Paul and Pegula are fine, and Miami’s No. 22 seed would prefer to focus farther out when it comes to the next generation, officially launching his Kids Outdoors Foundation in nearby Hobe Sound.
“We went to a school where they have a program already set up for us, so we were able to go in there and talk to the kids,” Paul said of his philanthropic project with fiancée Paige Lorenze. “They had a little basketball court, so we set up some tennis nets and spent some time with the kids, taught them a little tennis.
“We want to explore options with this place, both there and in North Carolina. Coming from North Carolina, that’s obviously a special place for me. As a tennis player, there’s not a whole lot of us. I know Isner’s there and Patrick Kypson. But where I’m from, eastern North Carolina, it’s kind of dying and there’s where I really want to tap into and lend support out there.”
For as lowkey a character as Paul presents off the court, the increased attention hasn’t overwhelmed him—“I look at it more as an honor”—nor has it changed him. At a time when Alcaraz and Sinner are commanding most of the attention, it would be easy for the other men to blend into the background. But for Tommy Paul, camo is an offensive choice, one that pairs comfort with unique self-expression as he makes his most serious push yet towards the top of the game.
