Eric Shore, Auburn's all-time winningest men's tennis coach, enters his 19th season on the plains during the 2009-10 season. After posting a 14-11 record in 2009, Shore now holds a 259-208 career record at Auburn for a .554 winning percentage.
Since beginning his Auburn coaching career before the 1991 season, Shore has established Auburn as one of the top programs in the country, averaging nearly 15 wins per season with 15 NCAA Tournament appearances.
Shore became the all-time winningest men's tennis coach in Auburn history on Feb. 5, 2005 as he guided his squad to a victory over Samford to capture win No. 193. Shore passed former head coach Hugh Thomson's 192 career wins as the latter was head coach from 1982-1990.
Since coming to Auburn in 1990, Shore has guided the Tigers to five top-15 finishes and 15 NCAA tournament appearances in the last 16 years, including three Sweet 16 appearances and two top-eight appearances.
Under Shore's guidance, the Tigers have had 14 All-America selections and 21 All-SEC honorees. In addition, 29 Tigers have participated in the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships since Shore came to Auburn.
At the 2005 Wimbledon Championships, former Auburn great and Shore-coached Stephen Huss rewrote history, along with partner Wesley Moodie, by becoming the first qualifiers ever to capture the Gentlemen's Doubles Title. Huss also became the first Auburn tennis player ever to win a Wimbledon title.
Last season, the Tigers clinched tenth-consecutive NCAA Tournament berth and opened the championships with a 4-0 win over South Florida. Auburn fell in the second round to No. 16 Florida State, 4-1. Alexey Tsyrenov and Tim Puetz advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Doubles Tournament, earning All-America honors on the way. The duo finished the season as the No. 6 pair in the ITA rankings, ending the year with a 36-12 record.
The 2002 season proved to be one of many successes as Shore led the doubles team of Andrew Colombo and Mark Kovacs to the NCAA title. The duo went on to earn the honor of ITA Doubles Team of the Year. In the same season, the team advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships for the third time in school history, defeating East Tennessee State, Mississippi State and Washington before falling to #4 UCLA in the quarterfinal round. Shore also led the Tigers to the quarters in 1998, defeating Illinois in the Sweet 16.
In addition to the many honors Shore's athletes have earned, he has also coached 20 players ranked in the final top 50 season rankings, including 13 ranked in the top-25 in singles and doubles.
During his tenure at Auburn, Shore has coached 10 All-Americans, including 2005 Wimbeldon Doubles Champion Stephen Huss.
A native of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Shore graduated from Francis Marion College in Florence, S.C., in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology. While at Francis Marion, Shore finished his playing career ranked 20th nationally in NAIA singles.
Immediately after graduation, Shore was employed as the assistant tennis pro at the Scarsdale Golf Club in Hartsdale, N.Y. After leaving New York, he returned to South Carolina to coach the men's and women's tennis teams at Francis Marion and worked as an assistant pro at the Florence Country Club.
In 1985, Shore took over as assistant coach at the University of South Carolina and was instrumental in helping the Gamecocks achieve a top-five national ranking in 1989. While at South Carolina, he earned a master's degree in physical education in 1990. Shore also served as coordinator of the United States Tennis Association Boys' National Intersectional Team Championships.
Shore and his wife, Ann, have two daughters, Brooke (14) and Francie (8).