Joel Drucker: Writer-at-large

Oakland-based Joel Drucker is one of the world’s leading tennis journalists. He covers an unusually broad range of topics – from breaking news and player profiles to investigative issues, humor, recreational players, equipment, instruction, strategy and history. Over the last 20 years, his stories have appeared in virtually every American tennis publication, including Tennis Magazine, USTA Magazine, Tennis Week, Tennis Champions Magazine, TennisONE, World Tennis and many others.  He served as the technical editor for Patrick McEnroe’s book, “Tennis For Dummies.”

Drucker has collaborated on stories with many tennis notables, including Pam Shriver, Jim Courier, Brad Gilbert, Mary Carillo, Fred Stolle, John Newcombe, Todd Martin and Cliff Drysdale.

His stories have also appeared in such general interest publications as Cigar Aficionado, Men’s Journal, Diversion, Northwest Traveler and the San Diego  Reader. “The Tale of the Brown Indian and The Stupid Sissy Sport,” a profile of the legendary Pancho Segura, was cited in the annual anthology, Best American Sportswriting, as a notable story of 1995. In 1999, Tennis Week honored Drucker as “Writer of the Year.”

He has worked extensively in television for The Tennis Channel (a new cable channel debuting later in 2002), HBO, TNT, CBS and others as a writer, assignment editor and on-air analyst. 

Drucker graduated magna cum laude from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in history.