Last American to win US Open: Inside USA's 23-year men's singles drought since Andy Roddick

At one point in tennis history, American men dominated the U.S. Open, but in recent decades, the United States hasn't been able to produce champions on the men's side.

While Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic formed the Big Three in men's singles, American men have taken a step back in their search to reclaim the U.S. Open title. While the women's side is has seen it's fair share of American champions, largely carried by Serena Williams, American men have not had nearly as much success in their nation's open.

Now that there are several American men who seem to have a legitimate chance to break through at the U.S. Open, it would be notable for any of them to break what is now a drought of over two decades long. Here's a look back at the last time an American won the U.S. Open men's title.

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Last American man to win US Open

Andy Roddick marks the last American man to win the U.S. Open, as he won his first and only Grand Slam title over Juan Carlos Ferrero in 2003. Roddick was just 21 years-old when he won the tournament and he followed fellow American Pete Sampras, who took home his fifth U.S. Open a year prior.

Roddick entered the tournament as the No. 4-ranked man in the world according to the ATP rankings, but faced a tough opponent as Ferrero was No. 3 in the world. Ferrero had also just won the French Open that spring and had eyes on a second major title in 2003.

Throughout the tournament, Roddick didn't have many issues as he won his first five matches while dropping just one combined set. He did have trouble with David Nalbandian in the semifinal, as the American had to come back from down two sets to beat Nalbandian in five.

Roddick may have caught a break when Ferrero beat Andre Agassi in the other semifinal, as Agassi was the No. 1 player in the world at the time. Roddick was then able to dispatch Ferrero in straight sets, with the only trouble coming with a second-set tiebreak.

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Last American man to make US Open final

In 2024, Taylor Fritz broke an 18-year drought when he made the US Open final, becoming the first American man to do so since Roddick in 2006. Fritz cruised through the first part of the tournament, dropping just one set in his first four matches.

In the quarterfinals, Fritz turned his play up a notch as he beat Alexander Zverev in four sets, using two tiebreaks to come away with the win. He then played fellow American Francis Tiafoe in the semifinal, a five-set match that Fritz outlasted by winning the final two sets in dominant fashion.

Unfortunately for Fritz, he ran into a buzzsaw in the final match. No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner was waiting for Fritz in the final, and the Italian beat Fritz in straight sets to win his second Grand Slam tournament of the year.

Still, Fritz's breakthrough to the final marked positive movement in American men's tennis, as Europeans have largely dominated the sport in the past few decades.

How many American men have won the US Open?

Despite the recent drought, the United States still owns the most winners in U.S. Open history as 85 times has an American won the tournament. That includes 66 times in the Amateur era and another 19 times in the Open era, which began in 1969.

Bill Tilden, William Larned and Richard Sears all had seven US Open titles in their careers, more than anyone else, but they all happened during the Amateur era between 1881 and 1929. Pete Sampras and Jimmy Connors, meanwhile, both have five U.S. Open titles, tied with Roger Federer for the most in the Open era.