Online Reporter
“I know you are very excited about Coco playing in the US Open. Me too!!!
“Coco’s guest ticket requests have already been accounted for.
“Unfortunately, I will not be able to hook you up with a ticket GAUFF has complained about the fair-weathered friends and freeloaders who stress out her parents by requesting free tickets for top tennis tournaments.
After Gauff beat fellow American Jessica Pegula 6-2 6-4 to win the Cincinnati Open, mum Candi surprisingly went on a social media rant about those who ask for freebies.
In an Instagram post —which Gauff did not know was coming —Candi wrote: “Dear Family and friends, I apologise in advance.
“Please make arrangements to purchase a ticket. Side note, never ask for more than two tickets.
“Coco is grown now and she has her own friends that she is honouring tickets for the match. Thank you for your continued support.”
It is not known which specific friends or family were being referred to in the post published on Thursday. The message gained huge traction online and Gauff, 22, endorsed the sentiment behind it, saying that those requesting passes had “stressed my mum and dad”.
The 2023 US Open winner added: “No, I cannot accommodate you and your plus six entourage two hours before my match.”
Gauff is one of the wealthiest women in world sport, having banked $35million in prize money, and lifted two Slams, including the 2025 French Open. The Florida-born ace talked about the subject in her pre-US Open press conference at Flushing Meadows.
The world No.4 — who plays Turkish ace Zeynep Sonmez in round one — said: “For starters, I did not know she was posting that.
“I saw the Cincinnati picture before I went to practice and I saw a long caption.
“I’m like, ‘Oh, this is probably something sweet, I’ll read it after practice’, because I was on the way onto court. Then I saw somebody on Threads say: ‘Oh, Mama Gauff is strict.’ I was like:
‘What’s going on?’
“Then I saw this post, and I’m like, ‘Oh, my goodness’. But honestly, it was needed, and it was directed towards a few family and friends.
“To be honest, people come out of the woodwork. You haven’t spoken to someone for years.
“They don’t say congrats or Happy Birthday or anything. Then they’re like, ‘Oh, I’m in New York, can I have eight tickets to your match in your box, please?’
“They give us tickets here, but they’re selling an event so it’s not like I can give all these people tickets.
“Last year they were really stressed out between my mum and my dad trying to accommodate everyone. If we have it, we’ll give it. But it was just I think stressful for them.
“A lot of people personally don’t have my number, so they don’t reach out to me. They’ll reach out to them or someone on my team.
“I don’t know who the person who sent her a text this year where she felt that was like the final straw.
“But somebody must have sent her something, and she was just, I need to make a post.
“Specifically in New York, it’s just crazy. New York and Wimbledon are the ones that I think people want to come to.
“And we try our best to accommodate everyone.
“But some of the requests, you would be surprised at how absurd they are.” — Sun.
