Property, passports and Pokémon! Three things that are very much front and center now for a tennis coach from Sydney who’s just become Australia’s newest millionaire.
Life, it turns out, will never be the same again for Jordan Smith.
“Just smiles on people’s faces, it’s been awesome. It’s been crazy,” Smith told CNN Sports about what’s happened after winning the “One Point Slam.”
“People off the streets have been wanting photos and autographs, I could never imagine that, so I’m loving it,” he added.
The 29-year-old amateur from the family-run Castle Hill Tennis Academy won 1 million AUD ($670,000) after sealing victory in the aforementioned competition in the build-up to this year’s Australian Open in Melbourne.
The innovative event – with all matches lasting just one point – featured a star-studded field comprising amateurs and professionals and included six-time grand slam champion Carlos Alcaraz and two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner, who Smith beat on the way to the title.
“To be fair, I didn’t hit a ball against him. I was very lucky that he missed that serve because I was going to be in a lot of trouble if I had to rally with him,” Smith said.
“(It was) just unbelievable just being on the court with such a champion – a player, (who was) so nice, so down to earth. He wished me the best.”
And then came the moment that changed Smith’s life forever as he defeated Joanna Garland in the final by clinching the point that netted him his million-dollar payday.
“I was obviously very shocked and seeing my family and friends after on the court, and just hugging and kissing, crying and laughing. I just can’t believe it. I wake up every morning, and I don’t know how it happened. It’s just unbelievable!”
Overnight celebrity
Overnight, the man from Sydney – who took up tennis at the age of three – had been well and truly thrust into the global spotlight.
Alcaraz proclaimed his name over social media while there was even time for a meeting with Swiss icon Roger Federer, winner of 20 grand slam singles titles during his storied career.
“It was about a 15-to-20-minute chat. We got photos with my girlfriend and I. (Federer) was so down to earth, like the nicest guy I’ve ever met,” the Australian reflected.
“It’s such an unbelievable experience. I got a nice photo and I’m going to frame it for sure and put it in my room.”
For now, Jordan still lives at home but not, it seems, for too much longer.
With a substantial boost to his bank balance, Smith is hoping to break into the pricey Sydney property market, and he’ll be dusting down his passport too for a possible trip to Japan with his girlfriend Jess.
“I think a million where I’m living in Castle Hill would probably get you like a two-bedroom apartment, really. No water views or anything like that, so it just gives me a few more options with the area I want to go with. There’s maybe a house now instead of an apartment.”
And then there’s Pokémon.
“I enjoy Pokémon cards. I want to potentially maybe buy a couple of those. It’s just nostalgia, because I think growing up, it became pretty popular. When I was a kid, with my brothers as well, we’ve just always played a lot of games and obviously Pokémon-collecting is pretty popular now. So just the nostalgia really, collecting things, that’s cool!”
The young Australian has certainly earned the right to enjoy the moment.
His newfound fame came after a challenging spell earlier in his career. After attending Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, Jordan eventually turned professional earning prize money of just $6,388 during that 12-month period and achieving a career-high ranking of 1,141.
It’s why Jordan has this message of hope for other aspiring young tennis professionals who might currently be struggling.
“It’s definitely a tough lifestyle. Tough to crack into the top 100. I think you just got to be persistent. Again, bit of a cliché, but try to stay as positive as possible, and again, you never know what sort of comes around the corner when you wake up another day and you might get a bit of luck with a draw, or something happens where it turns out for the better.”
But as far as Jordan himself is concerned, it seems like everything he touches turns to gold right now. He’s just won a million Australian dollars and this past weekend in the English Premier League, his beloved Manchester United won the derby against Manchester City. If things keep falling his way, another of his favorite teams – the New England Patriots – will go on to win the Super Bowl.
“Hopefully (they do)! I’m a guy from Australia in Sydney, and I love just every sport. I would love to go to those games in the future, that would be unbelievable.”
