Best 71 quotes of Pete Sampras on MyQuotes

A champion is suppose to hate to lose, and it wasn't like I was ever crazy about the idea. But I learned to deal with losing without having my spirit or confidence broken, which would help immensely over time, not just in the big picture but even in specific matches when I found myself in a jam. Fear of losing is a terrible thing.

A couple hundred people around, and I'm shaking.

After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove.

Anybody who has played sports and says they have never choked is lying to you.

Baseball is America's pastime, and that record is absolutely huge in the States.

By putting pressure on myself to develop a great game, I had less pressure to win. These days, I tell kids that the way I grew up, it wasn't about winning. It was about playing well, about playing the "right" way. That approach helped me enjoy the game and develop mine to its maximum potential.

Choking is being in a position to win, and then experiencing some critical failure of nerve or spirit. That never happened to me. And I can't help but think it was because I was never afraid to lose.

For so long people have just taken what I do for granted. It is not easy to do year-in, year-out, to win Grand Slams and be No. 1.

Golfers are forever working on mechanics. My tennis swing hasn't changed in 10 years.

I admire the way golfers handle themselves. But tennis players are a lot younger, as a rule. There aren't many teenagers on the golf tour.

I am going to hold serve the majority of the time. It is nice to have a little time to return serve.

I can't just wake up and watch TV and do nothing. I need a day off working out, seeing the wife, play a little golf, see my kids.

I could be a jerk and get a lot more publicity, but that's not who I am.

I did it my way, and I have no regrets when I look back on my career that it was just a big focus for me.

I didn't have a big fat Greek wedding, but I have a lot of fat Greek friends.

I don`t know why, but I love the dog eat dog nature of tennis. It`s real, it`s brutal and there`s no hiding place - it's like a one to one street fight. I love the intensity that comes with knowing you walk off court either a winner or a loser. It`s daunting but very exciting. There is no one to blame except yourself, no one cares who comes second.

I don't look at myself as a historical icon, but the reality of it is, yeah, I am playing for history now.

I don't look so much for tips. But when they interview a Nicklaus or a Palmer, I'm all ears. I listen to guys who have done it, been successful for years.

If Davis Cup was a little bit less or once every two years, I would be more inclined to play. But the way it is now, it is too much tennis for me.

I feel much more respected in Europe than I do in the States from the press and from the people. Americans expect me to win every match I play.

If I win and play well, then the ranking will take care of itself. Defending points is really not a problem. Just go out and play and not worry about it.

I guess I get my strength from my legs, which are also important in tennis.

I hate to lose, and I do whatever I can to win, and if it is ugly, it is ugly.

I let my racket do the talking. That's what I am all about, really. I just go out and win tennis matches.

I loved Wimbledon and what it meant, but the surface felt uncomfortable. I just didn't like it, I was a hard-court guy, a Californian kid.

I made it look so easy on court all those years. No one realized how hard I had to work. No one realized how much I had to put into it. They underestimated my intensity.

I may be a step slower than I was before reaching 30, but I'm doing all the right things. I guess there are some guys who would take it easy in the latter part of their careers, but I'm stepping it up.

I'm enjoying my retirement, enjoying my life. I have two kids and a lot of my time is spent chasing these two animals.

I'm not worried about the weekend, I'm worried about Saturday.

I never wanted to be the great guy or the colorful guy or the interesting guy. I wanted to be the guy who won titles.

In tennis, you can make a couple of mistakes and still win. Not in golf. I played three rounds in that Tahoe event, and I was drained. Mentally, not physically.

In tennis, you can make a couple of mistakes and still win. Not in golf.

I think the image of golfers is terrific, and rightly so.

It is nice to walk out on a court to have it packed.

It's not my place to tell you whom to vote for, to take any political stand, to tell you what religion to believe in. I'm an athlete. I can influence certain things, but when I see other athletes and celebrities telling you whom to vote for, I actually get a bit offended.

It's one-on-one out there, man. There ain't no hiding. I can't pass the ball.

I've always led a pretty simple life, with few extravagances. The money in tennis never drove me.

I've got a great wife, a great life.

I want to end my career on my terms, not on what people think I should do.

Media access to us is more regulated than in golf.

Most of the time after the US Open, it is kind of like you are trying to finish strong. But to do it five years and maybe six is something that has never been done before, so it is a huge challenge.

My goal one day is to be in the same sentence as Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall. If I can match them for 10 years, I'd be in their company. They were class acts. That's what I'd like to be.

My goal one day is to be in the same sentence as Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall.

Once the fifth set comes, it's a matter of nerves.

People know me. I'm not going to produce any cartwheels out there. I'm not going to belong on Comedy Central. I'll always be a tennis player, not a celebrity.

People watched the Masters. It was a huge event. It was at The Garden. Now that it is over here in Europe, it has lost a little bit of popularity in the States.

People wrote me off, but I believed in myself. I got the confidence back, and it grew and grew. I won my first major and my last at the place that changed my life.

Players aren't quite as intimidated by my name.

Retirement is a work in progress. I try to figure out my day, and what I know about myself is that I need structure.

Success is walking out of here with the title, and anything less is not good enough in my book.