Roger Federer turned professional in 1998. He was 16 when he began competing on the professional ATP Tour, making his debut at the Swiss Open Gstaad in July of that year.
Federer was already an outstanding junior. In 1998, he won both the boys’ singles and boys’ doubles titles at Wimbledon, reached the US Open junior final, and finished the season as the world’s No. 1 junior. He chose to leave junior tennis and pursue the professional circuit full-time at the end of that year.
His first ATP-level match came against Argentina’s Lucas Arnold Ker in Gstaad, where Federer lost in the opening round. Later in 1998, he earned his first ATP match victory against France’s Guillaume Raoux in Toulouse. He ended the year ranked No. 301 in the world.
A common mix-up is confusing his professional debut with his first major breakthrough. Federer won his first ATP singles title in 2001 and his first Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon in 2003.