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It's circa 1985. I'm an executive in the tennis division of Yamaha International in Buena Park, California. One sunny, Orange County morning, I took a phone call that could have changed my life – and that of Yamaha tennis. The call was from a representative of a southern California junior tennis star playing in the San Diego area. I don't remember the caller's name (it might have been either Joe or Carl), but he was in search of a racquet sponsor for their tennis prodigy. During the mid-80's, Yamaha was trying to make a name for itself in tennis. The company hired me to put its tennis division on the map. When I received this call I thought, "This is my lucky day." I was ecstatic. What better way to get visibility for Yamaha than to sponsor a young, upcoming star? Having lived in San Diego, I had heard and read of this young phenom. At the time, he couldn't have been more than 12 or 13-years-old. Nonetheless, this was a potential coup for Yamaha and me. Of course, I speak of International Tennis Hall of Famer, Michael Chang. The call might have been from either Joe Chang or Carl Chang, his father or brother, respectively.  Yamaha missed the ball with its pass on Michael Chang. Trying to be professional and not portray my extreme enthusiasm, I told the caller that we would consider the sponsorship. I immediately ran into the general manager's office with this great news. Normally, signing a player would be within my power, however, because of Chang's age (younger than 16), I would need the approval of the GM. Remembering this meeting as if it were yesterday, I recall the GM asking, "How old and how big?" When I told him 13, about 5'8" and 130-pounds, he politely laughed and rejected the idea of sponsoring this young, diminutive player. My thumping heart sank. After a brief, failing debate, I immediately knew that I was short-lived for Yamaha. I was right. Within a year my career moved-on. And, needless to say, so did Michael Chang's. A couple of years later, in 1987, one can imagine how much I wanted to be the one making a call to Yamaha – and my former GM. I would have loved gloating when Chang became the youngest player ever to win a match in the U.S. Open. And, in 1989, you should have seen the smile on my face after Chang's singles title at Roland Garros, including his classic comeback win versus #1 seed Ivan Lendl – and, later that year, becoming the youngest man ever to win the French Open, and the first American male to win it in 36-years. Michael Chang has 34 singles titles and was ranked in the Top 10 for seven years, including a high-rank of #2 in the world. His induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame is scheduled for July 12, 2008 in Newport, RI. Congratulations, Michael! And, Yamaha? Well, the company has a great motor division and some argue the best pianos in the world. The tennis division? Oh, what could have been...
Gil Vieira is the President and Publisher of HOFN.com.
He can be reached at
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