Elizabeth Smylie

Elizabeth Smylie

Country (sports)	Australia
Born	(1963-04-11) 11 April 1963 Perth
Turned pro	1982
Retired	1997
Prize money	US$1,615,247
Singles
Career record	181 – 213 (45.93%)
Career titles	3
Highest ranking	No. 20 (14 September 1987)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	QF (1987)
French Open	2R (1983)
Wimbledon	4R (1984, 1985)
US Open	2R (1986, 1987, 1989)
Doubles
Career record	483 – 215 (69.19%)
Career titles	36
Highest ranking	No. 5 (28 March 1988)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	F (1993)
French Open	SF (1984)
Wimbledon	W (1985)
US Open	F (1987)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour Finals	W (1990)
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
Australian Open	SF (1990, 1991)
French Open	SF (1993)
Wimbledon	W (1991)
US Open	W (1983, 1990)
Medal record Olympic Games 1988 Seoul Doubles

Elizabeth "Liz" Smylie (née Sayers, born 11 April 1963) is a retired Australian professional tennis player. During her career, she won four Grand Slam titles, one of them in women's doubles and three in mixed doubles. She also won three singles titles and 36 doubles titles.

Career

Smylie turned professional in 1982. She won the women's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1985 with Kathy Jordan. In mixed doubles, she teamed with John Fitzgerald to win the 1983 US Open and 1991 Wimbledon titles and with Todd Woodbridge to win the 1990 US Open. She won the Virginia Slims Championships with Jordan in 1990. Her best Grand Slam performance in singles came at the Australian Open in 1987, when she reached the quarterfinals. Her highest ever singles ranking was World No. 20 and her highest in doubles was World No. 5.

She played Fed Cup from 1984 to 1994. She won a bronze medal in women's doubles with Wendy Turnbull at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.

Over the course of her career, Smylie won 3 singles titles and 36 doubles titles. She won the Western Australian Sports Star of the Year award in 1985 and the Comeback Player of the Year award in 1990 and 1993.

Personal life

She is married to player-manager Peter Smylie and they have three children, Laura, Jordan and Elvis. She was the long-time tournament director of the Australian Women's Hardcourts and also works as a sports television commentator.

Major finals

Grand Slam finals

Women's doubles: 5 (1 title, 4 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1985	Wimbledon	Grass	Kathy Jordan	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	1987	Wimbledon	Grass	Betsy Nagelsen	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	7–5, 7–5
Runner-up	1987	US Open	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	5–7, 6–4, 6–2
Runner-up	1990	Wimbledon	Grass	Kathy Jordan	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	1993	Australian Open	Hard	Pam Shriver	Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva	6–4, 6–3

Mixed doubles: 8 (3 titles, 5 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1983	US Open	Hard	John Fitzgerald	Barbara Potter Ferdi Taygan	3–6, 6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	1984	US Open	Hard	John Fitzgerald	Manuela Maleeva Tom Gullikson	2–6, 7–5, 6–4
Runner-up	1985	Wimbledon	Grass	John Fitzgerald	Martina Navratilova Paul McNamee	7–5, 4–6, 6–2
Runner-up	1985	US Open	Hard	John Fitzgerald	Martina Navratilova Heinz Günthardt	6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	1988	US Open	Hard	Patrick McEnroe	Jana Novotná Jim Pugh	7–5, 6–3
Runner-up	1990	Wimbledon	Grass	John Fitzgerald	Zina Garrison Rick Leach	7–5, 6–2
Winner	1990	US Open	Hard	Todd Woodbridge	Natasha Zvereva Jim Pugh	6–4, 6–2
Winner	1991	Wimbledon	Grass	John Fitzgerald	Natasha Zvereva Jim Pugh	7–6(7–4), 6–2

Olympics

Doubles: 1 medal (1 bronze medal)

Outcome	Year	Location	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Bronze	1988	Seoul	Hard	Wendy Turnbull	Tied	DNP

Smylie and Turnbull lost in the semi-finals to Zina Garrison and Pam Shriver 7–6(5), 6–4. In 1988, there was no bronze medal play-off match, both beaten semi-final pairs received bronze medals.

Year-End Championships finals

Doubles: 1 final (1 title, 0 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Location	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Winner	1990	New York City	Carpet (I)	Kathy Jordan	Mercedes Paz Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	7–6(7–4), 6–4

WTA Career finals

Singles: 6 (3–3)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Winner	1.	26 April 1982	Sardinia	Clay	Dana Gilbert	6–3, 6–0
Winner	2.	19 September 1983	Kansas City	Hard	Anne Minter	6–3, 6–1
Runner-up	1.	12 November 1984	Brisbane	Grass	Helena Suková	4–6, 4–6
Winner	3.	9 February 1987	Oklahoma City	Hard	Lori McNeil	4–6, 6–3, 7–5
Runner-up	2.	17 April 1989	Tokyo	Hard	Kumiko Okamoto	4–6, 2–6
Runner-up	3.	9 April 1990	Tokyo	Hard	Catarina Lindqvist	3–6, 2–6

Doubles: 69 (36–33)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	1.	12 October 1981	Kyoto	Hard	Kim Steinmetz	Nanette Schutte Marianne Van der Torre	2–6, 4–6
Winner	1.	21 February 1983	Ridgewood	Carpet	Beverly Mould	Rosalyn Fairbank Susan Leo	7–6, 4–6, 7–5
Runner-up	2.	6 June 1983	Birmingham	Grass	Beverly Mould	Billie Jean King Sharon Walsh	2–6, 4–6
Runner-up	3.	11 July 1983	Newport	Grass	Barbara Jordan	Barbara Potter Pam Shriver	3–6, 1–6
Winner	2.	19 September 1983	Kansas City	Hard	Sandy Collins	Chris O'Neil Brenda Remilton	7–5, 7–6
Runner-up	4.	30 January 1984	Indianapolis	Carpet	Beverly Mould	Cláudia Monteiro Yvonne Vermaak	7–6(7), 4–6, 5–7
Runner-up	5.	5 March 1984	Tokyo	Carpet	Barbara Jordan	Ann Kiyomura Pam Shriver	3–6, 7–6(7), 3–6
Runner-up	6.	19 March 1984	Dallas	Carpet	Sandy Collins	Leslie Allen Anne White	4–6, 7–5, 2–6
Runner-up	7.	11 June 1984	Birmingham	Grass	Barbara Jordan	Leslie Allen Anne White	6–7(1), 3–6
Winner	3.	20 August 1984	Montreal	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Hana Mandlíková	6–1, 6–2
Winner	4.	17 September 1984	Deerfield Beach	Hard	Martina Navratilova	Barbara Potter Sharon Walsh	2–6, 6–2, 6–3
Winner	5.	8 October 1984	Tampa	Hard	Carling Bassett	Mary-Lou Piatek Wendy White	6–4, 6–3
Runner-up	8.	10 December 1984	Tokyo	Carpet	Catherine Tanvier	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	4–6, 4–6
Winner	6.	21 January 1985	Key Biscayne	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Svetlana Parkhomenko Larisa Savchenko	6–4, 7–6(2)
Winner	7.	28 January 1985	Marco Island	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Camille Benjamin Bonnie Gadusek	6–3, 6–3
Runner-up	9.	4 March 1985	Princeton	Carpet	Marcella Mesker	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	5–7, 2–6
Winner	8.	1 April 1985	Tokyo	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Betsy Nagelsen Anne White	4–6, 7–5, 6–2
Winner	9.	6 May 1985	Sydney	Carpet	Pam Shriver	Barbara Potter Sharon Walsh	7–5, 7–5
Winner	10.	13 May 1985	Melbourne	Carpet	Pam Shriver	Anne Hobbs Kathy Jordan	6–2, 5–7, 6–1
Runner-up	10.	17 June 1985	Eastbourne	Grass	Kathy Jordan	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	5–7, 4–6
Winner	11.	24 June 1985	Wimbledon	Grass	Kathy Jordan	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Runner-up	11.	15 July 1985	Newport	Grass	Pam Shriver	Chris Evert Wendy Turnbull	4–6, 6–7(2)
Winner	12.	12 August 1985	Mahwah	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	7–6(6), 6–3
Winner	13.	16 September 1985	Chicago	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Elise Burgin JoAnne Russell	6–2, 6–2
Runner-up	12.	9 December 1985	Tokyo	Carpet	Marcella Mesker	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	0–6, 4–6
Winner	14.	27 January 1986	Key Biscayne	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Betsy Nagelsen Barbara Potter	7–6(6), 2–6, 6–2
Winner	15.	3 March 1986	Princeton	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Hana Mandlíková Helena Suková	6–3, 7–5
Runner-up	13.	28 March 1986	Nashville	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Barbara Potter Pam Shriver	4–6, 3–6
Runner-up	14.	9 June 1986	Birmingham	Grass	Wendy Turnbull	Elise Burgin Rosalyn Fairbank	2–6, 4–6
Winner	16.	18 August 1986	Mahwah	Hard	Betsy Nagelsen	Steffi Graf Helena Suková	7–6(4), 6–3
Runner-up	15.	29 December 1986	Brisbane	Grass	Betsy Nagelsen	Hana Mandlíková Wendy Turnbull	4–6, 3–6
Winner	17.	5 January 1987	Sydney	Grass	Betsy Nagelsen	Jenny Byrne Janine Thompson	6–7(5), 7–5, 6–1
Runner-up	16.	30 March 1987	Piscataway	Carpet	Betsy Nagelsen	Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil	1–6, 4–6
Winner	18.	18 May 1987	Geneva	Clay	Betsy Nagelsen	Laura Gildemeister Catherine Tanvier	4–6, 6–4, 6–3
Runner-up	17.	15 June 1987	Eastbourne	Grass	Rosalyn Fairbank	Svetlana Parkhomenko Larisa Savchenko	6–7(6), 6–4, 5–7
Runner-up	18.	22 June 1987	Wimbledon	Grass	Betsy Nagelsen	Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková	5–7, 5–7
Runner-up	19.	24 August 1987	Mahwah	Hard	Anne Hobbs	Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil	3–6, 2–6
Runner-up	20.	31 August 1987	US Open	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	7–5, 4–6, 2–6
Winner	19.	13 June 1988	Eastbourne	Grass	Eva Pfaff	Belinda Cordwell Dinky Van Rensburg	6–3, 7–6(6)
Runner-up	21.	9 January 1989	Sydney	Hard	Wendy Turnbull	Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver	3–6, 3–6
Runner-up	22.	30 January 1989	Auckland	Hard	Janine Thompson	Patty Fendick Jill Hetherington	4–6, 4–6
Winner	20.	6 February 1989	Wellington	Hard	Janine Thompson	Tracey Morton Heidi Sprung	7–6(3), 6–1
Runner-up	23.	27 February 1989	Oklahoma City	Hard (I)	Elise Burgin	Lori McNeil Betsy Nagelsen	w/o
Winner	21.	10 April 1989	Singapore	Hard	Belinda Cordwell	Ann Henricksson Beth Herr	6–7(6), 6–2, 6–1
Winner	22.	17 April 1989	Tokyo	Hard	Jill Hetherington	Ann Henricksson Beth Herr	6–1, 6–3
Winner	23.	8 May 1989	Rome	Clay	Janine Thompson	Manon Bollegraf Mercedes Paz	6–4, 6–3
Winner	24.	15 May 1989	Berlin	Clay	Janine Thompson	Lise Gregory Gretchen Magers	5–7, 6–3, 6–2
Runner-up	24.	17 July 1989	Newport	Grass	Wendy Turnbull	Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil	3–6, 6–7(5), 5–7
Runner-up	25.	15 September 1989	Tokyo	Carpet	Wendy Turnbull	Gigi Fernández Robin White	2–6, 2–6
Winner	25.	29 January 1990	Tokyo	Carpet	Gigi Fernández	Jo-Anne Faull Rachel McQuillan	6–2, 6–2
Winner	26.	26 March 1990	San Antonio	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Gigi Fernández Robin White	7–5, 7–5
Winner	27.	9 April 1990	Tokyo	Hard	Kathy Jordan	Michelle Jaggard Hu Na	6–0, 3–6, 6–1
Runner-up	26.	21 May 1990	Strasbourg	Clay	Kathy Jordan	Nicole Provis Elna Reinach	1–6, 4–6
Runner-up	27.	25 June 1990	Wimbledon	Grass	Kathy Jordan	Jana Novotná Helena Suková	3–6, 4–6
Winner	28.	12 November 1990	Virginia Slims Championships	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Mercedes Paz Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	7–6(4), 6–4
Winner	29.	28 January 1991	Tokyo	Carpet	Kathy Jordan	Mary Joe Fernández Robin White	4–6, 6–0, 6–3
Winner	30.	20 May 1991	Geneva	Clay	Nicole Provis	Cathy Caverzasio Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere	6–1, 6–2
Winner	31.	10 June 1991	Birmingham	Grass	Nicole Provis	Sandy Collins Elna Reinach	6–3, 6–4
Winner	32.	11 January 1993	Sydney	Hard	Pam Shriver	Lori McNeil Rennae Stubbs	7–6(4), 6–2
Runner-up	28.	18 January 1993	Australian Open	Hard	Pam Shriver	Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva	4–6, 3–6
Runner-up	29.	7 June 1993	Birmingham	Grass	Pam Shriver	Lori McNeil Martina Navratilova	3–6, 4–6
Winner	33.	26 July 1993	Stratton Mountain	Hard	Helena Suková	Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere Mercedes Paz	6–1, 6–2
Runner-up	30.	2 August 1993	San Diego	Hard	Pam Shriver	Gigi Fernández Helena Suková	4–6, 3–6
Winner	34.	31 January 1994	Tokyo	Carpet	Pam Shriver	Manon Bollegraf Martina Navratilova	6–3, 3–6, 7–6(3)
Runner-up	31.	7 February 1994	Osaka	Carpet	Pam Shriver	Larisa Neiland Rennae Stubbs	4–6, 7–6(2), 5–7
Winner	35.	25 July 1994	Stratton Mountain	Hard	Pam Shriver	Conchita Martínez Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	7–6(4), 2–6, 7–5
Runner-up	32.	15 August 1994	Montreal	Hard	Pam Shriver	Meredith McGrath Arantxa Sánchez Vicario	6–2, 2–6, 4–6
Runner-up	33.	22 August 1994	Schenectady	Hard	Pam Shriver	Meredith McGrath Larisa Neiland	2–6, 2–6
Winner	36.	10 June 1996	Birmingham	Grass	Linda Wild	Lori McNeil Nathalie Tauziat	6–3, 3–6, 6–1

Grand Slam performance timeline

Singles

• NH = tournament not held.
• A = did not participate in the tournament.
• SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.

Women's doubles

• NH = tournament not held.
• A = did not participate in the tournament.
• DR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam doubles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
• NR = not ranked

Mixed doubles

• NH = tournament not held.
• A = did not participate in the tournament.
• XR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam mixed doubles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.

External links

• Elizabeth Smylie at the Women's Tennis Association
• Elizabeth Smylie at the International Tennis Federation
• Elizabeth Smylie at the Fed Cup