From the perspective of the casual tennis fan, the Challenger series is the shadow circuit, where players generally ranked outside the top 50 scuffle for ranking position. But for many, it's a stepping-stone to much bigger endeavors.
"It's a tough circuit, and everyone has to go through it," Frances Tiafoe said Tuesday from the Fairfield, California event. "It's not as much about the money as it is the rankings points."
Less than two years ago, Tiafoe was ranked No. 1,145 among ATP World Tour players, but by the end of 2015, he had zoomed up to No. 176.
Now, at the age of 18, for the first time, he is a top-100 player -- No. 100 on the nose -- and part of the surging youth movement (#NextGeneration) that has come to define the ATP's 2016 season.
Tiafoe is one of four teenagers ranked in the top 100.
"There are so many young guys coming up; it's unbelievable," Tiafoe said. "You've got [Alexander] Zverev and [Nick] Kyrgios playing great tennis, and you feed on that.
"It's funny. You're in juniors and looking up to the pros, and it happens so fast. Honestly, I thought it would be tougher to get up here."
Ah, those impressionable teenagers. They don't always know what they don't know. Fact is, the next 50 spots will be far more difficult to scale. After that? Skill, mentality and luck will all help him become the top-10 player he envisions.
Tiafoe's swift ascendance, along with No. 71-ranked Californian Taylor Fritz, gives the United States two 18-year-olds in the top 100. The last time that happened?
In 1990, Michael Chang and Pete Sampras were ranked among the top 100, at Nos. 10 and 14, respectively. Now, no one is predicting that Tiafoe and Fritz are going to combine for 15 Grand Slam singles titles, but that 26-year gap gets your attention.
Fritz is the No. 5-ranked American man, behind Steve Johnson, Jack Sock, John Isner and Sam Querrey. Tiafoe is No. 7, behind Donald Young. Jared Donaldson, 20, is No. 10 behind Ryan Harrison.
Back in February, Fritz reached the finals at Memphis and the quarterfinals in Acapulco. As a result, his last Challenger -- the Triple-A level of men's tennis -- came in April. This week, Tiafoe was playing in his 17th Challenger.
The season began at Happy Valley, Australia, where the sturdily built Tiafoe lost in the first round (Fritz was the eventual winner there), then lost in the second round of qualifying at the Australian Open.
Last week, Tiafoe took the title in Stockton, California, winning $14,400 but also collecting the championship share of 100 points. That vaulted him 17 spots, into the No. 100 slot.
In the final, Tiafoe defeated Long Islander Noah Rubin, the 2014 Wimbledon junior champion. It was a potentially awkward match because they were both being coached by former U.S. professional Robby Ginepri, a three-time winner on the ATP Tour and semifinalist in the 2005 US Open. Ginepri, according to Tiafoe, recently signed a 20-week coaching deal with the USTA.
"It was weird and pretty funny, actually," Tiafoe said. "We both had a great week. Robby just told us to go out there and enjoy the battle. I was happy I played really well.
Tiafoe, who also won the Challenger in Granby, Canada, was the first teenager to win multiple titles since Fritz did it last year, at Sacramento and Fairfield. Tiafoe was also a finalist in Lexington, Kentucky, Winnetka, Illinois and Tallahassee, Florida. Each of those results netted him 48 points, helping to move him up the ladder.
His first-round match in Fairfield, against Blaz Rola, a 26-year-old from Slovakia, offered a glimpse of his improving game. A week earlier, in the first round at Stockton, Rola extended Tiafoe to three sets. On Tuesday, Tiafoe was down 3-1 in the second set and won the last six games to complete a 7-6 (6), 6-3 victory.
"I definitely served better than I did last week," Tiafoe said. "He's strong from the baseline, but I stayed tough. I knew I didn't need to be too aggressive, just solid. I was lucky to break back and win the second set."
In Wednesday's second round, Tiafoe fell to French teenager Quentin Halys, another #NextGeneration player ranked among the top 200. Halys, ranked No. 170, beat Tiafoe in three sets for the third time this year.
That illustrates the microscopic difference between players at this level. In March, Tiafoe beat Fritz in three sets at Indian Wells, but lost to him in the first round at Winston-Salem. Tiafoe's summer featured a tight loss to No. 55 Adrian Mannarino in Washington, D.C., and a first-round defeat by Isner -- in a five-set match decided by a tiebreaker.
"I've played close matches with top-50 guys," Tiafoe said. "Really believing you can do it is a big thing."
The new ranking is a goal "I've wanted to crack since I turned pro," according to Tiafoe, and it gets him very close to automatic entry into the main draw of the Australian Open. If he can gain a few more spots, he would guarantee it. To that end, he will likely play a Challenger event in Las Vegas the following week.
"That's the goal, to be in the main draw of the majors," Tiafoe said. "That's huge, moneywise and playing at that level. Hopefully, I can do well and end the year around No. 80.
"That would set me up, cruising along nicely. I feel like if I can get comfortable, I can get better winning a bunch of matches at the next level."