Dale Power
Major Accomplishments
Former Canadian national singles and doubles champion, both indoor and outdoor, juniors and mens.
Seven-time member of the Canadian Davis Cup team.
Present Davis Cup record holder for most number of games in a set with 46.
Former No. 1 singles and doubles player for Oklahoma City University.
Served as Canada’s national touring coach for three years.
Director of tennis for The Chateau Montebello for four years.
Biography
Dale Power was ranked No. 1 in Canada in 1979 and in the Top 10 for a total of 13 times between 1968 and 1983. He was ranked No. 2 in Canada in 1975 and 1977, No. 3 in 1976 and 1978, No. 4 in 1983 and No.5 in 1972 and 1974. He was also the Canadian under 18 junior champion in 1967 and the winner of the Canadian Nationals in 1979. In doubles play, he won the Canadian Nationals in 1973 with David Brown and in 1979 with Jim Boyce.
Power played in the No. 1 singles position for the Oklahoma City University tennis team where he was inducted in the school’s Sports Hall of Fame.
At the international doubles level, with Greg Halder of Toronto, the team upset top seeds Fred McNair and Sherwood Stewart of the United States in the first round of the 1977 French Open. He competed again in doubles with Halder at the French Open in 1978, but did not make it past the first round as they lost in straight sets to Arthur Ashe and Fred McNair of the United States.
In Davis Cup action, Power still holds the international record for the most number of games played in a set in Davis Cup history. It was during a singles match in 1976 in an Americas Zone preliminary round and he was in a tight match against Columbian player Alvaro Betancur. Power came up short in the second set as he lost with a game score of 22-24. The overall five-set match score was a staggering 6-4, 22-24, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in favour of the Canadian.
During his time as a member of the Davis Cup team, Power found himself up against powerful US players four times and three times against good Mexican players. Twice he faced Australia, losing to top players, Ken Rosewall, Roy Emerson and Rod Laver and then once to Great Britain as he lost to Roger Taylor and Mike Sangster. However he had great wins over Peter Fleming and a young Yannick Noah.
Power was the coach of two former Canadian No. 1 players, Andrew Sznajder for a year-and-a-half and Martin Wostenholme. He worked with Stephane Bonneau, Hatem McDadi and Mitch Perkins when he was a Tennis Canada travelling coach for three years.
He played his first Canadian Nationals at the age of 18 and then for the last time at the age of 43. Surprisingly he was not only an accomplished tennis player, but was also an excellent hockey player as he was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens and went to their training camp before deciding to put all his concentration and effort into his tennis career.
Power is currently the head tennis professional at the Thornhill Country Club in Toronto.