When Michael Goodwin made the choice to attend Emory, it not only had a profound impact on the Eagles men’s tennis program, but also on his younger brother Chris.
“Emory was the right fit for me. When I visited, I really enjoyed Atlanta and the weather, and I had a good relationship with (head men’s tennis coach John) Browning. It was the right combination of athletics and academics,” Michael said.
“Emory probably wouldn’t have even been on my radar if Michael wasn’t there,” admitted Chris, who also visited Division I Virginia Tech. “I asked him about the Emory team and the school. I visited it and I liked it and Browning.”
The brothers were only on the team together for one year but got the opportunity to team up in doubles. “We won fall (ITA) nationals together. Although we didn’t win the NCAA doubles title or team title, it freed Michael up to win the NCAA singles championship,” Chris stated. Michael became the first Emory men’s player to accomplish the feat.
“Unfortunately, we were only together one year, but it was awesome, especially to be part of the same doubles team. Chris let me beat him in challenges,” Michael quipped. “I played one singles even though he was so good. We were always close growing up so it was great to go to college together.”
After graduating, Michael took a gap year and coached tennis while studying for his LSAT. “When I started at Georgetown Law School, I was going part-time and was an assistant tennis coach. That was a brutal year,” he acknowledged. “I dropped coaching and focused on law school full-time.”
Michael passed the bar, got married, and began working as a lawyer, and is currently employed in commercial real estate transactional law and as a general counsel of a hotel company. He has been married for 12 years and he and his wife have three children. “Our oldest is six years old and we have three-year-old twins. Our six-year-old is just starting to pick up the racket.”
After a career that included NCAA singles and team national championships, Chris remained with the program for four years as an assistant coach before transitioning to teaching. “I taught world studies for a few years before I realized it was not for me. It was still a good experience,” he remarked. Chris is now working for Amazon’s Business Assurance Center, which oversees their corporate security in North America.
Chris married Emory women’s basketball alum Melissa Koike in 2018. The two met at an all-sports camp run by Browning after Chris graduated. They have two children, aged five and three.
While Michael has continued to play tennis as time permits since graduating in 2009, Chris can’t recall the last time he played. “I think I still have a racket, but I haven’t played in at least 10 years,” he said.