Taylor Dent's trip to Maui will give others an opportunity to learn from a player who has ranked among the world's tennis elite.

While the four-time ATP Tour winner is eager to pass along the knowledge gained from his experience, the visit provides a chance for him to absorb some information, too.

Dent will offer instruction at a clinic for adults on Wednesday at Wailea Tennis Club, while former U.S. Davis Cup captain and Olympic coach Tom Gullikson and former USTA national coach Mike Sell will provide tutelage to junior players.

"I try to shy away from too many technical changes. I try not to overhaul the game," said the 31-year-old Dent, who retired from professional tennis in 2010. "I try to help people with the fundamentals of tactics, what patterns they can set up."

Dent, Gullikson and Sell are part of this week's Wailea Fantasy Camp, in which participants can also learn from three-time major champion and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Lindsay Davenport, two-time U.S. Open winner Tracy Austin and Melanie Oudin, who won a mixed doubles title at last year's U.S. Open.

"It's great to get their insight," said Dent, whose father, Phil Dent, also owns a tour title. "It's always interesting to hear what they have to say."

Dent claimed his first ATP title in 2002, and added three more in 2003, when he also played for the U.S. Davis Cup team. He reached the semifinals of the Athens Olympics in 2004, and was ranked as high as 21st in the world in 2005.

At his peak, the best-known aspect of his game was his serve, which frequently surpassed 140 mph.

"When I teach somebody something new with the serve, sometimes they've never kind of heard it that way, never heard it explained that way," Dent said. "I can kind of shed some light on it, and it's very fun. You start to see the ball change off their racket - different spin, different speed, different pace. One of the things I try to tell everybody is that the ball doesn't know who's hitting it."

The camp is in its sixth year, and Dent is taking part for the second time.

"At the end of the day, if it doesn't make sense, if I'm just blowing smoke and not putting two and two together, people are not going to get much out of it," he said. "My goal is to have it make sense and hit home. I want to have people maybe say, 'Oh, why didn't I think of that before?' "

The clinics - $50 for juniors and $100 for adults, and scheduled for 4-6 p.m. - aren't the only events available to those not participating in the full week of activities. An exhibition match is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Saturday, with tickets costing $10.

For more information, go to waileatennis.com.

* Brad Sherman is at sports@mauinews.com