Brian David Teacher (born December 23, 1954) is a former American professional male tennis player. He reached a career-high ranking World No. 7 in 1981.
Country (sports) | ![]() |
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Born | (1954-12-23) December 23, 1954 (age 67) San Diego, California |
Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
Turned pro | 1973 |
Retired | 1986 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Prize money | $1,426,514 |
Singles | |
Career record | 333–236 |
Career titles | 8 |
Highest ranking | No. 7 (October 5, 1981) |
Grand Slam singles results | |
Australian Open | W (1980) |
French Open | 3R (1978) |
Wimbledon | QF (1982) |
US Open | 4R (1978, 1980) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 220–172 |
Career titles | 16 |
Highest ranking | No. 24 (August 9, 1983) |
Teacher is best remembered for his singles championship at the Australian Open in 1980. His career-high world singles ranking was No. 7 and his world doubles ranking was No. 5, both in 1981. He won 8 career singles titles, and 16 doubles titles.
Following his playing career, he became an ATP & WTA touring coach. He currently runs the Brian Teacher Tennis Academy in South Pasadena, California.
Teacher was born in San Diego, California.[1][2][3] He attended Crawford High School in San Diego, graduating in 1972.[2] He later lived in Beverly Hills, California.[4]
In 1979 he married fellow Californian player Kathy May, also a Top 10 tennis player, and the great-granddaughter of David May, founder of The May Department Stores Company[5] (now Macy's). They subsequently divorced.[6] He later studied for his MBA at the USC Marshall School of Business.[7]
Teacher won a CIF singles title in 1972 while at Crawford High School.[8]
In 1972, he won the boys' 18 singles and doubles titles.[9] At the University of California-Los Angeles, where he studied economics, he won the Pacific-8 singles and doubles championship in 1974, was an All-American from 1973–76, and was a member of the UCLA teams that won the NCAA championship in 1975 and 1976.[7]
He reached the finals in the South Australian and New South Wales Opens in 1977. In 1978, at the Seiko World Super Tennis Tournament in Tokyo, Teacher upset UCLA graduates Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe before losing in the final to Björn Borg 6–3, 6–4.[10]
In 1980, he won the Australian Open, becoming the second Jewish player to win a men's Grand Slam Singles event (after Dick Savitt).[1] He won the final over Kim Warwick of Australia in straight sets.[11][12] With his Grand Slam victory, Teacher is one of only five American male players in the Open era to have won a single Grand Slam event (along with Michael Chang, Vitas Gerulaitis, Andy Roddick, and Roscoe Tanner). Seven more Americans have more than one Slam (Stan Smith, Arthur Ashe, Jim Courier, Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi, John McEnroe, and Pete Sampras).
His career-high world singles ranking was No. 7 and his world doubles ranking was No. 5, both in 1981.[1]
He won 8 career singles titles, and 16 doubles titles.[1]
Teacher was inducted in 2001 into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Hall of Fame,[13] in 2008 into the San Diego Tennis Hall of Fame,[14] and he is also a member of the NCAA Tennis Hall of Fame and the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.[15] In 2014 he was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.[1] In 2015, Teacher was inducted into the Southern California Tennis Association Hall of Fame.[16]
Following his playing career, he became an ATP & WTA touring coach working with, among others, Andre Agassi and Greg Rusedski.[17][18] Under his tutelage, Rusedski made a run from #85 in the world to the top ten and the U.S. Open finals. Teacher also coached world #1 doubles players Jim Grabb, Richey Reneberg, Daniel Nestor, and Max Mirnyi.[19] On the women's side, he coached WTA tour player Marissa Irvin.[20] He currently runs the Brian Teacher Tennis Academy in South Pasadena, California.[21]
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1980 | Australian Open | Grass | ![]() | 7–5, 7–6(7–4), 6–3 |
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Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1. | Sep 1976 | Newport, U.S. | Grass | ![]() |
3–6, 6–4, 3–6, 1–6 |
Loss | 2. | Jan 1977 | Adelaide, Australia | Grass | ![]() |
1–6, 4–6 |
Win | 1. | Apr 1977 | Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
6–3, 6–3 |
Loss | 3. | Dec 1977 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Grass | ![]() |
3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 7–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 4. | Oct 1978 | Tokyo Indoor, Japan | Carpet | ![]() |
3–6, 4–6 |
Win | 2. | Nov 1978 | Taipei, Taiwan | Carpet | ![]() |
6–3, 6–3, 6–3 |
Win | 3. | Jul 1979 | Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. | Grass | ![]() |
1–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
Loss | 5. | Apr 1980 | Los Angeles, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
3–6, 2–6 |
Loss | 6. | Nov 1980 | Hong Kong | Hard | ![]() |
7–5, 6–7, 3–6 |
Loss | 7. | Nov 1980 | Taipei, Taiwan | Carpet | ![]() |
7–6, 3–6, 3–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 8. | Nov 1980 | Bangkok, Thailand | Carpet | ![]() |
3–6, 5–7 |
Loss | 9. | Dec 1980 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Grass | ![]() |
3–6, 7–6, 6–7 |
Win | 4. | Dec 1980 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | ![]() |
7–5, 7–6, 6–3 |
Win | 5. | Aug 1981 | Columbus, Ohio, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
6–3, 6–2 |
Loss | 10. | Sep 1981 | San Francisco, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
3–6, 6–7 |
Loss | 11. | Sep 1982 | Maui, Hawaii, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
2–6, 3–6 |
Win | 6. | Dec 1982 | Dortmund WCT, Germany | Carpet | ![]() |
6–7, 6–4, 6–4, 2–6, 6–4 |
Win | 7. | Mar 1983 | Munich WCT, Germany | Carpet | ![]() |
1–6, 6–4, 6–2, 6–3 |
Win | 8. | Aug 1983 | Columbus, Ohio, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
7–6, 6–4 |
Loss | 12. | Sep 1983 | Dallas, Texas, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
7–6, 1–6, 1–6 |
Loss | 13. | Jun 1984 | Bristol, U.K. | Grass | ![]() |
7–6, 6–7, 4–6 |
Loss | 14. | Jul 1984 | Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | ![]() |
4–6, 2–6 |
Loss | 15. | Jul 1985 | Livingston, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
6–7, 4–6 |
Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1. | 1976 | Columbus, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–3, 6–4 |
Loss | 1. | 1978 | Miami, U.S. | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–7, 3–6 |
Win | 2. | 1978 | Manila, Philippines | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–3, 7–6 |
Loss | 2. | 1979 | Washington Indoor, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
4–6, 5–7, 6–3, 6–7 |
Loss | 3. | 1979 | Stuttgart Indoor, Germany | Hard (i) | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
3–6, 7–5, 6–7 |
Win | 3. | 1980 | Washington-2, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
4–6, 6–3, 7–6 |
Loss | 4. | 1980 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
4–6, 3–6 |
Win | 4. | 1980 | Los Angeles, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–2, 6–4 |
Loss | 5. | 1980 | Columbus, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
4–6, 2–6 |
Win | 5. | 1980 | Toronto, Canada | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–3, 3–6, 6–4 |
Win | 6. | 1980 | Cincinnati, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–7, 7–5, 6–4 |
Loss | 6. | 1980 | Hong Kong | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
5–7, 2–6 |
Win | 7. | 1980 | Taipei, Taiwan | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–4, 6–0 |
Win | 8. | 1980 | Bangkok, Thailand | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
7–6, 7–6 |
Win | 9. | 1981 | La Quinta, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
7–6, 6–2 |
Win | 10. | 1981 | Frankfurt, Germany | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
7–5, 6–7, 7–5 |
Win | 11. | 1981 | London/Queen's Club, U.K. | Grass | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
3–6, 7–6, 11–9 |
Win | 12. | 1981 | Columbus, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–1, 6–1 |
Loss | 7. | 1982 | Los Angeles, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
1–6, 7–6, 3–6 |
Win | 13. | 1982 | Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–3, 6–1 |
Win | 14. | 1982 | San Francisco, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–7, 6–2, 7–5 |
Loss | 8. | 1983 | Richmond, Virginia, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
2–6, 4–6 |
Win | 15. | 1983 | Columbus, U.S. | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–1, 4–6, 7–6 |
Win | 16. | 1983 | Johannesburg, South Africa | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–7, 7–6, 6–2 |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Tournament | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | SR | W–L |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Open | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | W | A | QF | 3R | 3R | A | A | A | 1 / 5 | 15–4 |
French Open | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 3R | 2R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 3 | 4–3 |
Wimbledon | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 2R | 4R | 3R | 2R | QF | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | Q2 | 0 / 11 | 15–11 |
US Open | PR* | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 4R | 1R | 4R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 1R | A | 0 / 15 | 14–15 |
Win–loss | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–4 | 6–3 | 10–3 | 12–2 | 2–2 | 9–3 | 4–3 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1 / 34 | 53–33 |
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