Former tennis star Andre Agassi has admitted the lion mane-style hairstyle he sported during the 1990s was actually a wig, in extracts from his autobiography published in British newspapers Saturday.

Agassi said he wore a hairpiece held together with pins in his first Grand Slam final, the 1990 French Open final, and blamed his concerns that it would fall apart for losing the match to Andres Gomez.

Before the match he prayed “not for victory, but that my hairpiece would not fall off”, he writes in “Open”.

In previous excerpts, Agassi admitted he had used the drug crystal methamphetamine in 1997.

He said he started to wear a wig to disguise hair loss.

“Every morning I would get up and find another piece of my identity on the pillow, in the wash basin, down the plughole,” he wrote.

“I asked myself: you want to wear a toupee? On the tennis court? I answered myself; what else could I do?”

But the wig began to disintegrate as he took a shower the night before the Paris final—“probably I used the wrong hair rinse,” Agassi writes.

He panicked and called his brother Philly into the room. Together, they managed to clamp the wig together using clips and pins.

Agassi, 39, writes: “Of course I could have played without my hairpiece, but what would all the journalists have written if they knew that all the time I was really wearing a wig?

“During the warming-up training before play I prayed. Not for victory, but that my hairpiece would not fall off.

“With each leap, I imagine it falling into the sand. I imagine millions of spectators move closer to their TV sets, their eyes widening and, in dozens of dialects and languages, ask how Andre Agassi’s hair has fallen from his head.”

It was actress Brooke Shields, who he married, who persuaded him to cut off all his remaining hair.

“She said I should shave my head,” he said. “It was like suggesting I should have all my teeth out.

“Nevertheless, I thought for a few days about it, about the agonies it caused me, the hypocrisy and lies.”

But after taking the plunge, “a stranger stood before me in the mirror and smiled,” Agassi said.

“My wig was like a chain and the ridiculously long strands in three colours like an iron ball which hung on it.”

Agassi won eight Grand Slams during his career and is one of only six men to win all four major titles.

I never knew Andre wore a wig. I'm gonna Google some pics and see what he looked like. He's a real good looking baldie and I bet most people here would totally understand and believe him when he said he lost the match because he was worried about his wig slipping.

Here's a photo of Andre Agassi with his hair piece:

I always found it odd that Agassi went from a full head of hair to nothing. I always assumed that it'd be too risky for a professional athlete to wear a wig. I play sports in my wig. But I'm not under the watchful eye of thousands of people. I wonder how long he was wearing?

Apparently he used to be a bit of a sex symbol for teenage girls. Can't blame him for wanting to maintain that image. But it seems the old wig was causing him more troubles than it was worth.


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But the wig began to disintegrate as he took a shower the night before the Paris final—“probably I used the wrong hair rinse,” Agassi

Suprised he didn't have a back-up...
Maybe he was with a hairclub?!

I think it would be very difficult to be a professional athlete and wear hair especially with the style Agassi had.

Billy smith a goalie on the NY Islanders..wore hair at one point..(while stil a player) .you could tell by his pictures, hockey cards..he doesnt wear any more

I believe he was with HairClub.

About 10 years ago (or more) HairClub was opening in our city, and they had promo on local radio station. We were all listening as one coworker openly wanted to do something about his hair loss, and was all excited about this...

Anyway, "I'm not only the client" guy was patched in live with radio dj and he goes on about just how many celebrities are wearing and you'd never know, and he started talking about athlete who's ben a customer until recently when his girlfriend convinced him to go bald... and we were all (including radio dj) like "I know, it's Agassi", and he would interrupt wiht "no, no names or anything like that" but everyone knew... so I knew about it since...