As rising stars on the junior tennis circuit, the Bryans were split up by coaches during road trips. The coaches eventually surrendered when they found the boys sleeping in the same room each morning. And university housing officials assigned the brothers to dormitories at opposite ends of campus when they were freshmen at Stanford in the fall of 1996. Midway through the year, Bob — disliking his roommate, his dorm and the dining hall — got a futon and moved most of his belongings into Mike's room.

"We're not used to being apart," Mike said. "It was hard for him to be a mile apart and not seeing me for a day at Stanford. We've only been separated once, for two weeks, when I was injured and couldn't go to Europe for junior French [Open] and Wimbledon in 1996."

They're twins, best friends and doubles partners. They are coached by their parents — Wayne, who had a brief pro tennis career, and Kathy, a former Wimbledon doubles semifinalist. On road trips, they share suitcases and clothes. On tennis courts, they often wear identical outfits and have similar styles, except Bob is left-handed and Mike is right-handed. The 20-year-old twins, who grew up in Camarillo, Calif., will continue to spend almost each moment of their lives together because both turned pro last month after brilliant sophomore seasons at Stanford and are in Washington to compete in their first ATP Tour event, the Legg Mason Tennis Classic.

Rockville's Paul Goldstein, a teammate of the Bryans at Stanford, hopes people will respect their individuality and not automatically assume they are completely identical. "They're going to be marketed as a pair, because they do everything together, they've play doubles together since they were 3 years old, and if you watch them play ... they play almost identically," Goldstein said. "But they really are individuals."

On a 1998 Stanford team some observers consider the best college team ever, the Bryans were key components, especially as individuals. Mike won the decisive match that enabled the Cardinal to claim its fourth consecutive NCAA title, and Bob became the second player to earn the NCAA tennis triple crown, winning the team, singles and doubles titles. Their doubles title was basically a given, but it was also historic. They became the second set of brothers to win it since Robert and Tom Falkenberg of Southern Cal accomplished the feat in 1946. Their hot streak has continued after their departure from Stanford. They come into the Legg Mason with a 14-0 doubles record as pros. They won lower-level events in Waco, Tex., Tulsa, and Aptos, Calif. After the Legg Mason, they will play in several events leading up to the U.S. Open, where their NCAA singles and doubles titles will come in handy. Bob earned a wild-card to compete in singles and doubles with his brother who will try to qualify for the singles' draw.

Tom Gullikson, himself a twin, is optimistic about the Bryans' futures. He says both players have top 20 potential in singles, but he expects doubles success to come first. "I think they can make an immediate impact on the doubles scene," Gullikson said during a conference call last month. "I look forward to working with the guys."

Tim and Tom Gullikson have been very influential in the Bryans' lives, serving as mentors and role models. Wayne Bryan, their father, heeded Tom's advice about pitting the two boys against one another. He said, "When the boys were 6 and getting into some finals against each other, I asked [Tom Gullikson], 'Should they play each other as competitors in the finals, or should we have one default to the other?' Tom said they definitely should not play."

According to Wayne Bryan, Tom Gullikson said he and Tim — who died of brain cancer in 1996 — played against each other as youngsters, and the battles hurt their relationship in some ways. So as the Bryan brothers began to reach finals against one another, their father forced them to default the matches, alternating who officially claimed the titles. Wayne said the boys defaulted over 80 finals during their junior tennis days.

But when Wayne decided his sons were old enough to handle playing each other, they continued their childhood tradition. Since turning 16, they have met 16 times, although not as collegians or pros. The series is tied at eight.