Wheaton was born inMinneapolis as the youngest of four children. He started playing tennis at age four and played in his first tournament aged eight. He won the Minnesota State High School tennis title in 1984 as a freshman. He trained at theNick Bollettieri Tennis Academy for his last two-and-a-half years of high school and played one year at Stanford.[citation needed]
In 1987, Wheaton won theUS Open junior title and was the No. 1 ranked junior player in the US. In 1988, he helpedStanford University's tennis team win theNCAA team title and received the Block S Award as the most outstanding freshman athlete at Stanford.
Wheaton turned professional on July 4, 1988 and won his first top-level singles title in 1990 at the U.S. Clay Court Championships in Kiawah Island, South Carolina. He was also runner-up in the men's doubles at the1990 US Open, partnering withPaul Annacone.
During his career, Wheaton won three top-level singles and three doubles titles, representing the US inDavis Cup (v. Australia, 1993) reached the semifinals or better in either singles or doubles of every Grand Slam tournament, and defeated highly ranked players such as Andre Agassi,Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl,Stefan Edberg,Jim Courier, and Michael Chang.
He retired from the professional tour in 2001, following a series of injuries. Since then he has played in some senior tour events, winning the "Wimbledon Over 35 Doubles" championship in 2004 (with T.J. Middleton).
In 2002, Wheaton embarked a new career in radio, writing, and speaking. He is the producer and host of The Christian Worldview, a live talk radio program that airs on 250 stations in the US. He is a tennis columnist for theMinneapolis Star-Tribune and the author of two books,University of Destruction: Your Game Plan for Spiritual Victory on Campus (Bethany House, 2005) andMy Boy, Ben—A Story of Love, Loss and Grace (Tristan Publishing, 2014).
Wheaton serves on the board of The Overcomer Foundation, a non-profit organization that directs his radio ministry. He also served on the board of directors of theUnited States Tennis Association (USTA) from 2003-2006. He is a member of the Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame (class of 2012) and the USTA Northern Section Hall of Fame (class of 2005). Wheaton received the Eugene L. Scott Renaissance Award in 2011—an award presented to a national/international tennis champion who demonstrates excellence in promoting and developing the sport of tennis in public parks.
United States
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