SEC Coach of the Year (1987, 1988, 1993, 1996, 1998) USPTA National Coach of the Year (1988) USPTR National Coach of the Year (1996, 1998) ITA National Coach of the Year (1989, 1996) University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame
In his early 20s, Brandi trained with Australian tennis player - Harry Hopman.
Coaching career
Brandi was a touring professional for several years after graduating from college, but quickly discovered his true calling was refining the technique and improving the play of other up-and-coming professional tennis players. Notably, he coached Kathy Rinaldi and Carling Bassett.[2] Brandi was also the executive director of IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida.
Brandi became the head coach of the Florida Gators women's tennis team at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida in August 1984.[3] From the 1985 season through 2001, he built the Lady Gators tennis program from a strong regional team into a national powerhouse, second only to the national rival Stanford Cardinal women's tennis team. His teams won three NCAA national tournament championships (1992, 1996, 1998) and were the runners-up in five other NCAA tournaments (1988, 1990, 1995, 1997, 1999). Brandi's Lady Gators also won six National Indoor Tennis Championships and fourteen Southeastern Conference (SEC) championships, and never finished lower than second in the SEC regular season standings.
At the time of his resignation from the Gators coaching staff, he had the highest winning percentage (.915) of any coach in NCAA tennis history, and had the fifth highest number of career victories (460) among all NCAA coaches who have coached for at least 5 years.[5] He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 2006.[6][7]
After leaving the University of Florida, Brandi has worked for IMG Academy,[8] the Chris Everett Tennis Academy, and the Harold Solomon Tennis Institute. Later, he was a member of the player development staff and a national coach at the United States Tennis Association.
On June 13, 2017, Andy Brandi and Chris Brandi were named co-head coaches for the LSU Tigers tennis team.[9]
Brandi and his wife Nancy had one son, Chris, who played for coach Andy Jackson's Florida Gators men's tennis team from 2003 to 2006.[11] Chris Brandi was previously an assistant coach for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's tennis team[12] before becoming co-head coach for the men's tennis team at LSU with his father. Andy Brandi's niece, Kristina Brandi, is a former touring professional who was ranked as high as twenty-seventh in the world.
Andy Brandi died on February 8, 2024, at the age of 72.[13]
