Eric Butorac

Eric Butorac’s collegiate tennis career didn’t begin at Gustavus Adolphus, but that’s where it took off. Butorac began college in 2000 at Division I Ball State in Muncie, Ind., before the Minnesota native realized he was better off closer to home, at D-III Gustavus Adolphus in St. Paul, Minn. In 2003, Butorac won the D-III NCAA singles and doubles (with Kevin Whipple) championships. Butorac, who reached the NCAA singles final in 2001, was a five-time All-American for the Golden Gusties and in 2018 he was inducted into the Gustavus Adolphus Hall of Fame. He helped lead Gustavus Adolphus to the 2001 ITA Indoor championship and later that year was named the Gustavus Adolphus Male Athlete of the Year. Butorac never lost a MIAC conference singles or doubles match in his career and finished his time with the Gusties with an overall record of 77-16 in singles and 70-13 in doubles. In his three seasons at Gustavus, the Gusties won three conference championships, placed fourth once and third twice at the NCAAs. He received the ITA Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award in 2003. After a 13-year pro career that included 18 ATP doubles titles and reaching the finals of the Australian Open doubles in 2014, as well as serving as the ATP Tour Player Council’s president from 2014-16, Butorac stayed in tennis on the operations side. He spent a year as the Western & Southern Open tournament director, and since 2016 he has been the U.S. Open’s Director of Pro Tennis Operations and Player Relations.