Murphy Jensen
{{short description|American tennis player}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox tennis biography
| name = Murphy Jensen
| image = Murphy Jensen.jpg
| caption = Jensen in 2009
| country = {{USA}}
| residence =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1968|10|30}}
| birth_place = Ludington, Michigan, United States
| height = 6 ft 4 in
| college = University of Southern California
University of Georgia
| turnedpro = 1991
| retired = 2006
| plays = Left-handed (one-handed backhand)
| careerprizemoney = $681,817
| singlesrecord = 0–5
| singlestitles = 0
0 Challenger, 0 Futures
| highestsinglesranking = No. 586 (11 January 1993)
| AustralianOpenresult = Q2 (1992)
| FrenchOpenresult =
| Wimbledonresult =
| USOpenresult =
| doublesrecord = 125–179
| doublestitles = 4
3 Challenger, 0 Futures
| highestdoublesranking = No. 17 (18 October 1993)
| AustralianOpenDoublesresult = 2R (1993, 1994, 1995)
| FrenchOpenDoublesresult = W (1993)
| WimbledonDoublesresult = 2R (1993)
| USOpenDoublesresult = 3R (1994, 1995, 1998)
| Mixed = yes
| AustralianOpenMixedresult = 1R (1994, 1996)
| FrenchOpenMixedresult = SF (1993)
| WimbledonMixedresult = 2R (1995)
| USOpenMixedresult = QF (1994)
}}
Murphy Jensen (born October 30, 1968) is an American former professional tennis player and Grand Slam doubles champion. He is the younger brother of former professional tennis player Luke Jensen, with whom he teamed to win the 1993 French Open Doubles title.{{cite web |title=U.S. Doubles Brothers Win French Title |date=June 6, 1993 |website=Los Angeles Times |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151103053926/https://articles.latimes.com/1993-06-06/sports/sp-242_1_french-open-doubles-title |archive-date=November 3, 2015 |url-status=live |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-06-sp-242-story.html}}
He is the co-founder of WEconnect, a healthcare information technology company with a platform designed to aid addiction recovery, and currently the head coach of the Washington Kastles of World TeamTennis.
Early life
Murphy Jensen grew up on a Christmas-tree farm in the summer resort town of Ludington in western Michigan. He is of Danish descent.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kq98XmrR8Vc Murphy Jensen interview] He first saw a tennis net being used to corral salmon along the Pere Marquette River as a boy.[http://www.tennis.com/progame/2017/10/murphy-jensen-brothers-heroes-tennis-channel-2017/69918/?fb_comment_id=1731027220264047_1752673501432752. Only when Murphy Jensen hit rock bottom did he find what he needed] His father (who tried out with the New York Giants as an offensive guard{{Cite web|url=https://www.shorelinemedia.net/ludington_daily_news/archives/ludington-s-howard-jensen-will-be-missed/article_f827fe31-f9da-59d5-96b5-0e6b197334eb.html|title = Ludington's Howard Jensen will be missed}} and then became a high school tennis coach) Howard Jensen, taught Murphy and brother Luke to play tennis before they were 5 years old.
=Collegiate tennis career=
Jensen and his brother Luke both attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California.[http://usctrojans.cstv.com/sports/m-tennis/archive/usc-m-tennis-protour.html USC Men's Tennis -- On The Pro Tour] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080822011908/http://usctrojans.cstv.com/sports/m-tennis/archive/usc-m-tennis-protour.html |date=August 22, 2008 }}, USCTrojans.com, Accessed July 8, 2008. After two years playing for the USC Trojans, Murphy transferred to the University of Georgia for one year and then turned professional to pursue a career in tennis and to join his brother Luke on the ATP Tour.
Business ownership and activism
After winning the 1993 French Open with Luke, the Jensen brothers became a center-court attraction.{{cite web |title=Luke and Murphy Jensen: Double Trouble |date=September 16, 1993 |website=Rolling Stone |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621070338/https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/double-trouble-19930916 |archive-date=June 21, 2018 |url-status=live |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/double-trouble-19930916}} Murphy turned to drugs and alcohol to cope with the stress of his new-found success and celebrity status. In 1995, he missed a mixed-doubles match at Wimbledon with Brenda Schultz-McCarthy and his family feared he had been kidnapped.{{Cite web | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-07-05-sp-20321-story.html | title=Jensen Mystery Partially Solved : Wimbledon: Player calls to say he is safe, but remains in hiding for unexplained reasons | website=Los Angeles Times | date=July 5, 1995 }} During this period of his life Murphy partnered with the very popular Jimmy Buffett to open a Bait Shack in Key West.
After losing in the first round of the 1999 US Open, feeling the pressure of work and family responsibilities (his son, William, was born a few weeks after the tournament), Jensen found himself in the throes of addiction. A hotel manager noticed Jensen's apparent crisis and contacted an interventionist, who asked Jensen to consider treatment for addiction recovery. Jensen agreed, and has since been in recovery from alcohol and drug addiction.
In 2014, Jensen met serial entrepreneur Daniella Tudor, also in treatment for addiction recovery. After leaving recovery, the two worked together towards improving addiction recovery awareness. In 2016, Jensen, Tudor, and business owner Jen Mallory co-founded [https://www.weconnectrecovery.com/ WEconnect], a web application platform designed to assist patients with addiction recovery after treatment. Described as a "social-purpose corporation", WEconnect's business platform is centered around providing "accountability for an individual's recovery activities by closing the gap in communication with their support network." In June 2016, WEconnect won the TechCrunch Seattle Meet-Up, and was then chosen as the wildcard battlefield startup at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco in September later that year.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/13/weconnect-is-an-app-to-support-addiction-recovery/|title=WeConnect is an app to support addiction recovery}}
Personal life
Jensen has a son William (born 1999[http://www.nndb.com/people/983/000025908/ Robin Givens][http://www.twoop.com/people/robin_givens.html Robin Givens Timeline and Biography]) with actress Robin Givens, whom he dated periodically during the late 1990s.
Jensen has been open about his addiction and the factors that led to his recovery.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kq98XmrR8Vc&t=42s|title = HEROES- Murphy Jensen|website = YouTube}} He has been in long-term recovery and sober since June 1, 2006, and he cites his close relationships with recovery mentors as one of the key factors in preventing relapse.{{Cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/technology/weconnects-app-helps-addicts-navigate-the-journey-to-recovery/|title=WeConnect's app helps addicts navigate the journey to recovery|date=July 5, 2017}}
ATP career finals
=Doubles: 11 (4 titles, 7 runner-ups)=
| valign=top
| {|class=wikitable style=font-size:97% !Legend |
| style="background:#f3e6d7;"
|Grand Slam Tournaments (1–0) |
| style="background:#ffc;"
|ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) |
| style="background:#e9e9e9;"
|ATP Masters Series (0–0) |
| style="background:#d4f1c5;"
|ATP Championship Series (1–1) |
| ATP World Series (2–6) |
|
| class=wikitable style=font-size:97%
!Finals by surface |
| Hard (2–1) |
| Clay (1–5) |
| Grass (1–0) |
| Carpet (0–1) |
|
| class=wikitable style=font-size:97%
!Finals by setting |
| Outdoors (4–6) |
| Indoors (0–1) |
|}
| class="sortable wikitable"
!Result !class="unsortable"|W–L !Date !Tournament !Tier !Surface !Partner !Opponents !class="unsortable"|Score |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|0–1 |Sydney, Australia |World Series |Hard |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|AUS}} Sandon Stolle |3–6, 4–6 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|0–2 |Bologna, Italy |World Series |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|RSA}} Danie Visser |6–4, 4–6, 4–6 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|1–2 |1993 French Open – Men's doubles |style="background:#f3e6d7;"|Paris, France |style="background:#f3e6d7;"|Grand Slam |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|GER}} Marc-Kevin Goellner |6–4, 6–7, 6–4 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|1–3 |style="background:#d4f1c5;"|Tokyo, Japan |style="background:#d4f1c5;"|Championship Series |Carpet |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|CAN}} Grant Connell |3–6, 4–6 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|1–4 |Mexico City, Mexico |World Series |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|USA}} Francisco Montana |3–6, 4–6 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|1–5 |Bogota, Colombia |World Series |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|BAH}} Mark Knowles |4–6, 6–7 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|2–5 |1995 Nottingham Open – Doubles |Nottingham, United Kingdom |World Series |Grass |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|RSA}} Danie Visser |6–3, 5–7, 6–4 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|3–5 |1996 Genovese Hamlet Cup – Doubles |Long Island, United States |World Series |Hard |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|GER}} Hendrik Dreekmann |6–3, 7–6 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|3–6 |1997 International Tennis Championships – Doubles |Coral Springs, United States |World Series |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|USA}} Dave Randall |7–6(7–2), 2–6, 6–7(2–7) |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|3–7 |Hypo Group Tennis International |St. Pölten, Austria |World Series |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|USA}} Kelly Jones |2–6, 6–7 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|4–7 |1997 Legg Mason Tennis Classic – Doubles |style="background:#d4f1c5;"|Washington, United States |style="background:#d4f1c5;"|Championship Series |Hard |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|RSA}} Neville Godwin |6–4, 6–4 |
ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals
=Doubles: 5 (3–2)=
| valign=top
| {|class=wikitable style=font-size:97% !Legend |
| bgcolor=moccasin
|ATP Challenger (3–2) |
| bgcolor=cffcff
|ITF Futures (0–0) |
|
| class=wikitable style=font-size:97%
!Finals by surface |
| Hard (1–1) |
| Clay (2–1) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
|}
| class="sortable wikitable"
!Result !class="unsortable"|W–L !Date !Tournament !Tier !Surface !Partner !Opponents !class="unsortable"|Score |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|1–0 |{{dts|Aug 1991}} |style="background:moccasin;"|Salou, Spain |style="background:moccasin;"|Challenger |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Francisco Montana |{{flagicon|AUS}} Wayne Arthurs |5–7, 6–2, 7–5 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|2–0 |{{dts|Dec 1991}} |style="background:moccasin;"|Hong Kong, Hong Kong |style="background:moccasin;"|Challenger |Hard |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|USA}} Mike Briggs |walkover |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|2–1 |{{dts|Mar 1992}} |style="background:moccasin;"|Zaragoza, Spain |style="background:moccasin;"|Challenger |Hard |{{flagicon|CZE}} Martin Damm |{{flagicon|RSA}} David Adams |2–6, 6–1, 4–6 |
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss
|2–2 |{{dts|Jun 1992}} |style="background:moccasin;"|Cologne, Germany |style="background:moccasin;"|Challenger |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Brian Devening |{{flagicon|GER}} Marc-Kevin Goellner |4–6, 7–6, 1–6 |
| style="background:#98fb98;"|Win
|3–2 |{{dts|Apr 1997}} |style="background:moccasin;"|Birmingham, United States |style="background:moccasin;"|Challenger |Clay |{{flagicon|USA}} Luke Jensen |{{flagicon|SWE}} Fredrik Bergh |6–2, 7–6 |
Performance timelines
{{Performance key|short=yes|active=no}}
=Doubles=
| class=wikitable style=text-align:center;font-size:97%
!Tournament!!1991!!1992!!1993!!1994!!1995!!1996!!1997!!1998!!1999!!2000!!2001!!2002!!SR!!W–L!!Win % |
| colspan=23 align=left|Grand Slam tournaments |
| align=left|Australian Open
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A !0 / 6 !3–6 !{{tennis win percentage|won=3|lost=6|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|French Open
|A |A |bgcolor=lime|W |bgcolor=afeeee|3R |bgcolor=ffebcd|QF |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|3R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A |A !1 / 6 !13–5 !{{tennis win percentage|won=13|lost=5|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Wimbledon
|bgcolor=ecf2ff|Q1 |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A |A !0 / 6 !1–6 !{{tennis win percentage|won=1|lost=6|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|US Open
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|3R |bgcolor=afeeee|3R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|3R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A !0 / 7 !7–7 !{{tennis win percentage|won=7|lost=7|integer=yes}} |
| style=text-align:left|Win–loss
!0–0 !0–0 !9–3 !5–4 !6–4 !0–4 !2–4 !2–3 !0–1 !0–1 !0–0 !0–0 !1 / 25 !24–24 !{{tennis win percentage|won=24|lost=24|integer=yes}} |
|---|
| colspan=22 align=left|Year-end Championships |
| align=left|ATP Finals
|colspan=2 style=color:#cccccc|DNQ |style=background:#afeeee|RR |colspan=9 style=color:#cccccc|Did not qualify !0 / 1 !0–3 !{{tennis win percentage|won=0|lost=3|integer=yes}} |
| colspan=23 align=left|ATP Masters Series |
| align=left|Indian Wells
|A |A |bgcolor=ecf2ff|Q2 |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=yellow|SF |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |bgcolor=ecf2ff|Q1 |A |A !0 / 5 !5–5 !{{tennis win percentage|won=5|lost=5|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Miami
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A !0 / 7 !1–7 !{{tennis win percentage|won=1|lost=7|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Monte Carlo
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A |A |A |A |A !0 / 3 !1–3 !{{tennis win percentage|won=1|lost=3|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Hamburg
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A |A |A |A |A |A |A !0 / 1 !0–1 !{{tennis win percentage|won=0|lost=1|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Rome
|A |A |bgcolor=yellow|SF |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |A |A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |A |A |A |A !0 / 3 !5–3 !{{tennis win percentage|won=5|lost=3|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Canada
|A |A |A |A |A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |A |A !0 / 2 !0–2 !{{tennis win percentage|won=0|lost=2|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Cincinnati
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R !0 / 8 !3–8 !{{tennis win percentage|won=3|lost=8|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Paris
|A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |A |A |A |A |A |A |A |A |A !0 / 1 !0–1 !{{tennis win percentage|won=0|lost=1|integer=yes}} |
| style=text-align:left|Win–loss
!0–0 !0–0 !4–6 !3–5 !3–4 !1–3 !2–4 !2–5 !0–0 !0–1 !0–1 !0–1 !0 / 30 !15–30 !{{tennis win percentage|won=15|lost=30|integer=yes}} |
=Mixed doubles=
| class=wikitable style=text-align:center;font-size:97% |
| colspan=23 align=left|Grand Slam tournaments |
| align=left|Australian Open
|A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A !0 / 2 !0–2 !{{tennis win percentage|won=0|lost=2|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|French Open
|bgcolor=yellow|SF |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |A !0 / 4 !4–4 !{{tennis win percentage|won=4|lost=4|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|Wimbledon
|bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|1R |bgcolor=afeeee|2R |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R !0 / 4 !1–4 !{{tennis win percentage|won=1|lost=4|integer=yes}} |
| align=left|US Open
|bgcolor=afeeee|2R |bgcolor=ffebcd|QF |A |A |bgcolor=afeeee|1R !0 / 3 !3–3 !{{tennis win percentage|won=3|lost=3|integer=yes}} |
| style=text-align:left|Win–loss
!5–3 !2–4 !1–2 !0–2 !0–2 !0 / 13 !8–13 !{{tennis win percentage|won=8|lost=13|integer=yes}} |
|---|
Film and television career
Since retiring from the game, Jensen has acted in bit parts in films such as Wimbledon and more recently Tennis, Anyone. He currently hosts several programs on the Tennis Channel, including Open Access and Murphy's Guide.
On Open Access Jensen reports on high-profile tennis events around the world and interviews participating players about their lives and careers.
Each episode of the more comedic Murphy's Guide is a guide for tourists to a particular city where a major tennis tournament is taking place, such as Paris, London, New York, Melbourne etc. At least one major player appears at some point in the episode, and there is usually a brief segment about where enthusiasts of the game can play when in town, but the show's content mainly features Jensen attempting to navigate the city's sights, trying exotic food, and interacting with locals in his unique style. Through his experiences and misadventures, however, specific travel information about local hotels, restaurants, and attractions is conveyed, often with the help of animated maps and graphics. Many episodes also feature a scripted opening sequence, such as Jensen being made to walk the plank by the pirates of Treasure Island in Las Vegas, being psychoanalyzed by Sigmund Freud in Vienna, and impersonating James Bond and Crocodile Dundee in London and Melbourne, respectively.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20191002032219/http://www.murphyjensen.com/ Official website].
- {{ATP}}
- {{ITF}}
- {{IMDb name|id=1654935|name=Murphy Jensen}}
{{French Open men's doubles champions}}
{{2014 Washington Kastles}}
{{2015 Washington Kastles}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Murphy}}
Category:American male film actors
Category:American male tennis players
Category:American male television actors
Category:French Open champions
Category:Tennis players from Atlanta
Category:People from Hollywood, Los Angeles
Category:People from Ludington, Michigan
Category:Tennis players from Georgia (U.S. state)
Category:Tennis players from Michigan
Category:USC Trojans men's tennis players