Lee Hyung-taik

Infobox Tennis player
playername = Hyung-Taik Lee


nickname = "High-Tech Lee"
country = KOR
residence = Seoul, South Korea
datebirth = birth date and age|1976|1|3
placebirth = Hoengseong, South Korea
height = height|m=1.8
weight = convert|81|kg|lb st|abbr=on|lk=on
turnedpro = 1995
retired =
plays = Right-handed; one-handed backhand
careerprizemoney = US$2,257,901
singlesrecord = 156–156
singlestitles = 1
highestsinglesranking = 36 (6-August-07)
AustralianOpenresult = 2R (2003, 2008)
FrenchOpenresult = 3R (2004, 2005)
Wimbledonresult = 3R (2007)
USOpenresult = 4R (2000, 2007)
doublesrecord = 40–69
doublestitles = 1
highestdoublesranking = 95 (16-Jan-06)
updated = May 5, 2008

Infobox Korean name
hangul=이형택
hanja=李亨澤
rr=I Hyeong-taek
mr=I Hyŏngt'aek

Hyung-Taik Lee (이형택) (born January 3, 1976) is a professional tennis player from South Korea.Lee's career-high ranking in singles is World No. 36, which he achieved in August 2007.

Personal life

Lee was born in a potato-farming village in Hoengseong County, South Korea. He began playing tennis at age nine with a school teacher. He eventually turned pro in 1995.

Tennis career

2000

Lee made a splash at the 2000 U.S. Open tournament, reaching the fourth round before losing to Pete Sampras. En route to his fourth round appearance against Sampras, Lee defeated Jeff Tarango, thirteenth seed Franco Squillari, and 2003 Australian Open runner-up Rainer Schüttler.

Lee went on to win two tournaments in 2000.

2003

In 2003, Lee became the first Korean to win ATP Tour singles and doubles titles by winning the singles tournament at the Adidas International in Sydney as a qualifier (beating Juan Carlos Ferrero in the final) and the doubles tournament at the Siebel Open in San Jose (partnering with Belarusian Vladimir Voltchkov).

2006

In the second round of the 2006 Wimbledon, Lee was defeated by former champion and two-time semi-finalist Lleyton Hewitt in five sets, including three tie-breakers. Lee had set points in the third set tie-breakers, but went on to lose the set after an incorrect line call. As Lee went on to win the fourth set the call probably prevented him winning the match against the eventual quarter-finalist.

Lee won a career-high three tournaments in 2006.

2007

Lee matched his best Grand Slam performance in 2007 by making the fourth round of the 2007 U.S. Open tournament. In the first round, Lee was forced to five sets before defeating Dominik Hrbatý. Lee was pit against Guillermo Cañas, who was the fourteenth seed in the tournament, in the second round. Lee defeated Cañas in three sets, setting up a third round showdown against nineteenth seed Andy Murray. Lee got out to a quick two set advantage against Murray, eventually winning in four sets. In the fourth round, Lee played fourth seed Nikolay Davydenko, who defeated the Korean in three sets.

His fourth round showing at the US Open capped a very successful open series. During the 2007 US Open Series, Lee reached the semifinals at the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles, the quarterfinals at the Indianapolis Tennis Championships and at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic.

Lee set personal bests in a handful of categories, including match wins and money earned. Lee won a career-high 25 matches and earned $386,230. Overall, Lee compiled records of 16-15 on hard, 5-5 on clay, 3-3 on grass and 1-0 on carpet. In August, Lee achieved his career best ranking in singles as World No. 36.

Doubles

Lee has sometimes appeared in doubles with Korean-American player Kevin Kim. The pair reached the third round of the French Open 2005.

Playing Style

Lee is right-handed and uses a one-handed backhand. He considers his backhand as his best shot. His favorite surface is hardcourt, the most common surface in Korea. He is coached by countryman and former ATP professional Young-il Yoon (since March 2006).

ingles titles (12)

ee also

*List of Korea-related topics
*List of Koreans

External links

*ATP|id=L311
*ITF male profile|number=10008991
*DavisCupplayerlink|id=10008991
* [http://steveghelper.com/MatchResults.php?players=Taik+Lee&weeks=12 Lee Recent Match Results]
* [http://steveghelper.com/RankingHistory.php?player=Taik+Lee Lee World Ranking History]
* [http://steveghelper.com/MatchResults.php?countries=KOR&weeks=3 Korean Men Recent Match Results]
* [http://www.atptennis.com/5/en/deuce/summer2007/lee.asp ATP interview]