Country (sports) | United States |
---|---|
Residence | College Station, Texas, U.S. |
Born | Kingsville, Texas, U.S. | September 5, 1956
Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) |
Turned pro | 1978 |
Retired | 1987 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
College | University of Texas |
Prize money | $1,084,664 |
Singles | |
Career record | 108–116 (Grand Prix, WCT and Grand Slam level, and Davis Cup) |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 12 (April 18, 1983) |
Grand Slam singles results | |
Australian Open | F (1981, 1982) |
French Open | 1R (1982, 1984) |
Wimbledon | 4R (1982) |
US Open | 4R (1982) |
Other tournaments | |
Tour Finals | 1R (1982) |
WCT Finals | QF (1983) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 325–198 (Grand Prix, WCT and Grand Slam level, and Davis Cup) |
Career titles | 18 |
Highest ranking | No. 2 (August 15, 1983) |
Grand Slam doubles results | |
Australian Open | F (1983) |
French Open | QF (1984) |
Wimbledon | SF (1982, 1983) |
US Open | W (1982) |
Other doubles tournaments | |
Tour Finals | F (1982) |
Steve Denton (born September 5, 1956) is a former professional tennis player. He is currently the head men's tennis coach at Texas A&M University.
After becoming an all-American at the University of Texas in 1978, Denton spent nine seasons playing for the ATP Tour. He reached the final of both the 1981 and 1982 Australian Open, and won the 1982 US Open doubles championship with Kevin Curren, attaining career-high rankings of World No. 12 in singles and World No. 2 in doubles. He won a total of 18 tour level doubles titles and, despite reaching 6 finals, never won a singles title. In 1984, his 138 miles per hour (222 km/h) serve broke the world record, which would not be broken until 13 years later. After retiring from the pros, he moved to Corpus Christi, Texas, coaching several local junior tennis teams. In 2001, he debuted his college coaching career at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi, where he led his teams to three conference championships and a first-ever NCAA tournament appearance. In 2006, he resigned to become the head coach at Texas A&M University.
For his accomplishments, he is a member of the ITA Hall of Fame, the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame, the Blue-Gray Tennis Class Hall of Fame, and the Longhorn Hall of Honor.
Denton attended Bishop High School in Bishop, Texas. As a prep, he won four consecutive UIL state 3A singles titles. He then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he played tennis from 1976–79. He earned all-American honors in 1978. Along with teammate Kevin Curren, he won the U.S. Tennis Association amateur indoor and SWC doubles title in 1979. He completed his college career with an 85–22 singles record, which currently ranks third all-time in school history. He also compiled a 72–18 doubles record, and a 78–27 team record. For his collegiate and professional accomplishments, he was inducted into the Longhorn Hall of Honor in 2006. [1]
Denton was ranked as high as World No. 12 on the ATP rankings in singles and No. 2 in doubles, both in 1983. Denton was known for his big serve and employed an unusual service motion which involved taking two steps forward prior to striking the ball. Current ATP rules prohibit such a motion (or any service motion involving a running or walking start). In 1984, Denton set a service record of 138 mph (222 km/h) that would stand for 13 years until it was broken in 1997 by Mark Philippoussis who recorded a 142 mph (229 km/h) delivery. The current record of 163 mph (262 km/h) is held by Sam Groth.
He reached six singles finals, most notably the Australian Open (in 1981 and 1982) and the Cincinnati Masters (in 1982). He also won 18 doubles titles (including the US Open and the Canada Masters) in 1982, and reaching 23 additional doubles finals.
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1981 | Australian Open | Grass | Johan Kriek | 6–2, 7–6, 6–7, 6–4 |
Loss | 1982 | Australian Open (2) | Grass | Johan Kriek | 6–3, 6–3, 6–2 |
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1982 | US Open | Grass | Kevin Curren | Victor Amaya Hank Pfister | 6–2, 6–7, 5–7, 6–2, 6–4 |
Loss | 1983 | Australian Open | Grass | Sherwood Stewart | Mark Edmondson Paul McNamee | 6–3, 7–6 |
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1983 | Wimbledon | Grass | Billie Jean King | John Lloyd Wendy Turnbull | 6–7, 7–6, 7–5 |
Loss | 1983 | US Open | Grass | JoAnne Russell | Anne Smith Kevin Curren | 6–4, 7–6 |
Loss | 1984 | Wimbledon (2) | Grass | Kathy Jordan | John Lloyd Wendy Turnbull | 6–3, 6–3 |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Tournament | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | SR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Open | Q3 | F | F | 3R | 1R | 2R | NH | 1R | A | 0 / 6 |
French Open | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 2 |
Wimbledon | Q2 | 1R | 4R | 1R | 1R | 2R | Q2 | Q2 | Q2 | 0 / 5 |
US Open | A | 1R | 4R | 3R | 2R | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 5 |
Strike rate | 0 / 0 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 18 |
Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1. | 1979 | Hong Kong | Carpet | Mark Turpin | Pat Du Pré Robert Lutz | 3–6, 4–6 |
Win | 1. | 1980 | Denver, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Wojtek Fibak Heinz Günthardt | 7–5, 6–2 |
Loss | 2. | 1980 | Washington-2, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Ferdi Taygan Brian Teacher | 6–4, 3–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 3. | 1980 | North Conway, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Jimmy Connors Brian Gottfried | 6–7, 2–6 |
Win | 2. | 1980 | Indianapolis, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Wojtek Fibak Ivan Lendl | 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 |
Win | 3. | 1980 | Barcelona, Spain | Clay | Ivan Lendl | Pavel Složil Balázs Taróczy | 6–2, 6–7, 6–3 |
Win | 4. | 1980 | Basel, Switzerland | Hard (i) | Kevin Curren | Bob Hewitt Frew McMillan | 6–7, 6–4, 6–4 |
Loss | 4. | 1980 | Bologna, Italy | Carpet | Paul McNamee | Balázs Taróczy Butch Walts | 6–2, 3–6, 0–6 |
Win | 5. | 1981 | Monterrey WCT, Mexico | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Johan Kriek Russell Simpson | 7–6, 6–3 |
Loss | 5. | 1981 | Brussels, Belgium | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Sandy Mayer Frew McMillan | 6–4, 3–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 6. | 1981 | London/Queen's Club, England | Grass | Kevin Curren | Pat Du Pré Brian Teacher | 6–3, 6–7, 9–11 |
Win | 6. | 1981 | Indianapolis, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Raúl Ramírez Van Winitsky | 6–3, 5–7, 7–5 |
Win | 7. | 1981 | Vienna, Austria | Hard (i) | Tim Wilkison | Sammy Giammalva Jr. Fred McNair | 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
Win | 8. | 1981 | Stockholm, Sweden | Hard (i) | Kevin Curren | Sherwood Stewart Ferdi Taygan | 6–7, 6–4, 6–0 |
Loss | 7. | 1982 | Masters Doubles WCT, London | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Heinz Günthardt Balázs Taróczy | 7–6, 3–6, 5–7, 4–6 |
Win | 9. | 1982 | Denver, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Phil Dent Kim Warwick | 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 10. | 1982 | Memphis, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Peter Fleming John McEnroe | 7–6, 4–6, 6–2 |
Loss | 8. | 1982 | Munich-2 WCT, Germany | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Mark Edmondson Tomáš Šmíd | 6–4, 5–7, 2–6 |
Win | 11. | 1982 | Frankfurt, Germany | Carpet | Mark Edmondson | Tony Giammalva Tim Mayotte | 6–7, 6–3, 6–3 |
Win | 12. | 1982 | Houston, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Mark Edmondson Peter McNamara | 7–5, 6–4 |
Win | 13. | 1982 | Toronto, Canada | Hard | Kevin Curren | Peter Fleming John McEnroe | 6–7, 7–5, 6–2 |
Loss | 9. | 1982 | Cincinnati, U.S. | Hard | Mark Edmondson | Peter Fleming John McEnroe | 2–6, 3–6 |
Win | 14. | 1982 | US Open, New York | Hard | Kevin Curren | Victor Amaya Hank Pfister | 6–2, 6–7, 5–7, 6–2, 6–4 |
Loss | 10. | 1982 | Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard (i) | Mark Edmondson | John McEnroe Peter Rennert | 3–6, 6–7 |
Win | 15. | 1983 | Philadelphia, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Peter Fleming John McEnroe | 6–4, 7–6 |
Win | 16. | 1983 | Munich WCT, Germany | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Heinz Günthardt Balázs Taróczy | 7–5, 2–6, 6–1 |
Win | 17. | 1983 | Houston WCT, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Mark Dickson Tomáš Šmíd | 7–6, 6–7, 6–1 |
Win | 18. | 1983 | Las Vegas, U.S. | Hard | Kevin Curren | Tracy Delatte Johan Kriek | 6–3, 7–5 |
Loss | 11. | 1983 | Forest Hills WCT, U.S. | Clay | Kevin Curren | Tracy Delatte Johan Kriek | 7–6, 5–7, 3–6 |
Loss | 12. | 1983 | London/Queen's Club, England | Grass | Kevin Curren | Brian Gottfried Paul McNamee | 4–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 13. | 1983 | Dallas, U.S. | Hard | Sherwood Stewart | Nduka Odizor Van Winitsky | 3–6, 5–7 |
Loss | 14. | 1983 | Tokyo Indoor, Japan | Carpet | John Fitzgerald | Mark Edmondson Sherwood Stewart | 1–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 15. | 1983 | Wembley, England | Carpet | Sherwood Stewart | Peter Fleming John McEnroe | 3–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 16. | 1983 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | Sherwood Stewart | Mark Edmondson Paul McNamee | 3–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 17. | 1984 | Richmond WCT, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | John McEnroe Patrick McEnroe | 6–7, 2–6 |
Loss | 18. | 1984 | Brussels, Belgium | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Tim Gullikson Tom Gullikson | 4–6, 7–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 19. | 1984 | Milan, Italy | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd | 4–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 20. | 1985 | Memphis, U.S. | Carpet | Kevin Curren | Pavel Složil Tomáš Šmíd | 6–1, 3–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 21. | 1985 | Atlanta, U.S. | Carpet | Tomáš Šmíd | Paul Annacone Christo van Rensburg | 4–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 22. | 1987 | Cincinnati, U.S. | Hard | John Fitzgerald | Ken Flach Robert Seguso | 5–7, 3–6 |
Loss | 23. | 1988 | Tokyo Outdoor, Japan | Hard | David Pate | John Fitzgerald Johan Kriek | 4–6, 7–6, 4–6 |
Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1. | 1981 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | Johan Kriek | 2–6, 6–7, 7–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 2. | 1982 | Metz, France | Hard (i) | Erick Iskersky | 4–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 3. | 1982 | Cincinnati, U.S. | Hard | Ivan Lendl | 2–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 4. | 1982 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | Johan Kriek | 3–6, 3–6, 2–6 |
Loss | 5. | 1983 | Richmond WCT, U.S. | Carpet | Guillermo Vilas | 3–6, 5–7, 4–6 |
Loss | 6. | 1984 | Richmond WCT, U.S. | Carpet | John McEnroe | 3–6, 6–7 |
Denton made his first head coaching debut at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi in 2001. In his five seasons there, he led the Islanders to three Southland Conference regular-season championships, two tournament championships, and the team's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. He was named Southland Conference Coach of the Year twice, in 2004 and 2005. He finished with a 64–48 overall record. [2]
On August 8, 2006, Denton became the head men's tennis coach at Texas A&M University. After struggling for two years in Big 12 Conference play, Denton led the Aggies to a 5-1 conference record and 2nd-place finish in his third year, earning Big 12 Coach of the Year honors. [3]
Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Texas A&M–Corpus Christi Islanders (Southland Conference)(2001–2006) | |||||||||
2001–2002 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 8–12 | |||||||
2002–2003 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 13–9 | |||||||
2003–2004 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 14–7 | 1st | ||||||
2004–2005 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 19–8 | 6–0 | 1st | NCAA Second Round | ||||
2005–2006 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 10–12 | 5–1 | 1st | |||||
Texas A&M–Corpus Christi: | 64–48 | ||||||||
Texas A&M Aggies (Big 12 Conference)(2006–present) | |||||||||
2006–2007 | Texas A&M | 15–12 | 1–5 | 7th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
2007–2008 | Texas A&M | 13–12 | 2–4 | 5th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
2008–2009 | Texas A&M | 17–9 | 5–1 | 2nd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
2009–2010 | Texas A&M | 25–7 | 5–1 | 2nd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
2010–2011 | Texas A&M | 29–6 | 5–1 | 2nd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
Texas A&M: | 99–46 | 18–12 | |||||||
Total: | 163–94 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion |
Brian David Teacher is an American former professional tennis player. He reached career-high rankings of world No. 7 in singles and world No. 5 in doubles, both in 1981. Teacher is best remembered for being a major singles champion, triumphing at the 1980 Australian Open. He won eight career singles titles and 16 doubles titles.
Brian Edward Gottfried is a retired American tennis player who won 25 singles titles and 54 doubles titles during his professional career. He was the runner-up in singles at the 1977 French Open, won the 1975 and 1977 French Open Doubles as well as the 1976 Wimbledon Doubles. He achieved a career-high singles ranking on the ATP tour on June 19, 1977, when he became world No. 3, and a career-high doubles ranking on December 12, 1976, when he became world No. 2.
Bryan Shelton is an American former college tennis coach and former professional tennis player. During his playing career, he won two singles and two doubles ATP tour titles, and reached the mixed doubles final at the 1992 French Open, partnering Lori McNeil. Shelton played collegiately for Georgia Tech from 1985 to 1988, and then played professionally from 1989 to 1997.
Brad Pearce is a former tennis player from the United States, who turned professional in 1986. He won four doubles titles during his career. The right-hander reached his highest singles ATP ranking on October 8, 1990, when he became the World No. 71.
Matt Anger is an American former professional tennis player. He is now the head men's tennis coach at the University of Washington.
The Texas A&M Aggies are the students, graduates, and sports teams of Texas A&M University. The nickname "Aggie" was once common at land-grant or "ag" (agriculture) schools in many states. The teams are also simply referred to as "A&M" or "Texas Aggies," and the official school colors are maroon and white. The mascot is a rough collie named Reveille.
Matt Mitchell is a retired American tennis player who played from 1974 to 1987. As a doubles pro, he was once the world's 30th-best. As an amateur, he won two NCAA championships and earned a place in two halls of fame.
Grover Conner “Ox” Emerson was an American football player.
Steve "Lightning" Krulevitz is an American-Israeli former professional tennis player, and current coach. Playing for UCLA, he was an All-American. He won gold medals for the United States in singles and doubles at the 1977 Maccabiah Games in Israel. He played # 1 for the Israel Davis Cup team from 1978–80. His highest world singles ranking was No. 70. He was in the bottom of the top 100 on the men’s tour from 1974 to 1983.
Michael E. Leach is a former collegiate and ATP Tour professional tennis player who won the NCAA singles championship in 1982 while attending the University of Michigan.
Ryan Sachire is currently the Callaghan Family Head Men's Tennis Coach at the University of Notre Dame. He was previously an American professional tennis player who captured 2 ATP Challenger doubles titles.
William E. Murphy was a Navy Cross winner in World War II, an American Championship tennis player and university coach.
Chester "Chet" Murphy was an American tennis player, coach, instructor and author. In 1938 and 1939, Murphy and his twin brother, William, won consecutive Big Ten Conference doubles championships while competing for the University of Chicago. In 1939, he was also the runner-up in the NCAA singles and doubles championships. Murphy later had a long career as a tennis coach and instructor at the University of Minnesota, the University of California, Berkeley and The Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs. He has also published several books on tennis.
Dick Gould is an American tennis coach. He was the Men's Tennis Coach at Stanford University for 38 years from 1966 to 2004. His Stanford men's tennis teams won 17 NCAA Men's Tennis Championships, and 50 of his players won All-American honors. He was named the ITA-Wilson "Coach of the Decade" both for the 1980s and the 1990s.
Robert Rhyne Williams is a former American tennis player and current tennis coach. He played his last ATP match in 2018, and is coaching fellow collegiate player Dominik Koepfer, and Zachary Svajda.
David DiLucia is a former professional tennis player from the United States.
Erick Iskersky is a former professional tennis player from the United States and a three time All-American at Trinity University in Texas.
Stephen L. "Steve" Wilkinson was an American tennis player and tennis coach. As the head coach of Gustavus Adolphus College men's tennis team from 1971 till 2009, Wilkinson was the coach with most wins in the history of collegiate men’s tennis (929). He was also the No. 1 player in the United States in the 45-, 50-, 55-, and 60-and-over age groups, represented the US team in Dubler Cup, Perry Cup and Austria Cup and was a world team champion in 1989 (Uruguay) and word silver medalist 1992 (Germany). Wilkinson was inducted into United States Professional Tennis Association’s Hall of Fame, the USTA Missouri Valley Hall of Fame and the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.
Clifford "Cliff" Skakle is a former professional tennis player from the United States. He was born in Buxton, North Carolina to Intercollegiate Tennis Association Hall of Fame Coach Don Skakle and Sybil Skakle. When Cliff was two, the family moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where Don served as head coach of the men's tennis team at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill (UNC).
Eliot Spizzirri is an American tennis player. Spizzirri has a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 223 achieved on November 18, 2024, and a doubles ranking of No. 322 achieved on November 11, 2024.