Gael Monfils and Elina Svitolina. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa. Alex De Minaur and Katie Boulter. There have been plenty of tennis couples in the desert for this year’s BNP Paribas Open, but one couple outdates them all – Robert and Patricia Hook. 

And for Robert and Patricia – or Bob and Pat as they call each other – tennis is more than just a sport they love watching. It’s the foundation of their 68 year relationship. 

Bob and Pat met in 1956 at the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Colorado, where Bob was stationed and Pat was a civilian nurse. Pat, who’d always wanted to learn tennis, noticed that the men stationed at the base were always playing. But there was one who caught her eye in particular, the “nicest” of them all, she said, and that’s when she asked Bob to teach her to play.

Ever since, the two have been inseparable, and while they’ve continued their mutual love of tennis by still playing together, they’ve also kept it up by watching some of the best players in the world at Indian Wells. The couple has been coming to the tournament for over thirty years. 

For Pat, coming to Tennis Paradise is all about the good vibes and world-class tennis. She loves to watch it all, and can’t pick a favorite match she’s witnessed in Indian Wells. Bob, meanwhile, can think of a few. 

More recently, he loved Rafael Nadal’s comeback against rising star Sebastian Korda in the 2022 BNP Paribas Open second round, an extra special one since Bob enjoyed watching Petr Korda, Sebastian’s father, in the 1990s. Flashing back to when they first started coming, his favorite match-up he saw was Lindsay Davenport and Steffi Graf – “just really excellent tennis,” he said. 

Away from Indian Wells, though, things can get more complicated – the couple has opposing favorite players. For Bob, it’s World No. 2 and defending BNP Paribas Open Champion Carlos Alcaraz; for Pat, it’s World No. 4 and 2021 US Open Champion Daniil Medvedev. 

“At home [when we watch], we sit on different couches, because he likes one player and I like the other,” Pat added with a laugh. 

One thing they can agree on though: all-time, their favorite player is Roger Federer. No question. “Same couch,” Pat said. 

And another place they always agree? On the tennis court. The two have played mixed doubles together in six Senior Olympic Games, traveling all over the US to do so. They even played in the first-ever married couples mixed doubles tournament at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage years ago.

“We do not get upset with each other. We’re competitive – well, I’m competitive. I’m sorry, but I am, and that’s okay!” Pat said. “And Bob is the nice guy. So we enjoy playing together.” 

At 92 (Bob) and 90 (Pat) years young, the Hooks look forward to playing, and watching, tennis for years to come, whether it’s on the court neighboring their house in North Carolina, or sitting in Stadium 1 at Indian Wells.