Why So Many NCAA Tennis Players Receive Abuse From Bettors

NCAA student-athletes in most sports report negative or threatening messages from sports bettors. Some sports, like tennis, experience this at alarming rates.

According to NCAA data released in January 2026, 22% of men’s Division I tennis players reported receiving these types of messages in 2025. This rate is higher than in any other sport except basketball, where an even more staggering 46% of men’s DI players reported the same experience.

There are approximately 2,300 Division I men’s tennis players, with more than 500 of them having received negative or threatening messages from gamblers. These types of messages are also widespread in professional tennis, according to the ITF and WTA.

Although college football sees far more betting stateside, NCAA tennis players report these messages more frequently than FBS football players (17%). Only 6% of NCAA DI baseball players reported such incidents.

Betting on various college sports is generally allowed in most legal sports betting states, though some exceptions apply. Some states prohibit player props on college sports, and others ban betting on in-state schools. In niche sports, championship events may be the only legal betting options. Meanwhile, offshore sportsbooks may offer more college tennis betting markets.

This article explores why NCAA tennis players are frequent targets of abusive messages from bettors.

Tennis Betting Nuances

Tennis is an individual sport, so bettors may focus blame on one person. Yet, only 2% of Division I men’s golfers report harassing messages from bettors.

Isaac Rose-Berman, a fellow at the American Institute for Boys and Men (AIBM) focused on gambling policy reform, is an expert on tennis betting. He said people bet on tennis differently from how they bet on golf.

Rose-Berman said that in tennis, sports bettors usually bet on who will win the one-on-one match, whereas in golf, people usually bet on the tournament winner against a field of many participants.

“The most common golf bets are outrights, i.e., player to win the tournament, often at very long odds—say 50/1,” he told GamblingHarm.org. “Therefore, they [bettors] are probably not going to be too upset when they lose because it’s expected—unless the player is up a bunch and then misses some easy putts. In those instances, I’m sure golfers receive a ton of harassment.”

Rose-Berman also noted that tennis “is a more intimate sport.” Fans can watch relatively close to the court, unlike in other sports, which could contribute to outbursts over losing bets.

The NCAA data involved digital messages, not in-person abuse.

A 2025 U.S. News survey found that 21% of sports bettors admit to harassing an athlete, online or in person.

International Competitions

Some NCAA DI men’s tennis players compete internationally under the ITF umbrella, which, Clint Hangebrauck, managing director of enterprise risk management at the NCAA, says likely plays a significant role in the negative and threatening messages.

NCAA tennis has many international athletes, so bettors in many countries wager on their matches.

“Tennis student-athletes have a high international cohort and often play in non-NCAA international competitions with significant betting markets,” Hangebrauck told GamblingHarm.org. 

The data on these messages doesn’t “correlate” to U.S.-based betting, he said. Still, it shows “the heightened risk of targeted abuse when [betting] markets focus on a single competitor’s performance,” Hangebrauck added.

The NCAA works with states and sportsbooks to reduce the risks associated with individual player prop bets. The organization wants stronger safeguards in place for these wagers. However, not all efforts have been successful. In January, Missouri, which launched online sports betting in December, declined the NCAA’s request to restrict prop bets.

Bruce Lipka, head coach of Penn State men’s tennis, also told GamblingHarm.org that the international component is a factor in the high levels of harassment experienced by tennis players.

“I would venture to guess that gambling on tennis is the second most gambled-on sport globally, so it may be a volume issue,” Lipka said.

According to the NCAA, student-athlete survey data show growing comfort in discussing well-being issues with coaches—a positive development amid an increase in harassing and threatening messages from bettors.