Tennis phenom Robert Yim will not be coming to UCLA after all;
instead, he will pursue a professional tennis career.
After signing Yim, the No. 1-ranked junior player in the
country, to a national letter of intent, everything was in place
for him to start at UCLA in the fall.
He continued to play in national tournaments, however, and his
results continued to improve.
Yim won three matches and qualified for the Mercedes-Benz Cup,
an Association of Tennis Professionals event held at UCLA from July
28 to Aug. 3.
He lost in the main draw to the eventual champion Wayne
Ferreira, 6-4, 6-4.
Following such a solid showing against the No. 20 player in the
world, Yim entered the Boys’ 18s Super National Harcourt
Championships in Kalamazoo, Mich. with a lot of confidence.
He beat Jamil Al-Agba, who has signed with USC, 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 in
the final.
For his win at Kalamazoo, Yim received a main draw wildcard into
the U.S. Open. He plays Todd Martin in the first round Aug. 25.
Even if he loses, Yim will receive $12,500 just for
participating in the U.S. Open. A second-round loss yields
$23,000.
Yim informed UCLA head coach Billy Martin about his intentions
to pursue a professional career Aug. 17.
“It’s a huge disappointment to us,” Martin
said. “He would’ve been an integral part of our team
next year.
“It just came as a big shock. We invested a full
scholarship on him, and to find out this late is really tough on
recruiting.”
The Bruins will attempt to find a replacement for Yim, but most
high caliber players have signed letters of intent elsewhere.
If Yim were to keep his amateur status, he could only receive
money to cover travel expenses.