Few teams dream of being as dominant as the 2006-07 University of Georgia men’s tennis squad.
Led by senior star John Isner, the group went an astounding 32-0 on the season, winning the SEC tournament and the ITA indoor championship on the way to a fifth national title.
It helped that those Dawgs had the nation’s top recruiting class. But a little-known freshman walk-on also played a role.
“I was fortunate with my timing,” Alex Hill says with a smile.
Kismet aside, those close to Hill know he never shies from a challenge.
“Alex has a quiet ambition that won’t be put down,” says Wes Van Dyk (BBA ’12). “It doesn’t matter how many things get in the way. He’s going to find a way to get it done. And when he’s done it to the best of his ability, regardless of the competitive field, he will find another challenge.”
Following a stint in banking, Hill climbed the ladder at an Atlanta real estate firm. After 10 years, he left to become one of two principals at Icarus Alternative Investments — moving “from large company to smaller company to very small company,” he says.
Meanwhile, in 2019, with a business plan drawn up during a hurricane and alongside his wife, Selby (ABJ ’14), and good friend Van Dyk, Hill founded Yonder Yoga, an expanding chain of hot yoga studios.
“Alex kind of stayed on the straight and narrow for a little while,” says Van Dyk. “And then I think he got the same itch that all athletes have — to break out and do something different.”
It’s not the typical trajectory of a UGA finance grad. Then again, Hill is not one to follow someone else’s script.
“He’s extremely diligent,” says Van Dyk. “He’s extremely hardworking. And he finds opportunity where most other folks would not see it.”
Hill picked up tennis at an early age.
“I took him to the court when he could barely stand up,” says Hill’s father, Gary (AB ’66). “He’d hold a racquetball racket, and I’d throw the ball at the racket and let him have the sensation of the ball coming back.”
He picked up a passion for UGA, too.
“I was four months old at the 1988 Tennessee (football) game, and my dad took me down to touch the hedges. That to me was kind of like being baptized into the university,” he says.
Hill grew up an avid fan, attending football, baseball and basketball games and tennis matches at every chance.
In high school at Westminster, he excelled in school and on the court. Walking onto that stacked UGA team as a freshman, he found himself facing heightened competition while bonding with teammates from all over the world.
The championships were nice, he says, but “the greatest part was the people. If I had just gone to UGA and joined a fraternity, my community would have looked way different. Having friends from Kenya, Spain, South America, Australia, Slovenia — it was an experience I don’t think I would have been able to (have otherwise).”
Hill’s reputation as a leader grew, and by his senior year he was named a captain.
“Alex was a glue guy, and he brought as much competitive spirit whether he was on the court or not,” says Van Dyk, himself a former Georgia football walk-on running back. “It’s really hard to get a slot as a starting tennis player at the University of Georgia. But being named a captain was a testament to his impact on the program.”
Back on campus after graduation, Hill had a happenstance run-in with a family friend, a member of the UGA equestrian team named Selby Merritt. The two connected, and it wasn’t long before sparks flew.
A month into their courtship, Hill made what he admits was “a crazy move.”
“She told me about her favorite horse she had growing up, which her family had donated to the University of South Carolina,” he says. “They were retiring the horse, and she had an opportunity to get him back but didn’t have anywhere to keep him.”
Always finding opportunity, Hill offered up his family farm near Athens.
“I asked my parents, and they said, ‘Are you sure you want to do that? You’ve been dating this girl for a month. This is kind of a big commitment.’ And I said, ‘Well, what could go wrong?’”
In June of 2019, the two married on Herty Field. Van Dyk officiated.
At Icarus, Hill continues to write his script as senior director of investments, overseeing the firm’s co-GP real estate investment platform.
“I’ve moved from the service provider side to the principal, entrepreneurial side,” he says. “I wanted to find a place where I could have freedom and flexibility and still help get deals done.”
His business partner, Alex Oliver (BBA ’07), says Hill’s people skills stood out.
“There’s a lot of people who are heads down and nerdy with the numbers,” he says. “But he was always outgoing, always smart, always knew what he was doing, really hardworking. … People want to do business with people they like, and they love Alex.”
Hill’s passion for risk and reward helps drive Yonder Yoga, a company thriving in large part because of his financial acumen.
“The way we’ve been able to operate is a huge testament to Alex’s ability to manage both sides of the operation, maintaining good standing while always having an eye for growth,” says Van Dyk.
It’s thrilling, if occasionally terrifying, running a business with your spouse and best friend — the most unique challenge Hill says he’s ever faced.
When Yonder opened its first location (it now operates seven), he and Selby “were just figuring out how to be married,” he laughs, adding they are still “learning how to balance each other out and focus on our roles while helping each other and not stepping on each other’s toes.
“At a high level,” he says, the three owners have “always been on the same page, and we’ve always put our core relationship first.”
Clad in a onesie and cooing softly, Hill’s latest, greatest achievement sits contentedly in his father’s arms.
In December, Alex and Selby welcomed their first child, a healthy and happy baby boy.
“What’s cool is seeing how your strengths manifest themselves in how you parent,” says Selby. “You don’t really change; it’s the things about you that now apply to this whole new thing. It’s cool to see the Alex I know and the way we relate to each other be applied to something totally new.”
Van Dyk says his friend and business partner was made for this moment.
“He’s going to be a great dad,” he says. “I’ve seen how intently and conscientiously he approaches any task or challenge — in business, in friendships. And I know he will do that with his family. I’m excited to watch and be a part of it.”
Fittingly, as Hill describes it, his outlook as a new parent reflects a certain mindfulness that may sound familiar to anyone who’s taken a yoga class or two.
“I’ve had all these chapters, and I try to stay focused on the moment so I enjoy and appreciate them,” he says. “I look back on the previous ones and learn from them, and I look forward to the future and plan for them. But I really try to enjoy the one I’m in.”