Tennis player at US Open declined flowers due to concerns over receiving them from person named 'Gaylord'.

Danielle Collins, a professional tennis player from St. Petersburg, Florida, recently faced a tough decision after her final match at the US Open. Despite her successful career, she has always struggled with feeling guilt around success. This was evident when she rejected a bouquet of flowers that were supposed to celebrate her last Grand Slam tournament before retirement.

After suffering a shocking defeat in the first round to fellow American Caroline Dolehide, Collins hastily left the court, leaving tournament director Stacey Allaster in an awkward position as she tried to present her with the flowers. In her post-match press conference, Collins, who is currently ranked world No.11, explained her reasoning behind rejecting the send-off.

"I'm not somebody who likes to celebrate my accomplishments," Collins said. "I've always struggled with feeling guilty about my success. I'm not comfortable with having an 'all about me' moment. I would rather do something like that in private. Besides, I feel like I've already received enough attention to last me a lifetime. It reminded me of that scene in Meet the Parents where Gaylord has a shrine with all his 18th place medals. I definitely don't want to be like Gaylord, so I think I'm good without the flowers."

Collins, who has won four WTA Tour titles and reached a career-high ranking of world No.7, is known for her impressive performances on the court. She recently clinched the Miami Open trophy earlier this year and her best Grand Slam performance to date was finishing as a runner-up at the Australian Open two years ago.

For those unfamiliar with the reference to Gaylord, he is a character from the 2000 comedy film Meet the Parents, starring Ben Stiller. The film also features other famous actors such as Robert De Niro. In the movie, Stiller's character is initially known as Greg Focker, but later reveals that his real name is Gaylord.

Meet the Parents has since spawned two sequels, Meet the Fockers and Little Fockers. Overall, Collins' decision to reject the flowers may have seemed surprising to some, but it is a reflection of her humble and grounded nature, despite her success in the sport.

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