Buying Stock in Peyton Stearns
Peyton Stearns has come to win…now.
For those who don’t know who Peyton Stearns is, here’s your introduction. For those who do and are fans, enjoy me gassing her up here.
Quick Background
Peyton Stearns turned pro last year after two of the most historic years a tennis player can have in college tennis. Coming out of Cincinnati, Ohio, Peyton was the best recruit in the country when she went to Austin to play for Howard Joffe and Taylor Fogleman at the University of Texas in the fall of 2020. At that time, she was already top 500 in the world. Peyton had large shoes to fill and high expectations placed upon her (many of which are self-imposed) coming into a program with a history of All-Americans and almost certainly being asked to replace the former #1 ranked player who had just left Texas to turn pro.
I’ve been around Texas tennis for a long time (maybe too long for a lot of people’s liking), and people very matter-of-factly thought that she was going to be an all-timer at Texas. The tone wasn’t even really optimism and hope, it was almost unemotionally observational, like “uh yeah… that’s the best player I’ve seen in a while.” For basically any recruit, that expectation is unfair. Peyton somehow exceeded those expectations. She is likely the best women’s tennis player in Texas history, and it only took her two years. You could stack Peyton’s two years at Texas up against almost anyone, male or female, in recent college history. Peyton is a doubles All-American, a two-time singles All-American with an NCAA Individual Singles Championship, and a back-to-back team champion playing the line 1 position. I’m honestly not sure what else you could want. And if you counter with Steve Johnson’s name or ask why she couldn’t pull off the triple that second year, then you should probably go on a walk and try to relax.
Potential for Pro Success
I know what you’re thinking – great college career, what about the pros? There is no guarantee that things will work out at the pro level, and there have been a lot of elite college players that really struggle on tour. And to that I would say, you’re right – it’s a fair concern. So, let’s see how she’s done so far. She left Texas after the 2022 spring season, and in July 2022 she was just outside of 400 (about 420). If you thought she would continue with that whole “winning” thing, you were right! Among other results since then, she: (1) won back-to-back $25K’s in October 2022; (2) won a $25K and a $60K back-to-back in Jan 2023 (apparently Peyton likes things in pairs); (3) quartered at a WTA 250; and (4) won a main draw match at Indian Wells. She’s gone from just outside of 400 to 125 in about 8-months. Decent.
Look, I am biased when it comes to Peyton. She is a Longhorn (so am I), and I also know her somewhat. She’s incredibly nice and engaging off the court. But my bias aside, she’s just money at tennis. I’ve seen her up close at Texas for years, and I have even been on the court with her a handful of times. Go watch her hit 3 forehands and you will wish you could trade yours for hers. It’s jumps out at you. It looks and sounds like a pro ball. I won’t get into a deep analysis of her game here, but she’s already knocking on the door of 100 in the world and she’s by no means a finished product.
Look, I know nobody’s path is straight up. Despite its appearance, Peyton’s path is no exception to that rule, and she will hit more roadblocks along the way. Like every good player before her, she will have to overcome them. Further, I don’t know what Peyton will be as a pro; nobody does. And I have way too much respect for how hard it is to “make it” than to make any sort of guarantee that Peyton will. However, I would bet on her making a career playing the game (whatever it may look like). Now, I wouldn’t make that bet because I think her past performance is necessarily indicative of future outcomes, nor is it because of that forehand. The reason I would bet on her is because she believes. It’s not some arrogant, outwardly showy display that actually stems from compensation and fear. Peyton truly believes she belongs on the court at the highest level, and it is seemingly authentic and foundational as to who she is as a player. And when she does get kicked in the teeth or has doubts, she gets to work. Whether it comes from hard work, her early successes, or simply an innate character trait, you can feel the belief when she’s on the court. That’s why I’d bet her on her. And maybe because of that forehand. I’m telling you, it’s sick.
I’m buying stock, sooner than later, and I will hold on to it. Again, we will have to wait to see how Peyton handles the consistent increase in level of tennis, worries, injuries, crises of confidence, successes, losses, etc. that so many similarly good young players must face. As we often hear, it takes time to figure out how to handle all these things. But when I look at Peyton’s time at Texas and her first year on tour, I don’t think she has any plans to “wait her turn” or “take her time.” Perhaps fueled by a healthy level of impatience, by all accounts, Peyton Stearns is here to win. Now.
