His resume ends simply: "Dennis has taught more people how to play tennis than anyone in the history of the game."

If so, his record is raging. At age 70, he still teaches at Van der Meer Tennis Academy, based in Hilton Head Island, S.C. — "Everyday."

"Your students enjoy it, you try to make it fun for them," Van der Meer says. "If they enjoy it, I enjoy it."

He is here for the 17th annual USTA/Hawai'i Pacific Section Tennis Weekend at Ala Moana Park tomorrow and Sunday. "Celebrating Tennis In The Park" will try to capture all the game has to offer and new players. There will be free clinics, competition and exhibits, nearly all free to the public.

"It seems to relate to almost every part of tennis," Van der Meer says. "No. 1, it's looking at how to influence beginning players to start playing; No. 2, how to get people to keep playing; and No. 3, trying to improve the level of social players so they remain players for life."

He started in Namibia — formerly Southwest Africa — where he grew up. His father was a missionary and the tennis coach that changed his life was from Czechoslovakia. Van der Meer met some Americans at the University of Capetown, liked what he heard and moved to the U.S. in 1960.

He has been teaching since, to everyone from 2-year-olds to Billie Jean King.

"To me, she is the epitome of a tennis player," Van der Meer says. "We've been friends a very long time. Her enthusiasm reminds me that this is what we all should be doing on the court."

Van der Meer's teaching has taken some radical turns, particularly two years ago when he started using the Speed Ball with all beginners. The foam ball weighs the same as a tennis ball but is twice the size and goes half the distance.

He says the ball allows beginners to immediately hit hard and have success. Van der Meer believes it solves the problem of players reverting to a cautious game when they get nervous. It also allows him to teach topspin immediately.

The basics have remained the same for 43 years.

The most critical element is to develop the ability to keep the ball in the court. "If you learn by instinct," Van der Meer says, "the technique you use is quite often comfortable for the initial introduction, but you cannot make progress."

He starts a novice with the volley. Once players get comfortable hitting from a short distance apart, they move back.

He advances to the forehand, teaching the looping topspin from the start. Next comes backhand, both two-handed, because it is "simplest," and one-handed, "because if you can't play balls into your body you can never play pro tennis."

"The focus primarily is to get the hips around," Van der Meer says. "Most often people just hit the backhand with their arm and it doesn't work."

He moves to the serve, starting players on top of the net and letting them move back one step after every serve that goes in.

Footwork is the final phase, and the part of the game that has changed the most the past decade.

"The game has changed tremendously," Van der Meer says. "If you're a tennis teacher and still teach the way you did initially, your students will be very unhappy. Nothing stands still.

"Look at golf. It had a very static technique and now it's far more dynamic. Tennis is the same thing. The players are much more athletic and because we understand the use of momentum we can teach much more quickly. But the basics will always be the same."