Phil Dent

Phil Dent

Full name	Philip Clive Dent
Country (sports)	Australia
Residence	Grapevine, Texas, U.S.
Born	(1950-02-14) 14 February 1950 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Height	182 cm (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)
Turned pro	1968 (amateur from 1967)
Retired	1983
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Singles
Career record	411–348 (54.2%)
Career titles	3
Highest ranking	No. 17 (23 August 1977)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	F (1974)
French Open	SF (1977)
Wimbledon	QF (1977)
US Open	3R (1973)
Doubles
Career record	409–253 (61.8%)
Career titles	25
Highest ranking	No. 9 (23 August 1977)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	W (1975)
French Open	F (1975, 1979)
Wimbledon	F (1977)
US Open	QF (1972, 1973, 1975)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
US Open	W (1976)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (1977)

Philip Clive Dent (born 14 February 1950) is an Australian former professional tennis player. Dent's high water mark as a pro singles player was reaching the Australian Open final in 1974, which he lost to Jimmy Connors in four sets. Dent was also the men's doubles champion at the Australian Open in 1975 (with teammate John Alexander), and the mixed-doubles champion at the US Open in 1976 (with teammate Billie Jean King).

Tennis career

As well as his victory in the 1975 Australian Open doubles, Dent reached six more men's doubles finals in Grand Slam Tournaments, finishing runner-up at the Australian Open in 1970, 1973, and 1977, the French Open in 1975 and 1979 and Wimbledon in 1977. Dent was a member of the Australian tennis teams that won the Davis Cup in 1977 and the World Team Cup in 1979.

Before turning professional, Dent won the boys' singles titles at both the Australian Open tournament and at the French Open in 1968.

During his professional career, Dent won three top-level singles titles (in Sydney and in Brisbane, Australia, both in 1979, and the former also in 1971) and 25 doubles titles (also winning the 1968 Australian Hard Courts singles event in Launceston). His career-high singles ranking was world No. 12 (in 1977). Dent retired from professional tennis in 1983.

Dent defeated Björn Borg in the third round of the 1974 Australian Open, the only Australian Open in which he competed.

After retiring as a player, Dent settled in Newport Beach, California. Dent was married to Betty Ann Grubb Stuart and their son, Taylor Dent was also a professional tennis player and citizen of the United States. Phil now lives in Texas, where he, his son, and his daughter-in-law Jennifer own a tennis academy.

Grand Slam finals

Singles: (1 runner-up)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	1974	Australian Open	Grass	Jimmy Connors	6–7(7–9), 4–6, 6–4, 3–6

Doubles: (1 title, 6 runner-ups)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1970	Australian Open	Grass	John Alexander	Bob Lutz Stan Smith	3–6, 6–8, 3–6
Loss	1973	Australian Open	Grass	John Alexander	Mal Anderson John Newcombe	3–6, 4–6, 6–7
Win	1975	Australian Open	Grass	John Alexander	Bob Carmichael Allan Stone	6–3, 7–6
Loss	1975	French Open	Grass	John Alexander	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	4–6, 6–2, 2–6, 4–6
Loss	1977	Wimbledon	Grass	John Alexander	Ross Case Geoff Masters	3–6, 4–6, 6–3, 9–8(7–4), 4–6
Loss	1977	Australian Open	Grass	John Alexander	Ray Ruffels Allan Stone	6–7, 6–7
Loss	1979	French Open	Grass	Ross Case	Gene Mayer Sandy Mayer	4–6, 4–6, 4–6

Mixed doubles: (1 title)

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1976	US Open	Grass	Billie Jean King	Frew McMillan Betty Stöve	3–6, 6–2, 7–5

Grand Slam performance timeline

Key

W

F

SF

QF

#R

RR

Q#

P#

DNQ

A

Z#

PO

G

S

B

NMS

NTI

P

NH

(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Singles

Tournament	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977		1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	Career SR
Australian Open	1R	QF	2R	3R	2R	A	1R	F	2R	2R	QF	2R	2R	QF	3R	3R	4R	2R	0 / 17
French Open	A	P1	2R	3R	1R	A	3R	A	1R	A	SF		1R	1R	A	A	A	A	0 / 8
Wimbledon	A	1R	3R	2R	2R	A	A	2R	4R	4R	QF		3R	2R	4R	1R	A	A	0 / 12
US Open	A	A	1R	A	2R	1R	3R	A	2R	1R	2R		1R	1R	A	1R	1R	A	0 / 11
Strike rate	0 / 1	0 / 2	0 / 4	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 1	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 4	0 / 3	0 / 5		0 / 4	0 / 4	0 / 2	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 1	0 / 48

Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.

Career finals

Singles: 10 (3 titles / 7 runner-ups)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Jan 1971	Sydney, Australia	Grass	John Alexander	6–3, 6–4, 6–4
Loss	1–1	Jan 1974	Australian Open	Grass	Jimmy Connors	6–7(7–9), 4–6, 6–4, 3–6
Loss	1–2	Dec 1974	Sydney, Australia	Grass	Tony Roche	6–7, 6–4, 6–3, 2–6, 6–8
Loss	1–3	Feb 1976	Fort Worth WCT, U.S.	Hard (i)	Guillermo Vilas	7–6(7–4), 1–6, 1–6
Loss	1–4	Oct 1976	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	Mark Edmondson	6–3, 4–6, 4–6, 4–6
Loss	1–5	Oct 1976	Perth, Australia	Carpet	Ray Ruffels	0–6, 6–4, 6–2, 3–6, 2–6
Win	2–5	Oct 1979	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	Ross Case	7–6, 6–2, 6–3
Win	3–5	Oct 1979	Sydney, Australia	Grass	Hank Pfister	6–4, 6–4, 7–5
Loss	3–6	Feb 1980	San Juan, Puerto Rico	Hard	Raúl Ramírez	3–6, 2–6
Loss	3–7	Oct 1980	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	John McEnroe	3–6, 4–6

Doubles: 50 (25 titles / 25 runner-ups)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	0–1	Jan 1970	Australian Open, Melbourne	Grass	John Alexander	Bob Lutz Stan Smith	3–6, 6–8, 3–6
Loss	0–2	Aug 1970	Hilversum, Netherlands	Hard	John Alexander	Bill Bowrey Owen Davidson	3–6, 4–6, 2–6
Win	1–2	Aug 1970	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	John Alexander	Željko Franulović Jan Kodeš	10–8, 6–2, 6–4
Win	2–2	Jan 1971	Sydney Outdoor, Australia	Hard	John Alexander	Mal Anderson Alex Metreveli	6–7, 2–6, 6–3, 7–6, 7–6
Win	3–2	Jul 1971	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	John Alexander	John Newcombe Tom Okker	5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Win	4–2	Sep 1971	Los Angeles, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Frank Froehling Clark Graebner	7–6, 6–4
Loss	4–3	Oct 1971	Vancouver WCT, Canada	Carpet	John Alexander	Roy Emerson Rod Laver	7–5, 7–6, 0–6, 5–7, 6–7
Loss	4–4	Jul 1972	St. Louis WCT, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	John Newcombe Tony Roche	6–7, 2–6
Win	5–4	Jul 1972	Louisville WCT, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Arthur Ashe Bob Lutz	6–4, 6–3
Loss	5–5	Jan 1973	Australian Open, Melbourne	Grass	John Alexander	Mal Anderson John Newcombe	3–6, 4–6, 6–7
Win	6–5	Feb 1973	Toronto WCT, Canada	Carpet	John Alexander	Roy Emerson Rod Laver	3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–2
Loss	6–6	Apr 1973	Brussels WCT, Belgium	Carpet	John Alexander	Bob Lutz Stan Smith	4–6, 6–7
Win	7–6	Aug 1973	Cincinnati, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	1–6, 7–6, 7–6
Loss	7–7	Feb 1974	Richmond WCT, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Nikola Pilić Allan Stone	3–6, 6–3, 6–7
Win	8–7	Mar 1974	Miami WCT, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Tom Okker Marty Riessen	4–6, 6–4, 7–5
Win	9–7	Apr 1974	Monte Carlo WCT, Monaco	Clay	John Alexander	Manuel Orantes Tony Roche	7–6, 4–6, 7–6, 6–3
Win	10–7	Jan 1975	Australian Open, Melbourne	Grass	John Alexander	Bob Carmichael Allan Stone	6–3, 7–6
Loss	10–8	Feb 1975	Fort Worth WCT, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Bob Lutz Stan Smith	7–6, 6–7, 3–6
Win	11–8	Mar 1975	San Antonio WCT, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Mark Cox Cliff Drysdale	7–6, 4–6, 6–4
Loss	11–9	Apr 1975	Tokyo Indoor, Japan	Carpet	John Alexander	Bob Lutz Stan Smith	4–6, 7–6, 2–6
Win	12–9	May 1975	Las Vegas, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Bob Carmichael Cliff Drysdale	6–1, 6–4
Loss	12–10	Jun 1975	French Open, Paris	Clay	John Alexander	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	4–6, 6–2, 2–6, 4–6
Win	13–10	Jul 1975	Chicago, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Mike Cahill John Whitlinger	6–3, 6–4
Win	14–10	Aug 1975	Cincinnati, U.S.	Hard	Cliff Drysdale	Marcelo Lara Joaquín Loyo-Mayo	7–6, 6–4
Loss	14–11	Aug 1975	North Conway, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Haroon Rahim Erik van Dillen	6–7, 6–7
Win	15–11	Jan 1976	Atlanta WCT, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Wojtek Fibak Karl Meiler	6–3, 6–4
Loss	15–12	Feb 1976	St. Louis WCT, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	4–6, 2–6
Win	16–12	Apr 1976	Denver WCT, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Jimmy Connors Billy Martin	6–7, 6–2, 7–5
Loss	16–13	Sep 1976	Woodlands Doubles, Texas	Hard	Allan Stone	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	1–6, 4–6, 7–5, 6–7
Loss	16–14	Apr 1977	Jackson, U.S.	Carpet	Ken Rosewall	Bob Hewitt Frew McMillan	2–6, 6–7
Loss	16–15	Apr 1977	Houston WCT, U.S.	Hard	John Alexander	Ilie Năstase Adriano Panatta	3–6, 4–6
Loss	16–16	May 1977	Hamburg, Germany	Clay	Kim Warwick	Bob Hewitt Karl Meiler	6–3, 3–6, 4–6, 4–6
Loss	16–17	Jul 1977	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John Alexander	Ross Case Geoff Masters	3–6, 4–6, 6–3, 9–8, 4–6
Win	17–17	Aug 1977	Cincinnati, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Bob Hewitt Roscoe Tanner	6–3, 7–6
Win	18–17	Jul 1977	Washington, D.C., U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Fred McNair Sherwood Stewart	7–5, 7–5
Win	19–17	Aug 1977	Louisville, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Chris Kachel Cliff Letcher	6–1, 6–4
Loss	19–18	Dec 1977	Adelaide, Australia	Grass	John Alexander	Syd Ball Kim Warwick	6–3, 6–7, 4–6
Win	20–18	Dec 1977	Sydney Outdoor, Australia	Grass	John Alexander	Ray Ruffels Allan Stone	7–6, 2–6, 6–3
Loss	20–19	Dec 1977	Australian Open, Melbourne	Grass	John Alexander	Ray Ruffels Allan Stone	6–7, 6–7
Loss	20–20	Mar 1978	Memphis, U.S.	Carpet	John Newcombe	Brian Gottfried Raúl Ramírez	6–3, 6–7, 2–6
Win	21–20	Jul 1978	Forest Hills WCT, U.S.	Clay	John Alexander	Fred McNair Sherwood Stewart	7–6, 7–6
Win	22–20	Sep 1978	Los Angeles, U.S.	Carpet	John Alexander	Fred McNair Raúl Ramírez	6–3, 7–6
Win	23–20	Oct 1978	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	John Alexander	Syd Ball Allan Stone	6–3, 7–6
Win	24–20	Jan 1979	Hobart, Australia	Grass	Bob Giltinan	Ion Țiriac Guillermo Vilas	8–6
Loss	24–21	Apr 1979	Dayton, U.S.	Carpet	Ross Case	Cliff Drysdale Bruce Manson	6–3, 3–6, 6–7
Loss	24–22	Jun 1979	French Open, Paris	Clay	Ross Case	Gene Mayer Sandy Mayer	4–6, 4–6, 4–6
Loss	24–23	Dec 1979	Adelaide, Australia	Grass	John Alexander	Colin Dibley Chris Kachel	7–6, 6–7, 4–6
Loss	24–24	Oct 1980	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	Rod Frawley	John McEnroe Matt Mitchell	6–8
Win	25–24	Jan 1982	Guarujá, Brazil	Clay	Kim Warwick	Carlos Kirmayr Cássio Motta	6–7, 6–2, 6–3
Loss	25–25	Feb 1982	Denver, U.S.	Carpet	Kim Warwick	Kevin Curren Steve Denton	4–6, 4–6

Source: ATP

External links

• Phil Dent at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Phil Dent at World Tennis
• Phil Dent at the Davis Cup (archived)
• Phil Dent at Tennis Australia