reached his highest ATP singles ranking, No. 480, on October 1 ...
6–4, 6–4 in the final. In September, Levine reached back-to-back Futures finals in Canada, winning in Toronto 6–1, 6–0 over
Rhyne Williams Robert Rhyne Williams (born March 22, 1991) is an American tennis player. He has not played on the ATP Tour since 2018 and is currently a tennis coach at the University of Tennessee. Williams first played on the professional circuit in 2006, bu ...
, but losing in
Markham Markham may refer to: It may also refer to brand of of clothing which originates from South Africa which saw it's establishment in 1873. Biology * Markham's storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma markhami''), a seabird species found in Chile and Colombia * ...
to
Peter Polansky Peter Polansky ( ; born June 15, 1988) is a Canadian professional tennis player of Czech origin. He was Canada's top singles player from June 21, 2010, until January 17, 2011, in the ATP rankings. He was also Canada's No. 2 from August 4, 2008, ...
. He won his third Futures title of the year in
Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
with a 6–4, 6–3 victory over
John-Patrick Smith John-Patrick Tracey "JP" Smith (born 24 January 1989) is an Australian professional tennis player who competes mainly on the ATP Challenger Tour, both in singles and doubles. He attended the University of Tennessee from 2007 through 2011 where ...
. Levine reached the final of the Challenger in
Charlottesville Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Cha ...
at the beginning of November. He won his first Challenger title in three years a week later, beating Brian Baker 6–2, 6–3 in
Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...
. Levine received a main draw wild card for the
2012 Australian Open The 2012 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place in Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, from 16 to 29 January 2012. It was the 100th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam event of the year. The tournamen ...
after winning the USTA's Australian Open Wild Card Playoff.


2012

Levine lost in the first round of the
2012 Australian Open The 2012 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place in Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, from 16 to 29 January 2012. It was the 100th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam event of the year. The tournamen ...
to
Marcel Granollers Marcel Granollers Pujol (; ; born 12 April 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 19 in July 2012, and his career-high doubles ranking of world No. 4 in February 2013. Granollers h ...
in five sets, 0–6, 6–7(4–7), 7–5, 7–5, 3–6. In February, he won his fifth Challenger title thanks to a 6–4, 6–4 win over
Steve Darcis Steve Darcis (, born 13 March 1984) is a Belgium, Belgian retired professional tennis player. In his career, he won two ATP titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 38 on 22 May 2017. Personal life Steve Darcis was born in ...
in
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
. He lost in the first round of the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells and
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. Levine reached the second round of the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
in June, his first Grand Slam main draw win in almost three years. He also reached the second round at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
. He lost in the second round of the Masters 1000 in
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. In September, Levine lost in the first round of the US Open but made it to the third round in doubles. Also in September, he reached the quarterfinals of the ATP tournament in
Moselle The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it jo ...
in both singles and doubles. In October, he lost in the doubles quarterfinals of the ATP 250 in
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
. Levine applied to the
International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...
in late 2012 to represent Canada in future Davis Cup play.


2013

Levine started his season in
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
where he qualified, but lost in the first round to
Alejandro Falla Alejandro Falla Ramírez (; born 14 November 1983) is a retired professional male tennis player from Colombia. The left-hander turned pro in 2000 and achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 48 in July 2012. At the 2006 Wimbledon t ...
. He played his first official tournament as a Canadian in
Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
, where he qualified for the main draw of an ATP tournament for the second straight week. He made it to the quarterfinals, after wins over local player
Daniel King-Turner Daniel King-Turner (born 15 May 1984) is a former professional tennis player from New Zealand. In total, he won eight Futures singles titles as well as two Challenger doubles titles and 10 Futures doubles titles. He also made the semi-finals o ...
and Brian Baker, before losing to
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
. At the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, Levine defeated former world No. 5
Tommy Robredo Tomás Robredo Garcés, known as Tommy Robredo (, ; born 1 May 1982), is a Spanish former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 5, which he reached in August 2006 as a result of winning the Hamburg Masters ea ...
in the first round, but lost to 14th-seed
Gilles Simon Gilles Simon (; born 27 December 1984) is a French former professional tennis player. He had a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 6 attained on 5 January 2009. He turned professional in 2002 and won 14 singles titles on the ATP Tour. ...
in the next round. Levine was defeated by Japan's
Kei Nishikori is an inactive Japanese professional tennis player. He is the second male Japanese player to have been ranked in the top 5 in singles (after Jiro Sato), and the only one to do so in the Open Era. Nishikori first reached his career-high singles ...
in the first round of the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
. At
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, he made it to the second round with a five-set victory over
Guido Pella Guido Pella (; born 17 May 1990) is an inactive Argentine professional tennis player. In August 2019, Pella reached his career best world No. 20 in singles. In July 2019, he peaked at No. 55 in doubles. Personal life His father, Carlos, taught ...
in his opening match, before losing to world No. 8
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
in the next round. Levine reached the second round at the
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
in August as a wildcard, but was defeated by
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
. Beginning in the Spring of 2013 during grass court season, Levine began suffering from an elbow problem and numbness in his pinky finger. The problem continued for over a year. He stopped playing tennis after the Rogers Cup to rehab his elbow, which was first diagnosed as golfer's elbow, and had non-invasive surgery in the fall of 2013.


2014

Levine's elbow problem continued into 2014. By July 2014 he was back to hitting on practice courts, and though his elbow was troubling him when serving he trained during the summer with
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
. He was chosen as a hitting partner for Canada's Davis Cup team in September. However, when he attempted to come back in October after not playing competitively for 11 months, the problem recurred and was re-aggravated during a match in Houston. Levine was scheduled to have surgery in October 2014, either
Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...
or a different surgery to move his
ulnar nerve In human anatomy, the ulnar nerve is a nerve that runs near the ulna bone. The ulnar collateral ligament of elbow joint is in relation with the ulnar nerve. The nerve is the largest in the human body unprotected by muscle or bone, so injury is ...
and thus relieve the numbness in his little finger. Levine retired at the end of 2014 due to an elbow injury.


Accolades

In 2017, Levine was inducted into the Ottawa Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.


Style of play

Among his strengths as a player are that he is extremely fast and explosive, "quick-footed" with "great feet", "a superb forehand", and what
John McEnroe John Patrick McEnroe Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is an American former professional tennis player. He was known for his shot-making and volleying skills, his rivalries with Björn Borg and Jimmy Connors, and his confrontational on-court beha ...
has referred to as "great racket speed"; he is "a hard worker and a natural leader." He also runs everything down. "He's got a great heart", said
Larry Stefanki Larry Stefanki (born July 23, 1957), is an American tennis coach and former professional tennis player. Tennis career He played for nine years starting in 1979, reaching a career-high ranking of World No. 35 in singles after winning the Indian ...
, who coached
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals (Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Open ...
and has previously worked with John McEnroe,
Marcelo Ríos Marcelo Andrés Ríos Mayorga (; born 26 December 1975) is a Chilean former world No. 1 tennis player. Nicknamed ''"El Chino"'' ("The Chinese") and ''"El zurdo de Vitacura"'' ("The Lefty from Vitacura"), he became the first Latin American play ...
,
Fernando González Fernando Francisco González Ciuffardi (; born 29 July 1980) is a Chilean former professional tennis player. During his career he made it to at least the quarterfinals of all four Grand Slam tournaments. He played his only major final at the ...
and
Tim Henman Timothy Henry Henman (born 6 September 1974) is a British former professional tennis player. Henman played a serve-and-volley style of tennis. He was the first British man to reach the singles semifinals of Wimbledon since Roger Taylor in the ...
. "A lot of players today are fast and fit, but just don't seem to play every point at 100%. It's like they're almost on cruise control and then want to play hard when it gets to 4-all or 5-all", Stefanki said. "I think because Jesse's so small and he doesn't want to give any free points, he tries every point 100%. That's a big asset out there." At 5' 9" and 150 pounds, Levine is smaller than most professional tennis players.


Personal

Levine had a
German Shepherd The German Shepherd or Alsatian is a German breed of working dog of medium to large size. The breed was developed by Max von Stephanitz using various traditional German herding dogs from 1899. It was originally bred as a herding dog, for he ...
dog, named "Sarite". He is also good friends with Canadian
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
ice hockey centre
Jason Spezza Jason Rocco Anthony Spezza (born June 13, 1983) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. Spezza played 19 career seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 2002 to 2022, and is currently a part of the Toronto Maple Leafs' front ...
and a big fan of the
Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...
and
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
. On April 28, 2014 Jesse was made an honorary brother of the
Alpha Epsilon Pi Alpha Epsilon Pi (), commonly known as AEPi, is a college fraternity founded at New York University in 1913 by Charles C. Moskowitz and ten other men. The fraternity has more than 150 active chapters across the United States, Canada, United Kingdo ...
fraternity.


ATP career finals


Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)


ATP Challenger & ITF Futures finals


Singles: 14 (9 titles, 5 runners-up)


Doubles: 6 (3 titles, 3 runner-up)


Junior Grand Slam finals


Doubles: 1 (1 title)


Performance timelines


Singles


Doubles


See also

*
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
*
List of Florida Gators tennis players The list of University of Florida Tennis Players includes former athletes of the Florida Gators men's tennis and Florida Gators women's tennis teams of the University of Florida who have competed on the professional tennis circuit. The list includ ...
* List of notable Jewish tennis players


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Levine, Jesse 1987 births Living people American male tennis players Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian male tennis players Florida Gators men's tennis players Jewish American sportspeople Jewish Canadian sportspeople Jewish tennis players Sportspeople from Boca Raton, Florida Racket sportspeople from Ontario Sportspeople from Ottawa Tennis people from Florida Wimbledon junior champions Grand Slam (tennis) champions in boys' doubles 21st-century American Jews