Being in the spotlight is part of being a professional athlete.
As someone who's played professional tennis since 1994, Mark Philippoussis is all too familiar with that credo.
"It's one of those things you have to accept, because being an athlete in the public eye, you just have to understand it comes with the territory," he said. "It's just there."
A tennis pro like Philippoussis, now 33, would like to be known for reaching his first Grand Slam final in 1998, or for giving Australia its 27th Davis Cup victory in 1999, or for making a comeback in 2003 after three knee operations and beating Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero to secure another Davis Cup title.
But these days, more people may recognize him for his brief tenure on the NBC reality show Age of Love in 2007.
"If you asked me if I'd do it again," Philippoussis said with a laugh, "absolutely no."
The show starred the tennis star in a Bachelor-type setting, in which a group of women ranging from 20 years old (the "kittens") to over 40 years old (the "cougars") competed for his affection.
"I was training and I had surgery, and I couldn't really play at the time," Philippoussis said. "I really had no idea what it was about. I just did it — it was just one of those things that was a fun experience. I couldn't do any training because of my knee surgery, so it was just the right time to do something like that.
"It's another experience, I think, to add to my life. Something to tell the kids never to do."
Now, Philippoussis is focused on the tennis again — which brings him to Boston this week.
Philippoussis will join tennis legends such as John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg in the Staples Champions Cup at Boston University's Agganis Arena from Thursday, April 29, through Sunday, May 2. The Champions Cup features a single-elimination tournament format, and Philippoussis is slated to face 1992 Olympic silver medalist Wayne Ferreira in the first round.
It's the perfect situation, in Philippoussis' eyes: A lot of fun and not a lot of pressure, but just enough to spark the necessary competitive edge.
"It's something I was happy to be invited along to," Philippoussis said. "It's going to be a great weekend, and it’s an amazing group of players.
"I love getting on the court. I'm loving my training and hitting the ball, and I'm looking forward to getting on the court with these guys and having fun."
The tournament features an exciting field of eight tennis greats, but among them, Philippoussis is most excited about the opportunity to play alongside — perhaps even against — six-time French Open champion and five-time Wimbledon champion Borg.
"When I was a kid, I used to watch these guys on TV," he said. "I've watched [Borg] play, and the great thing about [this tournament] is that it’s pretty laid-back and it's a lot of fun. … It's going to be exciting, and it's definitely something I'm looking forward to."
Just because Philippoussis expects the tournament to be fun and laid-back, don't expect his focus to stray from the primary task: competing.
"Number one, I want to go out there and enjoy myself," he said. "But absolutely, I'm coming in competitive. I'm a competitive person, and for me, my goal is just to keep working on strengthening my body and working on the game."
Though the game of tennis has changed considerably since Philippoussis stormed the scene as a teenager in 1994, as time has progressed, he has been able to adjust his strategies and mechanics to fit the new mold.
"The game has gotten a lot more physical," he said. "When I first got on the tour, everything was so quick — the balls, the court — it was just a different game. Now courts are slower, balls are slower. … The game has literally become a lot more physical because of that."
Above all, Philippoussis feels fortunate to still be a part of the game he loves, the game he dreamed of starring in when he started training with his dad at the age of 6. And though learning to deal with the intense media scrutiny that accompanied his tennis career was a challenge that could have rivaled any Davis Cup match, it was a challenge he learned to cope with over time.
"At the start [of my career], I took everything personally, and I was so angry [about negative media attention]," Philippoussis said. "Honestly, 80 percent of [what people said] was untrue, so as a younger person, you think, 'Why?' You have so much anger, but as far as living life and understanding it, unfortunately, you can never control it.
"You have to live your life, but at the same time, you have to understand that your life is under the microscope, and the things you do will be under the microscope."
Now, more than ever, life as a professional athlete comes with a fine-print agreement that ties you to a life of scrutiny. As far as Philippoussis is concerned, though, it's worth it.
"It's just about appreciating the important things in life," Philippoussis said. "It's about appreciating how lucky I am as a person who's made his dreams come true of being a professional tennis player.
"It's so easy to take things for granted. … Most importantly, I just want to keep enjoying what I'm doing."
Tickets for the Champions Cup are available by logging on to ChampionsSeriesTennis.com, or by calling Ticketmaster at 617-931-2000.
