Best for a serious young tennis player whose family will join a Keller racquet club for pro coaching.

Tennis
Recreational & CompetitiveStrength & ConditioningLocally-Owned
Group & privateIndoor & outdoorSummer campsMembershipSession-basedBy appointmentDrop-inSeasonal leaguePaid trialYear-round
(817) 431-2000
membership@thebirch.com
660 Keller Smithfield Rd, Keller, TX 76248
Thu · 7AM – 9PM
Monday7AM – 9PM
Tuesday7AM – 9PM
Wednesday7AM – 9PM
Thursday7AM – 9PM
Friday7AM – 9PM
Saturday7AM – 5PM
Sunday9AM – 5PM
$15 - $800

$15 - $800

A membership club: $350 initiation and a 12-month contract, then monthly dues by tier.

  • Monthly dues: Junior (18 and under) $75, Individual $180, Family $280.
  • Junior classes are priced as a membership add-on or a guest rate: Red and Orange run about Jr. Membership + $40-$50/month (guest $80-$130), Green and Prep about Jr. Membership + $140/month (guest $200).
  • Elite is drop-in and billed per clinic — $30/class member, $35 non-member, $25 for players on a high-school team.
  • The Full-Time Academy is $45/day member drop-in, $60/day non-member, or $750/month unlimited (members only).
  • Guest policy: five visits allowed — the first carries no guest fee (activity charges still apply), visits two through five are $15 each.
  • Individual lesson rates are quoted on request.
  • The Homeschool Team Tennis program is $800 per player per 10-week season (Fall and Winter).
Class days & times

What's offered

The Dent Tennis Academy junior program is a ball-color pathway:

  • Red Ball — ages 4-8, 36' court, Tue/Thu plus Fri and Sat mornings.
  • Orange and Orange Advanced — ages 8-10, 60' court.
  • Green Ball — ages 9-12, Mon/Wed plus Saturday.
  • Prep 1 & 2 — ages 11+, full 78' court, for older beginners.

Above that sit the competitive tracks: Elite, an after-school program meeting three times a week for tournament players (a 2 UTR or higher expected), and the Full-Time Academy, which trains on court weekday afternoons (roughly 1-4pm) with the Dent family.

Adults have co-ed and ladies drills by skill level, private and semi-private lessons offered year-round, and league play (Men's year-round; Ladies around the USTA/TCD/NETT seasons), plus member mixers, tournaments, and social events.

A Homeschool Team Tennis program for middle- and high-school players runs two 10-week seasons a year, Fall and Winter, with the Fall season starting in mid-August; high-schoolers practice Monday and Wednesday 1–3 PM and middle-schoolers Tuesday and Thursday 1–3 PM. Summer camps run from late May through early August (see Camps).

Programming runs out of a membership club, so most classes assume a junior, individual, or family membership or a guest fee.

Weekly classes

Preschool4
  • Red BallTue, Thu · 3:30pm–4:30pm · ages 4–8
  • Red BallFri · 9am–10am · ages 4–8
  • Red BallFri · 4pm–5pm · ages 4–8
  • Red BallSat · 9am–10am · ages 4–8
Elementary8
  • Orange BallTue, Thu · 4:30pm–5:30pm · ages 8–10
  • Orange BallFri · 9am–10am · ages 8–10
  • Orange BallFri · 5pm–6pm · ages 8–10
  • Orange BallSat · 10am–11am · ages 8–10
  • Orange BallTue, Thu · 5:30pm–6:30pm · ages 8–10 · Advanced
  • Green BallMon, Wed · 4:30pm–6pm · ages 9–12
  • Green BallFri · 11am–12pm · ages 9–12
  • Green BallSat · 11am–12pm · ages 9–12
Tween3
  • Prep 1Mon, Wed · 6pm–7:30pm · ages 11+
  • Prep 2Mon, Wed · 6pm–7:30pm · ages 11+
  • EliteMon, Tue, Thu · 5pm–7pm · ages 12+
Other ages1
  • Full Time AcademyMon–Fri · 1pm–4pm
4 Camps Concluded
  • Jun 1–5 · Red / Orange BallConcluded · 9am–1pm · $255/wk member, $370/wk non-member
  • Jun 22–26 · Orange Advanced / Green BallConcluded · 9am–1pm · $255/wk member, $370/wk non-member
  • Jul 6–10 · Red / Orange BallConcluded · 9am–1pm · $255/wk member, $370/wk non-member
  • Jul 20–24 · Orange Advanced / Green BallConcluded · 9am–1pm · $255/wk member, $370/wk non-member
  • Jun 15–19 · Tournament Prep (ages 11+)Concluded · 11am–5pm · ages 11+ · $395 member, $450 non-member
  • Jul 13–17 · Tournament Prep (ages 11+)Concluded · 11am–5pm · ages 11+ · $395 member, $450 non-member
  • May 26 – Aug 7 · Champions Camp - high-performance (morning)Concluded · 7am–10am · Drop-in: members $45, non-members $50
  • May 26 – Aug 7 · Champions Camp - high-performance (afternoon)Concluded · 1pm–4pm · Drop-in: members $50, non-members $65

Cost · Priced by membership. Red/Orange/Green camp: $255/week member, $370/week non-member (lunch and T-shirt included). Tournament Prep: $395 member, $450 non-member per week. Champions Camp drop-in: full day $85 member / $100 non-member, or a single morning or afternoon session $45–$65.

Details

Summer camps run at The Birch (register online at thebirch.com; registration opens April 1). A Red/Orange/Green skills camp (9 AM–1 PM) runs four weeks; a Tournament Prep camp for ages 11+ (11 AM–5 PM) runs two weeks; and a high-performance Champions Camp runs May 26–August 7 with morning (7–10 AM) and afternoon (1–4 PM) sessions.

Our take

Dent Tennis Academy is the instruction side of The Birch Racquet and Lawn Club, a Keller tennis club the Dent family opened in 2020. The distinction to understand up front is that this is a membership club, not a drop-in program: you join, and the junior academy runs inside it. If your kid is serious about tennis, that's the trade being offered — club-level courts and family coaching in exchange for joining.

The junior pathway is built by ball color, which is how younger players ramp up. Red Ball starts kids around age four on a short court with low-bounce balls; Orange and Green step up the court size and pace; Prep is the on-ramp for older beginners on a full court. From there the program forks into its competitive tracks — an after-school Elite group for players already in tournaments, and a Full-Time Academy that trains on court through the weekday afternoons with the Dents. The academy leans hard toward development and competition: the club says its coaches have played at the Grand Slam level, and Taylor Dent is billed as a former world No. 21.

It isn't only juniors. The Birch is a full club — adult drills by level, private lessons, men's and ladies' league play, member mixers and tournaments, a fitness area and a café — with five indoor and ten outdoor courts. Who it isn't for: a family that wants a single weekly class without joining a club, or a casual once-in-a-while hit. The model here is membership and a pathway, and it's priced and structured that way.

Local Tips

The Birch is in Keller, at 660 Keller Smithfield Road — a drive from Southlake, not a Southlake address. The membership structure is the thing to sort out before you enroll:

  • Dues run by tier — Junior, Individual, and Family — on top of a one-time initiation fee and a twelve-month contract. Junior classes cost less once you're a member; non-members pay a higher guest rate.
  • If you want to try it first, the guest policy allows five visits: the first has no guest fee (you still pay for the activity), and visits two through five carry a per-visit fee.
  • There are five indoor climate-controlled courts and ten lighted outdoor courts, so weather and season are less of a factor than at an outdoor-only club.
  • The Elite track isn't open-enrollment — it expects players already competing (a UTR of about 2 or higher), and players on a high-school team get a per-class discount.
  • Summer camps aren't posted with dates or prices online; the club has you call or email to register.
Credentials

Dent Tennis Academy is run by the Dent family. Phil Dent is Senior Director of Player Development, Taylor Dent is President — the site lists him as a former world No. 21 — and Jenny Dent is Chief Executive Officer; the club cites fifty years of family experience in the sport. The coaching staff includes Jonah Martinez as Director of Elite Programs, Jenna Zamora as 10 & Under Program Director, Jamie Malakoff as Director of Player Development, Austin Haden as a High Performance and touring coach, and Kevin Millton as General Manager.

The academy's stated pitch is Grand Slam-level coaching and an environment built around player development, with the Dents on court for the full-time players. For off-court fitness, the program partners with Zero Limits Performance for conditioning, nutrition, and physical therapy. Instruction runs through the club's own professionals.

Sign up to find out which kids’ activity will take over your entire weekend