Bob McKinley
ITA Hall of Famer Bob McKinley is in his fourth season as an assistant coach for the Texas A&M men's tennis team.
"Coach McKinley is one of the most respected names in the tennis community," Texas A&M head men's tennis coach Steve Denton said. "He is a living legend and is very well known in the state of Texas and across the country. This is a great day for Aggie tennis. I am very excited about Bob joining our team and I couldn't think of a better fit."
McKinley has served as the Director of the John Newcombe Tennis Academy in New Braunfels, Texas since 1995. He served as director of tennis at Dominion Country Club and the McFarlin Tennis Center, both in San Antonio. McKinley served as the head coach at Trinity University from 1974-84. He compiled a record of 219 wins and 57 losses at Trinity reaching the NCAA Finals in 1977 and 1979. He coached one NCAA singles champion as well as an NCAA doubles championship tandem.
"I am so excited about joining the team at Texas A&M," McKinley said. "I know that the players, the facilities, and the support make it one of the top tennis programs in the United States. Working under a coach like Steve Denton will be a real privilege, and I am confident that together we can give the players one of the best coaching tandems in the nation. Having won an NCAA title as a player and being in two NCAA Championship finals as a coach, I feel that I can help our players understand what it takes to get to the very top of collegiate tennis."
Among his coaching honors he was named NCAA Coach of the Year in 1977 and produced 12 All-Americans at Trinity. He has served as the U.S. Coach for the World University Games and was named the Developmental Coach of the Year by the USA Olympic Committee for 2000. He was Coach of the Year for World Team Tennis in 1991 and coached two Orange Bowl champions in 1999 and 2000. He has coached players at Grand Slams from 1996-2001 and was the coach of the Texas Intersectional Team for three years. In 2005, he was named the Touring Coach of the Year by the USPTA.
A St. Louis native, McKinley is a member of three Hall of Fames including the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame, the St. Louis Tennis Hall of Fame and the Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame, he is currently a member of the USTA Youth Competition Committee and a member of the High Performance Coaches Commission in the state of Texas. McKinley is the only current Division I men's tennis coach who is a member of the ITA Tennis Hall of Fame in Athens, Ga.
A 1972 cum laude graduate from Trinity University, McKinley was a four-time All-American and was a team captain for the 1972 NCAA Championship squad. He was the No. 1-ranked Junior Tennis Player in the United States at one time. He reached the Round of 16 at Wimbledon in 1973, reached the doubles semifinals at the U.S. Open in 1972 and was part of the No. 2-ranked men's doubles in the USA in 1972. At the time of his retirement, McKinley was ranked No. 50 in singles on the ATP Tour.
McKinley resides in College Station with his wife of 36 years, Elaine. They are the proud parents of four grown children, Sean (34), Shannon (31), Seth (27) and Stephanie (23).