Introduction
Horst Skoff (22 August 1968 – 7 June 2008) was a professional tennis player from Austria, who won four tournaments at the top-level.
Skoff was born in Klagenfurt, Austria, and turned professional in 1985. He won his first top-level singles title in 1988 at Athens. Over the course of his career he won four top-level singles titles and two tour doubles titles. His career-high rankings were World Number 18 in singles and World Number 70 in doubles. His career prize money totalled US$1,651,858.
Skoff played on Austria's Davis Cup team for nine years, compiling a 22–17 win-loss record. He helped the team reach the World Group semi-finals in 1990. Memorable Davis Cup rubbers which Skoff was involved in include a five-set win over Mats Wilander in the 1989 quarterfinal; and a five-set loss to Michael Chang in the 1990 semifinal.
Despite Skoff's relative success during his career of winning four top-level tournaments, his memorable Davis Cup moments, and reaching a career high world ranking of 18 in singles competition, he never managed to progress beyond the second round at any Grand Slam event.
Skoff played in his last top-level tournament in August 1995, at the San Marino Open. From 1996–1999, with his world ranking having gone well down, Skoff played in challenger and futures tournaments. He retired in August 1999, after playing his last match in Sylt, Germany.
Skoff died on June 7, 2008 in Hamburg, Germany, following a heart attack. He was 39.
Singles titles
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in final | Score in final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 1988 | Athens | Clay |  Bruno Orešar | 6–3, 2–6, 6–2 |
| 2. | 1988 | Vienna | Carpet (i) |  Thomas Muster | 4–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–2 |
| 3. | 1990 | Geneva | Clay |  Sergi Bruguera | 7–6(10–8), 7–6(7–4) |
| 4. | 1993 | Båstad | Clay |  Ronald Agénor | 7–5, 1–6, 6–0 |