Before Jessica Pegula defeated the world number 1 in women’s singles at the 2024 US Open, she had to dispel some rumors.
Pegula defeated Polish star Iga Swiatek in straight sets (6:2, 6:4) to advance to the semifinals of the US Open, where she will now face Karolína Muchová and have a chance to reach the women’s singles final.
However, in the run-up to this game, there were rumors that Pegula had grown up with a silver spoon in her mouth as the daughter of billionaire Terry Pegula, the owner of the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres.
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Jessica Pegula of the United States will face Iga Świątek of Poland in the quarterfinals of the US Open on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, in New York City. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
Pegula addressed those rumors after her final win over Diana Shnaider in Round 4 on Monday, calling it “a little annoying” that people believed she lived a life of butler service and limousine rides wherever she went.
“I was doing something for the media the other day and they asked me, ‘What’s the most annoying thing?'” Pegula said during her post-game press conference. “It’s that people think I have a butler, I’m chauffeured around. I have a private limousine, I fly everywhere privately.”
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“That’s definitely not who I am. People can think what they want, I don’t know. I just find it kind of funny. A butler? I read those comments… and I was like, ‘No, not at all.’ But maybe I should do that. I don’t know at this point. Is that what you want me to do? To do all these crazy things?”
Pegula, responding to a reporter’s question about whether she felt “under scrutiny” because her father was a very rich man, added that it was “outrageous” that people thought she had all these amenities.
Some tennis fans were shocked when Pegula posted on Instagram that she took the subway to Flushing and the Long Island Railroad home for an advertising campaign during the US Open – two separate posts.
Jessica Pegula of the United States will face Iga Świątek of Poland in the quarterfinals of the US Open on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, in New York City. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
With her tennis bag and all, Pegula noted in her first post on the subway that she doesn’t like driving and prefers to take the train.
“I always try to take the train,” she said.
“My agent makes fun of me because I don’t want to drive a nice car. One time we actually drove to Flushing. We sat in the car for an hour and a half and I almost felt sick. I was about to jump out of the car and run to the construction site. We took the subway back.”
Regardless of what fans think, the 30-year-old makes the most of her time at Arthur Ashe Stadium whenever she arrives there, whether by train or car. It is the first time in Pegula’s career that she has won a major quarterfinal after losing 6-0 in her previous matches.
Jessica Pegula of the United States will face Iga Świątek of Poland in the quarterfinals of the US Open on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, in New York City. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
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She hopes to reach the first Grand Slam final of her career when she faces Muchova in Flushing on Thursday at 8:15 p.m.
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