Began playing as a young boy on his families tennis courts. He was captain of Saint John's Tennis team for four years and an intercollegiate tennis star and teacher. In 1934 there was much agitation for municipally owned tennis courts but subsided due to the policy of the Long Branch of Education in renting the courts during the summer months to Joseph De Fina who operated them and charges a nominal fee, part of which revertes to the Board of Education. During the two years he has operated the courts Saint John;s College Tennis Team and have built up a large following of young tennis players. He and his parents moved to Ocean avenue near the Monmouth Beach shore. From there he immediately became popular and obtained from the Board of Education consent to take over the courts again during the close of the school year and increased interest 25% De Fina was assistant to Charlie Wood, professional at Sommerset Hills Country Club at Bernardsville. For three years, he also worked with Frank Shives, America 10 and Davis Cup player. His most outstanding pupils have been Robert Low, National Boys Champion and Misa Hirsch, National Girls Champion As his career as intercollegiate courts broke all precedents when he held the captaincy of his college term for four straight years. He dropped only four intercollegiate matches against some of the toughest competition in the country. "According to the financial report of the Board of Education the tennis courts and those who play on them is one local enterprise that certainly "have not gone to the dogs" and the courts were occupied almost every fair day this summer and were all filled on Saturday and Sundays." Joseph De Fina was also the tennis pro and coach of Bryants High School team. Aside from being an intercollegiate tennis start, he served as officer and patron of the United States Tennis Association and helped many tennis starts as Julie Heldman, Bepe Merlo, Yvon Petra and hosts of others. Each year he hosted dozens of famous tennis players at his home in Palm Beach and Rye, New York, and was referred to as "the famous Joe De Fina" World Tennis for his generosity and coaching ability. I, his daughter, was in a graduate program in Florence, Italy, when I by chance met Bepe Merlo. When he found out that I was Joe De Fina's daughter he began to cry and said that he was the kindest, most generous man he had ever known and that the Italian Davis Cup team had never played better tennis than when they stayed with him for the month and he trained and coached them daily. I remember as child the house was always filled with international tennis star whom he coached and opened his heart and home to. He was truly a unique and great human being. He was Captain of the United States Lawn Tennis Association for the Junior International Team and the Federation Francaise de lawn tennis- USA-France. In 1956 he received recoginition from La Federazione Ilatian Cup Davis between the USA and italy. He was President of the Florida Association of the US Lawn Tennis Association and was vitally interested in junior development . He was a member of the US Davis Cup Committee and official of the International Play Committee.