21-year-old American Christopher Eubanks announced on Monday that he will forgo his senior season and turn pro. In his three years at Georgia Tech, Eubanks went 90-33 in singles matches and won player of the year in the ACC twice. Eubanks said, “I can truly say that I’ve been extremely blessed to have had the opportunity to play at an institute such as this. It has been a great three years and I’ve made friendships and relationships that will last a lifetime. I’m incredibly excited for what’s ahead and ready to embark on this new journey in my life”
The decision to turn pro shouldn’t be a shocker to those that have followed Eubanks’s career as of late. In Atlanta, Eubanks defeated Taylor Fritz and Jared Donaldson, which made a strong case that he was a worthy recipient for a US Open main draw wildcard. At the US Open, Eubanks had trouble against veteran Dudi Sela, losing 6-2 6-4 6-2. Since then he hasn’t had much success on the singles side, but won the Monterrey challenger doubles title with fellow American Evan King.
Standing at 6’7″ Eubanks possesses the skills necessary to take the next step in his professional career. His big serve and talented net game make him a tough opponent to play against, so you can’t blame him for wanting to see how he measures up against the best players in the world on a week to week basis. He’s currently ranked #309, which makes the end of this season crucial for his chances to make the Australian Open qualifying cut. The cutoff is typically around 250 so he’ll have to have good results on the USTA pro circuit indoor hardcourt swing in Charlottesville, Knoxville, and Champaign to close out the season. He’s also a candidate for the USTA wildcard to the Australian Ope,n which goes to an American player outside the top 100 who records the most ranking points from the weeks of October 30th-November 13th (points taken from best two weeks).
Staying four years in school and playing college tennis seemed to work for players like Steve Johnson and John Isner, so if Eubanks were to play his last season I don’t think it would’ve hurt his tennis career, but it just seemed like it was the right time to make the decision to take his talents to the pro circuit full time.
