Agassi Fined For Obscenities

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

February 12, 1999 / 4:35 PM EST / CBS Sportsline

Andre Agassi's big mouth on Wednesday night at the Sybase Open not only cost him a match. It also cost him $13,000.

That was the fine Agassi received Friday from the ATP after a trio of obscenities during a second-round match caused him to default against fellow American Cecil Mamiit Wednesday night.

The second-seeded Agassi won the first set, 6-0, and was two games from a straight-sets victory before the former UCLA standout rallied to force a second-set tiebreaker and won the first five points.

Linesman Al Klassen heard Agassi utter an obscenity and reported it to umpire Steve Ullrich, who issued a warning. Agassi swore again and was penalized a point by Ullrich. Agassi's third obscenity prompted an appearance from ATP Tour referee Tom Barnes, who conferred with Ullrich before defaulting the match to Mamiit.

"I was shocked," Agassi said following the incident. "I have been personally been involved in much worse and never have been involved in anything like this."

This was the second time that Agassi had to default a match after uttering an audible obscenity. In 1996, he caused himself to get disqualified from the RCA Championships in Indianapolis.

Agassi could have received a maximum fine of $20,000 and had his rankings points taken away. However, he lost $7,500 for the verbal abuse and $5,500 in prize money, along with the ranking points he would have earned in the tournament.

The defending champion, Agassi suffered his second consecutive embarrassing exit. After breezing through his first three matches at the Australian Open, he committed more than 70 unforced errors in a four-set loss to fellow American Vince Spadea.

Agassi's victory over longtime rival Pete Sampras in last year's final was the catalyst to a year that saw him climb from 122nd in the world to sixth at season's end. He won five titles and reached the final of five other tournaments.