Flimflams, Marcelo Ríos, & Larry Stefanki’s Coaching Lessons | Q&Andy

Summary

Served with Andy Roddick – Episode Summary

Episode: Flim Flams, Marcelo Ríos, & Larry Stefanki’s Coaching Lessons | Q&Andy
Date: March 12, 2026
Host: Andy Roddick (w/ Sean and guest coach Larry Stefanki)

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OVERVIEW

This episode of "Served with Andy Roddick" is a Q&A format focused on Andy’s former coach, the legendary Larry Stefanki. Riding off the high engagement from the main Stefanki interview aired earlier in the week, this installment puts fan questions to Larry, digging into coaching wisdom, tennis terminology, player anecdotes (including about Marcelo Ríos), and the unique chemistry between Andy and his coach. The tone is candid, funny, and full of inside stories—the kind that tennis fans crave.

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KEY DISCUSSION POINTS & INSIGHTS

1. The Roddick-Stefanki Partnership – What Worked, What Could Have Changed

[01:30] - [06:29]

• Question from Mitch (Racket Lifestyle): If Larry could describe his experience coaching Andy (movie, word, etc.), and what, in hindsight, would he do differently?
• Larry dodges the movie but later jokes about “Pulp Fiction” for their unpredictable partnership (02:59).
• Larry on starting coaching Andy mid-career:
  "If I could have been together with him to start his career... he would have attained even more in my opinion." (02:17)
• Reminisces about nearly beating Federer at Wimbledon, and the progress Andy made under his coaching.
• Andy reflects on self-awareness and the need to evolve ("I actually can't just go through someone every day..." [04:18]).
• The duo agrees: "We did pretty much all we could possibly do... I don't have any regrets." (06:07)

Memorable quote:

"It takes a confident coach to jump on an anchor, Sean."
— Andy Roddick (06:22)

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2. Defining “Flim Flammer” and “Starch Ball”

[06:51] - [10:01]

• Brooke asks: Please explain “flim flammer” and “starch ball.”
• Andy introduces “Larry-isms”—bizarre at first but make sense later.
• Larry on "flim flammers":
  "They will speak, but not match it up with where they're coming from... Everyone's an expert. But they have nothing, no credential to back it up." (07:48)
• Genuine players do the hard work; “flim flammers” are all talk.
• “Starch ball”: Inside joke about Andy’s hunger (throwing a muffin—“the thing splattered everywhere” [09:02]).
• Larry explains coaching Andy: give one point of focus per practice; too much info is overload.

Notable exchange:

"If you say something, Larry, you better be able to back it up with a couple facts."
— Andy Roddick (09:14)

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3. Coaching Credentials – Can Great Tennis Coaches Be Non-Players?

[10:05] - [13:39]

• David asks: Many top coaches weren't pro players at the same level—how do players trust them?
• Larry is skeptical of “internet coaches,” values lived experience:
  "If you really haven't gone, you're missing a part of the equation." (11:07)
• Recalls learning from Tom Stowe, an old-school coach who profoundly changed his tennis outlook.
• Andy points out some differences: in tennis, former pro experience may matter more than in, say, basketball coaching (Spoelstra as counter-example).
• Both agree: coach-player fit and timing matter; Larry wouldn’t have worked well with an 18-year-old Andy.

Notable quote:

"That was the greatest thing I ever did. Sticking with [Tom]. He taught me an awful lot that I didn't know at that time."
— Larry Stefanki (12:24)

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4. What Players Teach Coaches

[14:36] - [18:46]

• Ophelia asks: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned as a coach from your players?
• Larry emphasizes the “standard of excellence” set by greats like John McEnroe and Marcelo Ríos:
  "Every point matters. Borg had it, Mack had it... it was totally unacceptable to miss that ball." (15:20)
• Tells a story about McEnroe breaking a racket while leading 6-0, 5-0 for missing an easy volley—demands perfection at all times.
• Tells an anecdote about Bjorn Borg pretending not to throw a game even after dominating, illustrating the competitive mindset.

Memorable quote:

"They played every point like their life depended on it... that's how they played the game."
— Larry Stefanki (17:42)

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5. Marcelo Ríos – A “Twisted Mentality” and Raw Talent

[19:00] - [22:49]

• Yernar asks: Describe coaching Marcelo Ríos in one sentence.
• Larry:
  "Born with a gift. Only two players I've ever coached that were born with a gift... and a twisted mentality." (19:21)
  • Ríos loved embarrassing opponents with his game but didn’t love competition or pressure.
  • "That's why he went from one to oblivion so quick, because he had achieved his goal and then literally plummeted." (19:50)
• Andy asks if Ríos actually didn’t care about other’s opinions—Larry suggests insecurity played a big role (20:14).
• Andy shares a story about Ríos being gracious courtside, then giving a brutal press quote the next day—“that’s him in a nutshell” (22:44), illustrating his complex personality.

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NOTABLE QUOTES & MOMENTS

• Larry on coaching Andy mid-career:
  "I think we did pretty much all we could possibly do. Because I jumped in mid career... you were kind of going down... you changed direction." (06:07)
• Roddick’s respect for Brooklyn Decker’s input:
  "I fear two people. Larry Stefanki and Brooklyn Decker." (06:46)
• Defining “flim flammer”:
  "Everyone's an expert. But they have nothing, no credential to back it up. So that's a flim flammer." (07:44)
• On the excellence of past greats:
  "Every point matters... it was totally unacceptable to miss that ball." (15:20)
• On Ríos:
  "He loved to kind of embarrass people with tennis, but he didn't look forward... to the competition." (19:50)

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TIMESTAMPS FOR IMPORTANT SEGMENTS

• [01:30] - Andy/Larry first impressions, experience together
• [06:51] - What’s a “flim flammer” and “starch ball”?
• [10:05] - Can coaches be successful without pro experience?
• [14:36] - What has Larry learned from his players?
• [19:00] - Marcelo Ríos stories and unique talents

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FINAL THOUGHTS

The episode is an insightful, funny, and at times touching exploration of what makes top-level coaching work. Larry Stefanki’s authenticity, old-school standards, and hilarious “Larry-isms” are on full display. Andy Roddick’s honest self-reflection and storytelling bring context and personality, particularly in recounting well-known and behind-the-scenes moments with Ríos, Brooklyn Decker, and others.

Fans get rare, direct definitions of terms like “flim flammer” while also soaking in deep tennis wisdom about standards, self-awareness, and the necessity of matching words with hard-won action.

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For more, watch the full episode on YouTube or follow “Served with Andy Roddick” on social media. This summary skips ads and non-content segments to focus on the tennis gold.

Transcript

[Andy Roddick]

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[Larry Stefanki]

And breathe.

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[Andy Roddick]

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[Larry Stefanki]

All right.

[Andy Roddick]

Hey, everyone. Welcome to this week's Q and Andy episode. Listen, I know at this point you've probably listened to Tuesday's episode with the Larry Stefanke, and we are going to double that shit down. He is here to answer the questions that you sent in. So without further ado, coach, to many of the stars that we have loved for the past 30 years, Larry Stefanki. Sean, what have our listeners sent in?

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

We got a first video question from Mitch from Racket Lifestyle.

[Mitch from Racket Lifestyle (Question asker)]

If you could describe that experience with Andy, how would you describe it? What phrase? What word, maybe what movie would you. Would you call the Larry Andy relationship? And second part is, with some hindsight, going back and if you could do it again, if you will, what would you do differently? What would you add? What would you take away? What were maybe some missing components that you wish you would have done that could have taken Andy across the line in a few more tournaments?

[Commercial Narrator]

Heavy.

[Larry Stefanki]

What movie?

[Andy Roddick]

Forget the movie. Focus on the other stuff.

[Larry Stefanki]

Okay, well, I think Andy answered, okay, first of all, that guy's hairdo, what was that all about? I like that I should get something like that.

[Andy Roddick]

I would do terrible things for that, that mop.

[Larry Stefanki]

Well, if I could have. If he could have been together with him to start his career because he came so much farther over the four and a half years that that has actually been told to me a lot, that I only wish that you. You started with Andy earlier. And I do, too, because of our personalities. What, what, you know, how we gelled together and we're all pretty much on the same page. And that was the easy part of just being. Starting with his career. I think he would have attained even more in My opinion. But jeez. The first part of the question of the movie. Okay, what is that? Pulp Fiction?

[Andy Roddick]

Yeah, yeah. That's obviously.

[Larry Stefanki]

Yeah, yeah. Who knows what would be going on on one side? The other side. No, but no, Andy. And yeah, geez, we did. We accomplished quite a bit. Quite a bit. Okay. And it was just not two points on Wimbledon, by the way. Anyway, one point that way. And I. Okay. Yesterday, believe it or not, I looked at that fact sheet. First time in my life. Okay. In 14 years. I don't know if you remember when we talk about serving. He had 50 aces. You got 27. I know that's the only time in your career you outplayed him. And. And. And that was one that, you know, in sports you got to live with. And that was tough to swallow and stomach and. But it did show how much. And you improved in the confidence that you gained from doing the hard mile, the hard work and not afraid to, like, work on your game to get better. A lot of these kids think, oh, I make a lot of. I don't need to play that much, and blah, blah. And they're not very good. And you weren't one of those guys. I mean, you. You just wanted to be able to be in the arena to make sure that you had a chance to win Slams. And I really appreciated that ride for you. And it's hard to find that chemistry now. They say it, but will they live it?

[Andy Roddick]

Like, just the levels? Like, I went from 1 to 2 to 3 to 5 to 6 to. By the time Larry and I got together, I was 8 and maybe heading the wrong direction. And we got back to three. Some Master Series wins. Miami almost won Wimbledon. So there was a large reset. But also there's the lesson I'll take from it is one, self awareness matters, Right. I understand that. I had had some success on tour, won a bunch of Master Series events, been number one in the world, all this stuff. And also, that's just not where the game was going. And the hard look in the mirror was like, I actually can't just go through someone every day with what my body was allowing me to do. Like when Larry and I got together, he says, I had a good serve, but it was 10 or 15% less than what it was in 03 or 04. You know, the shoulder hurt more when I was trying to clean a forehand flat than it did when I was coming around. So. But like, I don't know, it's one of those things where I does not winning two points when you're like, not the favorite. And by the way, I wasn't given a chance in hell of beating Murray that tournament. That's right.

[Larry Stefanki]

Well, Hewitt, Hewitt, you escaped with a half volley up the line, backhand, you know, in the fifth.

[Andy Roddick]

Walking away. Yeah. And then Burdich before that, too, is like, what a nightmare. Nightmare. Anyways, I don't think we can. Like it was. Any coach understands the work that was done. So what would we change? I can't think of much we would change besides a result, and that's not a change in process. You know, I don't have any regrets about how we went about it or what we did. Maybe. Maybe you think differently, but I don't.

[Larry Stefanki]

I don't.

[Andy Roddick]

I don't look back and say, if we would have changed this. I'm saying, if we wouldn't have changed this, we wouldn't have had a look at the basket.

[Larry Stefanki]

In my opinion, I think we did pretty much all we could possibly do. Mid. Mid. Because I jumped in mid career. Near the end, you were kind of going down, you know, that way, that direction, you know, and. And. But you. You. You cinched up. Changed direction.

[Andy Roddick]

Yeah. Takes, Takes. Takes a. Takes. It takes a confident coach to jump on an anchor, Sean.

[Larry Stefanki]

And luckily, luckily, we. Yeah, luckily, luck. Luckily, we. We had Brooklyn, Okay. Because everything. I'd say, Brooklyn would get it in the back, and I'm saying, oh, my God. Because Brooklyn, she'll tee it up with old Andy, okay? So. And that's why, you know, I love her to death. Because she was not going to. She was. No, back off.

[Andy Roddick]

I fear two people. Larry Stefanke and Brooklyn Decker. Can you. What's the. What's. What's the next question, Sean?

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

All right. Speaking of Brooklyn Decker, we have a question from Brooke.

[Andy Roddick]

Oh, fuck.

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

Please explain the term starch ball and flim.

[Andy Roddick]

Flamingo. Okay, can I set context here? So I need you to define. This is great starch ball. We explained in the big episode, if you haven't heard it, there's a clip up, I'm sure. And. Or just listen to that episode. We already went through the full starch ball and Qatar situation. So Larry has all these, like, we call them Larry isms, where you don't know what the fuck he's talking about. And then a month later, you fully understand what he's talking about, right? So he be like, oh, this guy. This just. Just bear down batting down the hats. This guy's a flim flammer. And that kind of meant that, like, maybe he was not disciplined or maybe he would get tired or maybe so can you once and for all. Just. And it's a term we still use today. Just once a week.

[Larry Stefanki]

We still.

[Andy Roddick]

What is an old. What is a flim flammer, Larry?

[Larry Stefanki]

The flim flammer, okay? Flim flammers, okay, are guy. An individual that. That. That will. Will. Will speak, but not match it up with where they're coming from. So you got to put in the work. And. And so you have to be able to not just say it in words, but you got to match it up in that you've done it before or some sort of. Otherwise it's just words, okay? And it doesn't really mean anything. So I like truth tellers in the sense of, oh, that guy. That guy did the hard model. I don't care if it's, you know, Emerson, you know, Higaris, Andy Roddick, okay? Those guys are not flim flammers, okay? Those guys backed it up with. Not just words, with actions, okay? And that's. That's why I call a lot of guys flim flam. I go to that tennis now, and it's like every other guy's a flim flam, okay? And I don't even know where they come from, okay? I'm thinking, who are these guys? Okay? They're all experts. Everyone's an expert. But they have nothing, no credential to back it up. So that's a flim flammer, okay? And then the other thing is the starch ball. I. Andy forgot to say, when he had that thing in a plastic, he threw it against the wall, okay? He said, you're always blowing all the fun, you know? And he threw it against the wall. The thing splattered everywhere.

[Andy Roddick]

You know how hungry you have to be to throw a muffin when someone tells you you can't have it? You ever thrown food at a. Out of hunger?

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

No. Never.

[Andy Roddick]

No. 3am in Qatar, about to fly to Melbourne.

[Larry Stefanki]

3am yeah, fly to Melbourne with a starch ball in his stomach. Yeah, but the flim flammer, yeah, you need. You need to have. You know. Otherwise, you know, don't say anything. Like Andy says, if you say something, Larry, you better be able to back it up with a couple facts. In the end, just don't say something. And without. And that's what he always says to me. We. We go this and he go. And by the way, Larry, please stop saying so much on the practice. Give me one thing to work on today. Just left leg, left leg on the back left. But don't say left leg back, because my brain doesn't work that way. Okay? I like one thing a day. I said, okay. That took a little while to get, you know, under. Because most people can process a little more than just one thing. But with guys that are at his, it's actually smart, because information overload is no good. Okay. When it comes to. It's a long road. It's a long novel.

[Andy Roddick]

The old flim flammer. What do we got next, Sean?

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

All right, we got a question from David. On the professional circuit, many coaches did not compete at the same level as the players they train. In those cases, how do players come to trust the advice their coaches give?

[Larry Stefanki]

Good question, Sean.

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

It's not for me. It's from David.

[Andy Roddick]

From David. David, David. It's a great question.

[Larry Stefanki]

Great question. I don't know. They read it in a book. Look, on the Internet, I coach these people. I said, so never heard of you, these juniors. He goes, no, no, no. I'm a soccer player, but I learned how to coach on the Internet. I went, what?

[Andy Roddick]

I have a question for you. Just because I know where you're going to stand, you're going to say like, it doesn't exist. And part of me agrees. Is it different specifically for tennis? Because you look at someone like an Eric Spoelstra in the NBA who's probably the best active NBA coach, and he started in the film room with the Miami Heat, and he's coached absolute legends and egos and all of these things. Is it specific to tennis? And if the answer is yes, why?

[Larry Stefanki]

Well, I just think it helps if you've played at any type of level, of a higher level. It really helps in being an expert and knowing what the individual is going through, knowing that you've been there before and experienced that. And this is kind of like, okay, I'm not saying he's a flim flammer. I'm just saying that if you really haven't gone, you're missing. You're missing a part of the equation. Okay. It helps in the sense of your credential as a coach and who you studied under. I was lucky that I had all these great players to learn a lot from, and I asked a lot of questions. But I also had a guy that I learned an awful lot from who coached don Butch in 1938. Yes. When it comes to footwork, fundamentals, taking the ball early and being in control of your destiny. And Tom Stowe was someone that I worked with for, you know, two years after I turned pro, I Actually started at my senior, near the end of my senior year at Berkeley. And I looked back at it now, and it was the greatest thing. I said, who is this guy? This guy's old Bob, blah, blah. But this guy knew. And then JB was the one that hooked me up with him along with my brother. And he. And I didn't. After five weeks with Tom, I said, I'm leaving this guy. This guy's an old hat. He doesn't know. He doesn't know.

[Andy Roddick]

Flim flammer, okay?

[Larry Stefanki]

I flim flammer. And JB Goes, let me tell you something. He calls me and I told him, I think I'm leaving. He goes, no, you're not. I said, what? He goes, let me tell you something. You think you know a lot about tennis. This guy knows more about tennis on one finger than you know about tennis. You're not leaving him. Because I've watched you, okay? And he can really help you, Larry. So you're not leaving him, okay? And John was the one that had. This was. After I left Berkeley, I was already a pro, okay? And I said, okay. That's how much I trusted John. And it was the greatest thing I ever did. Sticking with him, Tom, because he taught me an awful lot that I didn't know at that time. And so that's why when we talk about. You had a question earlier about the coaching another player. I think, you know, if they want to go on the road in the circus, I could really help them and educate them what it's going to take. Andy doesn't believe that that works. I know that, and I don't believe it works 100%. I don't.

[Andy Roddick]

I don't know. Like, I mean, we worked because you didn't want to travel as much, but you also didn't have to babysit me to train when I was.

[Larry Stefanki]

That's right.

[Andy Roddick]

Like so. I don't know that we would have worked when I was 18. Like, Tariq was all over me all the time. Like, so I think. I think different things work at different times. Like, I was at that point. I knew how to work, and I knew I wasn't going to skip because Larry wasn't there. So I think that this episode is

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[Andy Roddick]

That works. Sean, what else we got?

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

All right, we got a question from Ophelia. You were talking about learning from your coach, Tom, but we're going to flip it. So Ophelia asks, looking back, what's the most important lesson a player that you used to coach has taught you about what it means to be a good coach?

[Andy Roddick]

Oh, good. Good question.

[Larry Stefanki]

I ask a lot of questions with, with people that are great. Okay. And like I said earlier with Johnny Mack, when I first started with him, he had really fallen. I mean, just inside 30 in the world. And to get him back, I looked at a lot of films and I, I would bring stuff up and you know, his standard was so high. I know he would just say, I don't miss it, Larry. See this? I hit every ball right here. And that was his standard.

[Andy Roddick]

That's got to be nice.

[Larry Stefanki]

It was. And Rio is the same way. They hit it in the middle of the racket every single time and the ball is ripping. And that was a different generation. Rios from, from Mac. But in 19, when he started coming back, he played Jonathan Stark in Toronto and it's a master series. And he had, you know, won his first round. I think he beat, you know, someone like Woodford or so I don't remember who. Again, he's playing second round against Stark and it's a fellow Stanford guy. He's up 6 051. No, 6 050, Johnny. Against Jonathan Stark. He's just beating the living crap out of him. Okay. And I know, I knew Jonathan and you know, he's just starting as a pro. Yeah, big surf. Yeah, big surf. And so he's just, you know, taking balls like this and coming in on everybody. And Starkey's just totally overwhelmed. And Mack has, I think 15, 30. He comes in with a backhand volley and misses it long and smashes his racket. In a million pieces. Okay. No, in a million pieces. And I'M thinking to myself, oh, my God, this guy, this guy's lost his flipping mind. So after the match, we're in the locker room and I go up to him, I said, hey, Johnny, what was that? He goes, what are you talking about? He go, well, you, you know, it's fellow Stanford guy. I thought maybe, you know, you want to beat him? O and O, okay? He goes, what are you talking about? I said. He said, no, no, no, no, no, no, Larry, you don't understand this. You don't understand, okay? That ball was an easy backhand volley on top of the net. And it's totally how he is, totally unacceptable to miss that ball. And you know why it's unacceptable? Because that could have been at Wimbledon final, okay? And so when you. This carries over that, that's one of the biggest lessons I ever learned of standard of excellence. Every point matters. Borg had it, Mack had it. Certain guys, it was totally unacceptable, okay? And so I played team tennis with Bjorn when he came back when he was 36 for the LA Strings. I was a player coach and we played doubles. I started talking about. I said, hey, hey, hey, Bjorn, do you remember when you played Terry Moore in the quarterfinals of the French opening? Of course I remember. I said. I said, okay, you go into the. You go into the press conference. We're all in the locker room. You beat him. 606061. It's 606050. And all of a sudden you go forehand in the net, backhand in the middle of the net. And then you look, you. You threw that game, didn't you? We got to become really good friends. He goes, no. And he says in the press conference, no, no, no. I dare you say I would lose a point and throw a game. That would never happen. That would never happen. And. And he. When I got to know him 10 years later, 36, he retired at 26. He says, we're at a bar in nowhere, Baltimore, playing team tennis. And he says, I say, I throw the question because, you know, we had a couple drinks, this and that, okay, A couple hundred, okay? And he says, maybe, of course I threw the game. What do you think? You think I missed the backhand in the net or forehand? I never miss in the net. I said, I knew it. We through that game. He didn't want to beat him. Oh, oh. And. Oh, okay. And so you talk about certain individuals and the standard. That was one of the. That was one of the greatest things these guys, they don't. They played every point like it was Their life depended on it. And that's how they played the game. It wasn't like this, you know, this, this thing that they do and, and, and, and you know, they're kissing their arms and you know, when they hit a good shot. Okay, I don't, I don't understand that whole deal or this, you know. More applause, please. I mean, what are you doing? Okay. I like to see, I like to see the actually event unfold as that's my entertainment. Like, when you see Alcaraz, there's certain things he does. You go, holy crap, what is that? This guy's. I mean, unbelievable.

[Andy Roddick]

And then other ones, you go, sean, Sean, Sean, give me. Okay, after you give me more applause. Can you give me another question? We got our last question, the old last one for the All Larry's to thank you.

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

This is a video. This is from our friend Yernar. It's a video question.

[Larry Stefanki]

Hey, Larry. Marcelo Rios is my favorite player in history. Please describe working with him and coaching him in one sentence. Oh, oh, geez.

[Andy Roddick]

Telling. By the way, telling Larry Stefanki to do anything in one sentence is a fucking challenge. I'll just tell you that much right now.

[Larry Stefanki]

Born with a gift. Only two players I've ever played coach that were born with a gift came out of the box to be able to redirect balls and a twisted mentality. You're Kelly. Laughing. But wow. When I got on the court with him, what he could do with the tennis ball, this kid, he, he, he, he didn't like to compete. People don't know that. He was not a competitor. He, he loved to kind of embarrass people with tennis, but he, he didn't look forward. That's why, that's why he went from one to oblivion so quick because he had achieved his goal and then literally plummeted. I've never seen anything like it, but I kind of knew it because he couldn't stay on point.

[Andy Roddick]

Did he actually care what anyone thought about him or was that a front? Like, you get the feeling he's like, oh, fuck, I don't care. I don't give a shit what anyone thinks. Is that real or is that just a cover?

[Larry Stefanki]

I think he was so insecure that it did bother him.

[Commercial Narrator]

He.

[Andy Roddick]

I'll tell you my quick story and tell me if this is like. So you hear all these things about players and like, when you're coming up, you know people's reputations before you actually know who they are, and sometimes you're pleasantly surprised, right? Like, sometimes someone will have you Know, like, Andy Murray's an unbelievable example of someone who was young and had a reputation. He would, like, complain. He'd be demonstrative. I was the same way. Like, I'd break shit. And it was like. But then, like, you. The more you get to know Andy Murray, the more you think of him, right?

[Commercial Narrator]

Like, you.

[1-800-Contacts Customer]

You.

[Larry Stefanki]

You.

[Andy Roddick]

You. You respect the tennis.

[Commercial Narrator]

Like, you.

[Andy Roddick]

When he was 18, I couldn't have told you that he was going to be one of the hardest workers that I've ever seen in this game. Right? So sometimes you're pleasantly surprised. Okay. And you're. You're like, the closer you get, the more you like it. So Rios has this reputation.

[Larry Stefanki]

Funny.

[Andy Roddick]

Hilarious.

[Larry Stefanki]

Hilarious.

[Andy Roddick]

He's the kind of guy where you're gonna get a joke, like, three days later that he told you're like, that's the smartest joke I've ever heard. But I play Rios in 01 in Miami, right? And I'm 130 in the world, and he's seated, you know, 20 or whatever. I play him. Every time I played him, I beat. Beat the pan. Like, I liked playing him. And it was after, you know, whatever. And so you beat Sampras earlier? Yeah, so that was later. That was the next match. So.

[Larry Stefanki]

Okay, the next match.

[Andy Roddick]

So the. So we shake hands, and he stops and he says, hey, really well played today. And I'm like, oh, thank you. Okay. So we go off, and I'm like, okay, that was unexpected based on reputation, right? So I'm like, oh. So I told a couple people later in the day, a couple of my friends who were, like, playing qualys, whatever, and was like. I mean, he was like. He was very nice. Like, he came up, and then he went up to Tariq afterwards and he said something nice, and I was like, oh, that's like, okay, well, listen, the guy's nice to me. You can hear everything you want, but until it's lived experience.

[Commercial Narrator]

And.

[Andy Roddick]

And then I'm at the old bagel shop the next morning, Larry, and there's a front page of the paper. And so it's like, this was a big upset in the Key Biscayne, and it's like the local thing, and I'm on the front. And so I kind of combed through the article as I'm eating the old bacon, egg, and cheese that you wouldn't have liked. And the quotes are like, this kid fucking sucks. He's only a Serb. He's the worst.

[Larry Stefanki]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, the worst. He can't play Tenn.

[Andy Roddick]

I was like, okay, I, I, I,

[Larry Stefanki]

I understand him in a nutshell. Yeah, him in a nutshell right there.

[Andy Roddick]

I under, I understand that. Anyways, Larry, anything else? You got any questions for us, Larry? Like you got anything else?

[Larry Stefanki]

No. Love, love doing this, John. You're the greatest.

[Sean (Host/Interviewer)]

Thank you.

[Larry Stefanki]

No, it's been fun. It's been a lot of fun. I love spending time with old Andrew because we haven't spent much time in the last.

[Andy Roddick]

Geez, we had dinner two years ago. I think it was in. No, we had the dinner a couple years ago in San Diego.

[Larry Stefanki]

That's right. La Costa, that was.

[Andy Roddick]

We're coming out. We're doing an event at Rancho we later in the year. So we'll, we'll, you'll, you'll get, we'll, we'll get the, the old four days together. Anyways, you know. You know what? Yeah, they're coming, so we, you know, I think the world of you. I think tennis needs more of you. I don't like that we don't hear from you very often.

[Larry Stefanki]

Not very often.

[Andy Roddick]

I wish you'll find me out here on my tractor. Yeah, I had to guilt you. I had to guilt you coming into coming on. So I said, no.

[Larry Stefanki]

I said, no, no, no rehashing these stories.

[Andy Roddick]

Hey, Larry, how are you? Can you, can you come on and do this thing since I spent a half hour doing an interview for you last month. He goes, no, you did.

[Larry Stefanki]

Yeah, I knew. It's always reciprocal. That's it. Reciprocation.

[Andy Roddick]

That's it. Anyways, Larry, love you, man. Thanks for your time this week on served and I hope. Hope we get to see each other soon.

[Larry Stefanki]

We will.

[Andy Roddick]

Cheers.

[Larry Stefanki]

Okay, thanks. It's been a lot of fun. All right. Bye. Bye.

[TGL Playoffs Announcer]

Shot clocks. Big shots, upsets, Aces. TGL. Playoffs are here. First Atlanta drives, starts their repeat run against Los Angeles Golf Club. Then Rory's Boston Common Golf and Tigers, Jupiter Lynx face off in their playoff debuts. Who will advance? Keep up. It's playoffs. Tune in Tuesday, March 17th at 6:30pm and 9:00pm only on ESPN and the

[Andy Roddick]

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