Meet US Open star Jessica Pegula, whose parents are the billionaire owners of the Buffalo Bills

Following Pegula’s 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinal loss to Markéta Vondroušová, The Times of London reported that she “needs dynamic that family billions can’t buy,” posing questions like, “Is it possible to be hungry for victory if defeat is not overly meaningful in terms of wealth?” and arguing that she “has a plan B whether she wants it or not.”

Pegula addressed the controversy about her family’s wealth in a season two episode of Netflix’s “Break Point,” which documented that loss and referenced the subsequent media coverage.

“The journalists that write about me have no freakin’ clue. I can’t buy my way into a semifinal. I was just like, ‘What kind of clickbait trash is this?'” she said.

She also defended her upbringing in the episode.

“Some people get this image that it’s really easy for me because my dad is very wealthy, but that didn’t happen till I was 17 or 18,” she said. “They gave me a great childhood and instilled a lot of work ethic in me. They definitely got me to this point.”

In a November 2023 interview with Forbes, Pegula elaborated on her family’s wealth and its impact on her career as a professional athlete, saying that someone isn’t going to become a successful athlete unless they “work hard,” are talented, “and really are driven to get there.”

Pegula told Forbes she was inspired to play by her older half-sister Laura, who played collegiately at the University of Pittsburgh.

The Palm Beach Post reported that Pegula started taking tennis lessons at age 7 and that her family moved to Boca Raton, Florida, in 2007 to help her pursue her dreams.

In 2010, Pegula told The Palm Beach Post, “I really appreciate everything they do for me. They’ve given up a lot. We’ve moved down (here) just to give me a shot, because they believe in me.”

“My mom always jokes, ‘Do you know how much money you owe me from these tournaments? If you ever win a Grand Slam, pay me back,'” she added.

Pegula defeated fellow American Shelby Rogers, 31, in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, during the first round of competition, effectively ending Rogers’ singles career. (Rogers previously announced the US Open would be her last tournament.)

Pegula became emotional during her on-court interview after the match and said through tears, “I remember just playing 16-under Southerns with her, and now we’re here, and I think it’s so cool” before Rogers came up to give her a hug.

She later added, “All of a sudden turning into one of the favorites when my year hasn’t been that great has been kind of crazy” and that she hopes she can keep improving as the tournament goes on.

Pegula, Gauff, Danielle Collins, Madison Keys, and Emma Navarro are all among the top 15 women’s tennis players in the world.

Following the US Tennis Association’s tweet recognizing the accomplishment on July 17, Pegula tweeted, “let’s go, girls.”

Pegula helped found the organization in 2022, a decision she said was inspired by her mother, who was adopted from an orphanage in South Korea and raised in upstate New York.

In a post for the Buffalo Bills shared in May 2023, Pegula wrote, “I’m not sure she ever cared about or even saw the barriers that were in front of her entering the sports world, a male-dominated field without a ton of Asian American representation. She broke those barriers without even knowing it.”

“Once she did realize what she had accomplished, she became a voice for representation in sports,” Pegula added. “We have the same goal with the AAPITA. The AAPI tennis community is large but underrepresented. We hope to empower leaders, grow visibility, and create programming that encourages youth participation.”

Forbes reported that Pegula founded the company in 2017 while recovering from hip surgery with the help of a “business connection in Buffalo.”

The company’s products include a vitamin C cleanser, lavender mist, and moisturizers, and retail for $28-$40 for individual products.

Forbes reported that Pegula was “essentially a one-woman company,” involved in every step of the process, from choosing consistencies and smells to running the company’s Shopify and social media accounts, helping with web design, and even writing the labels.

Now, as her tennis career has progressed, she’s been forced to take a step back and focus on hiring help.

“It’s been a hard act to kind of balance all the responsibilities that I have from before, when it was just, you showed up at practice,” Pegula said. “I’m a perfectionist, and I want it to be successful.”