Goldstein was named head coach of the Stanford men’s team (Credit: Stanford Athletics)
STANFORD, Calif.- Former Cardinal standout Paul Goldstein has been named Stanford’s men’s tennis head coach, as announced today by Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics Bernard Muir.
Goldstein becomes the 10th head coach in school history, following a successful 10-year stint by John Whitlinger, who announced his retirement on May 29 after guiding Stanford to a 160-85 overall record and nine NCAA Tournament appearances.
“I am humbled, honored, but most of all inspired by the opportunity to lead a program with such a strong intergenerational legacy of athletic and academic excellence,” said Goldstein. “I have been a proud member of the Stanford tennis family since I first arrived on campus in 1994 and am thrilled to be returning to The Farm. I look forward to working with our student-athletes and the broader Stanford community to drive success both on and off the court.”
“Paul has enjoyed success at every level of his career and his noticeable passion for our men’s tennis program makes him a great fit to be our next head coach,” said Muir. “Paul’s infectious enthusiasm and ability to cultivate and sustain positive relationships stood out as dynamic qualities during the search process, which attracted both national and international candidates. Throughout the search, Paul’s name continued to rise above an extremely deep, talented and distinguished pool.”
A native of Rockville, Md., Goldstein has made an impact throughout his playing career. A 1994 graduate of Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C., Goldstein was ranked among the top-10 juniors in the world and made USTA history by becoming the first player to capture three consecutive national championships (Boys’ 16 in 1992, Boys’ 18 in 1993, Boys’ 18 in 1994) in Kalamazoo, Mich.
Goldstein then enjoyed a stellar collegiate career from 1995-98, leading the Cardinal to a 104-6 overall record while becoming the first player in NCAA history to compete as a starting member of four consecutive national championship teams. Goldstein was honored as an All-American in each of his four years.
Goldstein capped his career with a Pac-10 Player of the Year honor in 1998 after winning 33 of his 35 overall matches. A team captain during his senior campaign, Goldstein and his teammates surrendered just three individual points the entire season while going undefeated and winning the NCAA title. Goldstein finished his career with 84 dual match victories, ranking fifth overall in program history.
The first-ever two-time recipient of the ITA’s Arthur Ashe, Jr. Sportsmanship and Leadership Award (1997, 1998), Goldstein was also recognized as the ITA’s Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award recipient in 1997. Goldstein was inducted into the ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in May 2013 and currently serves on the ITA Hall of Fame Committee.
Goldstein received his B.A. in human biology from Stanford in 1998 before embarking on an impressive 10-year professional career. After moving into the world’s top-200 in less than one year on the professional circuit, Goldstein’s ATP world rankings eventually reached as high as No. 58 in singles and No. 40 in doubles. A US Open doubles semifinalist in 2005, Goldstein also boasts career singles wins over current world No. 2 Novak Djokovic, James Blake, Mardy Fish, Lleyton Hewitt and Patrick Rafter. Goldstein was the highest ranked player in the world with a college degree for the majority of his professional career.
During his tenure as a professional athlete, Goldstein was elected by his peers to serve on the 10-member ATP Player Council for a two-year term, representing the interests of 1000+ professional tennis players while acting as a liaison between the ATP Board of Directors and senior management.
Since 2008, Goldstein has served in sales and business development roles at Bloom Energy, a Silicon Valley-based clean energy fuel cell company.
“It has been my distinct privilege to have had the opportunity to work alongside such a talented, passionate and resilient group of people,” said Goldstein. “The team at Bloom demonstrates its commitment to changing the world for the better through hard work, creativity and perseverance every day. I have been inspired to be associated with such a tremendous organization.”
Goldstein has remained active on both a local and national level within the tennis community, serving as a USTA Nominating Committee member and member of the ITA Steering Committee on Dual Match formats while also coaching aspiring juniors in the Bay Area.
Goldstein is familiar with the current collegiate landscape, having served as a Pac-12 Networks color analyst for the previous two seasons during dual meet and conference championship competition.
Goldstein resides in San Francisco with his wife and fellow Stanford alum, Abbie, and their three children: Sadie (7), Maggie (5) and Charlie (18 months).
