I can only imagine how draining all of the travel is for these tennis players. My guess is by the time they start thinking about settling down, the whole scene is getting a little old to them, and a downturn in their results would have happened anyway.

This cause and effect argument might not be valid if you consider Roger Federer is in a committed relationship and has been number 1 for... how long now?

Lleyton Hewitt's succubus, on the other hand, probably didn't help him.

his game will suck even more? Maybe he should try it - could have the opposite effect on him...

The first sentence: "The New York Post's Page Six informs us that the latest issue of GQ features what is no doubt a well-researched article about male tennis stars losing their game shortly after saying their wedding vows"

The final: "But unfortunately, Corsello doesn't probe this dilemma any further, leaving us to guess whether female players too lose their stuff after matrimony. Or if gay players experience a fallout once committed."

Now either you've read the actual article or you're getting your information second hand from the post. You can't have it both ways. So if you're getting it second hand from the Post you're not qualified to make that final statement because in the actual article he very well might mention female or homosexual players.

Although considering it is in GQ, A MEN'S MAGAZINE, he very well might not but what's the problem?

If you play tennis professionally chances are you've done nothing else but play and practice since a very young age. Tennis isn't a sport that allows you to be inactive or dedicated to much else.

Roger Federer is a good example here. Not married but his girlfriend I believe is his manager and by all accounts he is incredibly faithful and devoted to her. But she was also played as a professional herself. Kind of the exception that proves the rule, no? Could be me.

Even if I'm wrong though this article is pretty sloppy.

But following his marriage Tiger Woods, after a slight initial stumble, is tearing up the competition, game after game after game.

Or does the word "succubus" sound vaguely dirty and unsavory? I have the same feeling about the word "moist." Ick.

On the actual topic at hand, who knows? Maybe male tennis players are less likely than others to be able to focus on more than one thing at a time. Tiger Woods, on the other hand, has always seemed obsessive about his golf and would never let a wife distract him from the game. The man's an android.

"It's not the sex that (affects an athlete's ability); it's the staying up all night looking for it!"

Wading through misspellings and lousy grammar on blogs and such is one thing, but if you're going to get all academic on our asses with your Latin lingo at least get it right. It's "Post hoc ergo propter hoc" not "proctor".

As for the sports performance declining after sex, I think we'd need something a tad more rigorous than "Just ask any man around you who plays a lot of competitive sport." I play a lot of competitive sport (and I'm a man) and I don't see a correlation there at all. Maybe if you totally wear yourself out during sex it could make a short-term difference, but even then by the time you get out to the field, court, or whatever, you should be able to have your energy back. This idea is just another take on the old "vitality of the man-juice" BS that's been around forever. Show me the science, don't throw this old baloney out there as if it means something.

Though I must admit that if I consume rhino horn before playing basketball I seem to be able to jump higher...

It's age! Duh.

The reason's very simple, and I'm surprised Broadsheet hasn't clued in on it. I'm going to get flamed for this - but maybe it's because it's something Sarah doesn't know about men?

Those of you who know hockey players, or any other pro atheletes would know that a man's performance in sport is negatively affected after sex. You don't need bar graphs, scientific studies to prove it. Just ask any man around you who plays a lot of competitive sport. Do they want sex just prior to a bruising game of rugby? They'll say "after the game, hon".

For women I have no comment on. Maybe it doesn't make any difference either way for them. But for men - oh hell yeah.

Maybe I'm missing something obvious, but it seems like Tennis players have a very short shelf life (even for athletes).

Couldn't it just be that by the time players get married they're already past their prime athletically? That would explain why the same correlation doesn't seem to hold true for Golfers for example (Tiger, Nicklaus, et. al. did or are doing just fine after the "burden" of marriage).

Another correlation vs causation problem?

What does Broadsheet care if men are advised to stay single? After all, a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle!

This advice is true for any man trying to build and excel in a career.

Most tennis players also know the sad story of Bjorn Borg's ugly divorce from Loredana Berte, who is trying to prevent him from seeing his son and bleeding him dry financially.

Feminists and folks in the legal industry have turned marriage into legal and financial slavery for men. Now all that hard work is paying off, and men are turning away from that horrific, patriarchal institution - marriage.

Congratulations!

The media just loves to point out one factor that happened during the period in question, and declare it to be the sole cause. It's an easy answer, and makes for great headlines and new trends to worry about. Isn't it more likely that one's athletic ability naturally declines with age? Or naturally declines as one's interest shift? But that doesn't sell, and it's not particularily interesting. So GQ returns to the case of the succubus. It says more about the writer's issues than anything.