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Samuel Groth (born 19 October 1987) is an Australian politician and a former professional tennis player. He was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly for the seat of Nepean in 2022 representing the Victorian Liberal Party, which he has also served as the deputy leader of since 2024.
His highest ATP singles ranking was World No. 53, which he reached in August 2015. His career high in doubles was World No. 24, reached in February 2015. Groth's best singles result was a semi-final appearance at the 2014 Hall of Fame Tennis Championships.
He holds the record for the world's fastest serve at 263 km/h (163.4 mph), which he hit in 2012 at the ATP Challenger in Busan.
Prior to his political career, he worked for the Nine Network's tennis broadcasts and as a host on Postcards.
At the 2009 Australian Open he set a record for the fastest serve by a male player (232 km/h). He lost in the qualification to Wimbledon 2009 to Jesse Levine 4–6, 7–6, 5–7.
In 2012, in an ATP Challenger in Busan, Groth hit the fastest serve on record with a ace, but lost the match to Uładzimir Ihnatsik, 4–6, 3–6.
In November 2013, he reached the final of the Champaign Challenger, eventually losing in 3 sets to Tennys Sandgren 6–3, 3–6, 6–7. However, by reaching the final there, and the semi-final of Toyota Challenger the following week, his ranking improved to a career high of #173.
On 8 January, Groth was awarded a wild card into the 2014 Australian Open, but lost in round one to 28th seed, Vasek Pospisil in straight sets.
In March, Groth qualified for Indian Wells Masters, but lost in round 1 to Mikhail Kukushkin, 4–7 in the third set tie-break.
On 17 March, Groth entered and won the Rimouski Challenger in Canada. This was his first Challenger tour title. Two weeks later, he made the final of the León Challenger, but lost to #1 seed, Rajeev Ram. This gave him a new career high ranking of 136.
At the 2014 French Open, Groth made it to the last round of qualifying, but lost to Simone Bolelli 4–6, 2–6. This was his best French Open result to date. He partnered Andrey Golubev in the Men's doubles, where they made it to the semi-final. This increased his doubles ranking to a career high of #41. In June, Groth made the final of the 2014 Aegon Nottingham Challenge but lost to compatriot Nick Kyrgios 6–7(3–7), 6–7(7–9). Groth made his Wimbledon debut after winning his way through qualifying, but lost in round 1 to Alexandr Dolgopolov in three sets. In July. Groth entered the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, where he reached his maiden ATP semi-final, defeating defending champion Nicolas Mahut in the quarter-finals. This achievement saw him break into the top 100 rankings for the first time.
In August, Groth won his first Grand Slam match, defeating Albert Ramos Viñolas 6–3, 7–6(7–5), 6–3 in the 2014 US Open. In the second round, he was defeated by Roger Federer in straight sets 4–6, 4–6, 4–6.
Groth then played at the Santaizi Challenger as the 2nd seed. He cruised through to the final where he defeated Konstantin Kravchuk to win the title. His next tournament was the Busan Open where he was again the 2nd seed. He defeated compatriot Alex Bolt in the first round but then lost to Franko Škugor. At the 2015 French Open, Groth led 21st seed Pablo Cuevas by a set in round 1, before losing in 4 sets. Groth started his grass court season at the Manchester Challenger where he reached the final and defeated compatriot Luke Saville to win the title. He then competed at the ATP 2015 Mercedes Cup where he defeated Sergiy Stakhovsky in the first round. He then scored his first top 20 win by defeating world number 12 Feliciano López to reach the quarter-final. At Wimbledon, Groth defeated 31st seed Jack Sock in round 1, compatriot James Duckworth in round 2 and set up a round 3 match against Roger Federer. In this 3rd round match, he made the second fastest serve ever at the Wimbledon tournament (147 mph), and was the only player to take a set off of Federer until the final, losing to the 7-time champion 4–6, 4–6, 7–6(7–5), 2–6. Groth then represented Australia at the 2015 Davis Cup Quarterfinals. Australia was down 2–0 to Kazakhstan when Groth played the doubles rubber with Lleyton Hewitt. The pair won in straight sets to take the tie to 2–1. Groth then replaced Nick Kyrgios to play Mikhail Kukushkin where he defeated him in 4 sets to level the tie at 2–2. Hewitt then won the 5th rubber to ensure Australia a place in the Davis Cup semi-finals. Groth next contested the Bogotá Open as the 6th seed where he defeated Guido Pella before losing to former world number 8 Radek Štěpánek in straight sets. He then played in Atlanta and defeated Frances Tiafoe in the first round. He then lost to eventual finalist and fifth seed Marcos Baghdatis in 3 sets. Groth then competed at the 2015 Citi Open and reached his first ATP500 Quarterfinal after defeating Thomaz Bellucci, 9th seeded Viktor Troicki and 7th seeded Feliciano López before losing to eventual champion Kei Nishikori. This was also the first time Groth defeated back to back top 20 players. Groth next played at the 2015 Winston-Salem Open and defeated Jared Donaldson before losing to eventual semi-finalist Steve Johnson. At the 2015 US Open, Groth defeated former world number 13 Alexandr Dolgopolov in round 1, before losing to 26th seed Tommy Robredo in round 2. Groth also played the Men's doubles with Lleyton Hewitt, losing in the 2nd round.
| {class="wikitable" |
| Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–1) |
| ATP World Tour 250 Series (2–2) |
| Hard (1–3) |
| Clay (0–0) |
| Grass (1–0) |
| Outdoor (2–2) |
| Indoor (0–1) |
| Win | 1–0 | Colombia Open, Colombia | 250 Series | Hard | Chris Guccione | Nicolás Barrientos Juan Sebastián Cabal | 7–6(7–5), 6–7(3–7), 11–9 | |
| Loss | 1–1 | Washington Open, United States | 500 Series | Hard | Leander Paes | Jean-Julien Rojer Horia Tecău | 5–7, 4–6 | |
| Loss | 1–2 | Shenzhen Open, China | 250 Series | Hard | Chris Guccione | Jean-Julien Rojer Horia Tecău | 4–6, 6–7(4–7) | |
| Loss | 1–3 | Kremlin Cup, Russia | 250 Series | Hard (i) | Chris Guccione | František Čermák Jiří Veselý | 6–7(2–7), 5–7 | |
| Win | 2–3 | Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, United States | 250 Series | Grass | Chris Guccione | Jonathan Marray Adil Shamasdin | 6–4, 6–3 |
| {class=wikitable style=font-size:97% !Legend |
| ATP Challenger (4–6) |
| ITF Futures (7–5) |
| Hard (7–8) |
| Clay (1–1) |
| Grass (2–2) |
| Carpet (1–0) |
| Loss | 0–1 | Australia F12, Mildura | Futures | Grass | Alun Jones | 6–3, 5–7, 4–6 | |
| Loss | 0–2 | Australia F7, Gloucester | Futures | Clay | Miles Armstrong | 7–6(8–6), 1–6, 3–6 | |
| Win | 1–2 | USA F7, Mobile | Futures | Hard | Jesse Witten | 6–2, 3–0 ret. | |
| Loss | 1–3 | Fergana, Uzbekistan | Challenger | Hard | Lukáš Lacko | 6–4, 5–7, 6–7(4–7) | |
| Win | 2–3 | Turkey F9, Antalya | Futures | Hard | Radu Albot | 6–3, 6–1 | |
| Win | 3–3 | Turkey F10, Antalya | Futures | Hard | Artem Smirnov | 6–4, 6–2 | |
| Loss | 3–4 | Australia F12, Traralgon | Futures | Hard | Amir Weintraub | 2–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | 4–4 | Australia F13, Bendigo | Futures | Hard | Benjamin Mitchell | 7–6(9–7), 6–4 | |
| Loss | 4–5 | Burnie, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Danai Udomchoke | 6–7(5–7), 3–6 | |
| Win | 5–5 | Australia F3, Ipswich | Futures | Clay | Jason Kubler | 5–7, 6–3, 6–2 | |
| Win | 6–5 | Korea F1, Daegu | Futures | Hard | Frederik Nielsen | 6–7(4–7), 6–4, 6–1 | |
| Loss | 6–6 | Korea F2, Changwon | Futures | Hard | Michał Przysiężny | 6–3, 5–7, 3–6 | |
| Loss | 6–7 | Australia F6, Alice Springs | Futures | Hard | Matthew Barton | 6–7(3–7), 3–6 | |
| Win | 7–7 | Australia F2, Mildura | Futures | Grass | Matthew Barton | 6–1, 6–4 | |
| Loss | 7–8 | Champaign-Urbana, United States | Challenger | Hard | Tennys Sandgren | 6–3, 3–6, 6–7(4–7) | |
| Win | 8–8 | Rimouski, Canada | Challenger | Hard | Ante Pavić | 7–6(7–3), 6–2 | |
| Loss | 8–9 | Leon, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | Rajeev Ram | 2–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | 8–10 | Nottingham, United Kingdom | Challenger | Grass | Nick Kyrgios | 6–7(3–7), 6–7(7–9) | |
| Loss | 8–11 | Knoxville, United States | Challenger | Hard | Adrian Mannarino | 6–3, 6–7(6–8), 4–6 | |
| Win | 9–11 | Taipei, Taiwan | Challenger | Carpet | Konstantin Kravchuk | 6–7(5–7), 6–4, 7–6(7–3) | |
| Win | 10–11 | Manchester, United Kingdom | Challenger | Grass | Luke Saville | 7–5, 6–1 | |
| Win | 11–11 | Las Vegas, United States | Challenger | Hard | Santiago Giraldo | 6–7(4–7), 6–4, 7–5 |
| {class=wikitable style=font-size:97% !Legend |
| ATP Challenger (19–5) |
| ITF Futures (11–5) |
| Hard (21–8) |
| Clay (2–1) |
| Grass (5–1) |
| Carpet (2–0) |
| Win | 1–0 | Australia F11, Barmera | Futures | Grass | Joseph Sirianni | Callum Beale Joel Kerley | 6–2, 5–7, 10–4 | |
| Loss | 1–1 | Great Britain F10, Frinton-on-Sea | Futures | Grass | Andrew Coelho | Andrew Kennaugh Tom Rushby | 5–7, 7–6(7–3), 4–6 | |
| Loss | 1–2 | France F12, Bagnères-de-Bigorre | Futures | Hard | Paul Baccanello | Thomas Oger Nicolas Tourte | 6–2, 3–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | 1–3 | Great Britain F6, Sunderland | Futures | Hard | Andrew Coelho | Jamie Baker Aisam Qureshi | 3–6, 6–3, 3–6 | |
| Win | 2–3 | Algeria F3, Algiers | Futures | Clay | Edward Seator | Matus Horecny Martin Hromec | 6–3, 3–6, 6–1 | |
| Win | 3–3 | Spain F21, Puerto Cruz | Futures | Carpet | Andrew Coelho | Agustin Boje-Ordonez Pablo Martin-Adalia | 6–4, 7–6(7–5) | |
| Win | 4–3 | France F12, Bagnères-de-Bigorre | Futures | Hard | Andrew Coelho | Daniel King-Turner Pierrick Ysern | 6–4, 4–6, 10–6 | |
| Win | 5–3 | Australia F7, Gloucester | Futures | Clay | Joseph Sirianni | Kaden Hensel Adam Hubble | 6–4, 6–3 | |
| Win | 6–3 | Burnie, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Joseph Sirianni | Nima Roshan José Statham | 6–3, 1–6, 10–4 | |
| Win | 7–3 | Australia F1, Mildura | Futures | Grass | Nathan Healey | Andrew Coelho Brydan Klein | 6–3, 6–4 | |
| Win | 8–3 | Australia F3, Perth | Futures | Hard | Adam Feeney | Matthew Ebden Miles Armstrong | 5–7, 6–4, 10–7 | |
| Win | 9–3 | New Delhi, India | Challenger | Hard | Colin Ebelthite | Mohammad Ghareeb Illya Marchenko | 2–6, 7–6(7–5), 10–8 | |
| Win | 10–3 | Campos do Jordão, Brazil | Challenger | Hard | Josh Goodall | Rogério Dutra Silva Júlio Silva | 7–6(7–4), 6–3 | |
| Win | 11–3 | Burnie, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Matthew Ebden | James Lemke Dane Propoggia | 6–7(8–10), 7–6(7–4), 10–8 | |
| Win | 12–3 | Australia F1, Mildura | Futures | Grass | Matthew Ebden | Adam Hubble Sadik Kadir | 6–3, 4–6, 10–4 | |
| Win | 13–3 | Australia F2, Berri | Futures | Grass | Matthew Ebden | Huang Liang-chi Lee Hsin-han | 6–3, 7–6(9–7) | |
| Loss | 13–4 | Australia F12, Traralgon | Futures | Hard | Sebastian Rieschick | Colin Ebelthite Adam Feeney | 3–6, 6–4, 13–15 | |
| Win | 14–4 | Caloundra, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Matthew Ebden | Pavol Červenák Ivo Klec | 6–3, 3–6, 10–1 | |
| Loss | 14–5 | Pingguo, China | Challenger | Hard | Colin Ebelthite | John Paul Fruttero Raven Klaasen | 2–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | 15–5 | Korea F1, Daegu | Futures | Hard | Adam Hubble | Hong Chung Suk-Young Jeong | 6–1, 6–4 | |
| Loss | 15–6 | Wuhan, China | Challenger | Hard | Adam Feeney | Sonchat Ratiwatana Sanchai Ratiwatana | 4–6, 6–2, 8–10 | |
| Loss | 15–7 | Australia F6, Alice Springs | Futures | Hard | Michael Venus | Adam Feeney Nick Lindahl | 6–4, 2–6, 8–10 | |
| Win | 16–7 | Nouméa, New Caledonia | Challenger | Hard | Toshihide Matsui | Artem Sitak José Statham | 7–6(8–6), 1–6, 10–4 | |
| Win | 17–7 | West Lakes, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Matt Reid | James Duckworth Greg Jones | 6–2, 6–4 | |
| Win | 18–7 | Australia F2, Mildura | Futures | Grass | John-Patrick Smith | Colin Ebelthite Ruan Roelofse | 6–3, 6–4 | |
| Win | 19–7 | Rimouski, Canada | Challenger | Hard | John-Patrick Smith | Philipp Marx Florin Mergea | 7–6(7–5), 7–6(9–7) | |
| Loss | 19–8 | Guadalajara, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | John-Patrick Smith | Marin Draganja Mate Pavić | 7–5, 2–6, 11–13 | |
| Loss | 19–9 | Anning, China | Challenger | Clay | John-Patrick Smith | Victor Baluda Dino Marcan | 7–6(7–5), 4–6, 7–10 | |
| Win | 20–9 | Kunming, China | Challenger | Hard | John-Patrick Smith | Yasutaka Uchiyama Go Soeda | 6–4, 6–1 | |
| Win | 21–9 | Knoxville, United States | Challenger | Hard | John-Patrick Smith | Carsten Ball Peter Polansky | 6–7(6–8), 6–2, 10–7 | |
| Win | 22–9 | Dallas, United States | Challenger | Hard | Chris Guccione | Ryan Harrison Mark Knowles | 6–4, 6–2 | |
| Win | 23–9 | Leon, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | Chris Guccione | Marcus Daniell Artem Sitak | 6–3, 6–4 | |
| Win | 24–9 | Shenzhen, China | Challenger | Hard | Chris Guccione | Dominik Meffert Tim Pütz | 6–3, 7–6(7–5) | |
| Win | 25–9 | Taipei, Taiwan | Challenger | Carpet | Chris Guccione | Austin Krajicek John-Patrick Smith | 6–4, 5–7, 10–8 | |
| Win | 26–9 | Gimcheon, South Korea | Challenger | Hard | Chris Guccione | Austin Krajicek John-Patrick Smith | 6–7(5–7), 5–7, 10–4 | |
| Loss | 26–10 | Leon, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | Leander Paes | Santiago González Mate Pavić | 4–6, 6–3, 11–13 | |
| Win | 27–10 | Busan, South Korea | Challenger | Hard | Leander Paes | Sonchat Ratiwatana Sanchai Ratiwatana | 4–6, 6–1, 10–7 | |
| Win | 28–10 | Stockton, United States | Challenger | Hard | Brian Baker | Matt Reid John-Patrick Smith | 6–2, 4–6, 10–2 | |
| Win | 29–10 | Charlottesville, United States | Challenger | Hard | Brian Baker | Brydan Klein Ruan Roelofse | 6–3, 6–3 | |
| Win | 30–10 | Drummondville, Canada | Challenger | Hard | Adil Shamasdin | Matt Reid John-Patrick Smith | 6–2, 2–6, 10–8 |
| 4–6, 1–6 |
| Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | Q2 | 1R | Q1 | Q1 | A | Q1 | 1R | 3R | 2R | 1R | Q1 !0 / 5 !3–5 ! | ||||||
| French Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | Q1 | Q3 | 1R | 1R | Q1 | A !0 / 2 !0–2 ! | ||||||
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A | A | Q2 | 1R | 3R | 1R | Q1 | A !0 / 3 !2–3 ! | ||||||
| US Open | A | A | Q2 | Q1 | A | A | A | Q1 | 2R | 2R | Q1 | Q1 | A !0 / 2 !2–2 ! | ||||||
| National representation | |||||||||||||||||||
| Summer Olympics | NH | A | Not Held | A | Not Held | 1R | NH !0 / 1 !0–1 ! | ||||||||||||
| Davis Cup | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | PO | SF | 1R | SF | A !0 / 2 !2–4 ! | ||||||
| ATP World Tour Masters 1000 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Indian Wells | A | A | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | Q1 | A !0 / 3 !0–3 ! | ||||||
| Miami Masters | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | 2R | A | A !0 / 2 !1–2 ! | ||||||
| Canada Masters | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A !0 / 0 !0–0 ! | ||||||
| Shanghai Masters | Not Held | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | A !0 / 1 !0–1 ! | ||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
| Year-end ranking | 681 | 341 | 265 | 270 | 293 | 575 | 211 | 183 | 81 | 60 | 181 | 248 | – !colspan=3 | Prize Money $1,950,436 | |||||
| Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | A | 2R | 1R | 3R | 3R | QF | QF | 0 / 10 | 12–10 |
| French Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | SF | 1R | 1R | 3R | A | 0 / 4 | 6–4 |
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | A | 0 / 5 | 5–5 |
| US Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 2R | 3R | 1R | A | 0 / 4 | 4–4 |
| National representation | |||||||||||||||
| Summer Olympics | NH | A | Not Held | A | Not Held | A | NH | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Davis Cup | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | PO | SF | 1R | SF | A | 0 / 2 | 3–3 |
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Year-end ranking | 438 | 296 | 287 | 400 | 223 | 204 | 308 | 79 | 31 | 131 | 49 | 80 | !colspan=254% | ||
| + !Year(s) !Electorate !colspan=2 | Candidates !Votes | ||
| 2022 | Nepean | Sam Groth | 74 |
| David Burgess | 33 | ||
| Elizabeth Miller | 4 |
| + !Years !Electorate !colspan=2 | Term | |
| 2022–2026 | Nepean | |align=center60th |
Groth claimed victory in Nepean on the night of the election with a two-party swing of 7.1% in his favour. After the election, Groth was appointed Shadow Minister for Youth and Shadow Minister for Tourism, Sport and Events in the Pesutto shadow ministry.
In 2023, as a member of Shadow Cabinet, Groth supported leader John Pesutto in voting to expel Moira Deeming from the Parliamentary Liberal Party.
On 27 December 2024, Groth was elected unopposed as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party under new leader Brad Battin as part of a broader spill and change among parliamentary leadership.
Groth issued a statement saying he had attended the Australian Open in his capacity as Shadow Minister for Sport, Tourism and Events, meeting with industry stakeholders before attending a fundraiser in the evening which he had paid for personally.
With his electorate approximately an hour and a half journey from the event and local commitments the next morning, Groth used the chauffeured vehicle to return home.
Additionally, Groth stated he occasionally stays overnight in Melbourne if he has evening events and commitments the next day in the city, given the distance between Melbourne and his electorate of Nepean. Groth also clarified that he attended the LIV event in South Australia at the invitation of event organizers to meet with stakeholders, and that he personally paid for his wife to attend with him.
In January 2019 Groth received the OLY post-nominal title at the Brisbane International tournament.
Between 2009 and 2011, Groth was married to Slovakian-Australian tennis player Jarmila Wolfe.
Groth married long-time partner Brittany Boys in 2018. Boys, a Melburnian, was an amateur women's tennis player and competed at the university level for the Richmond Spiders in the United States. Groth and Boys have two children, twin boys born in April 2021. Groth lives with his family in Rye, Victoria, in his electorate. Boys and Groth met through a Templestowe tennis club in 2011, while Groth was either 23 or 24 and Boys was 17.
Deputy Leader of the Victorian Liberal Party
Groth resigned from the Pesutto shadow cabinet on 13 December 2024, following Pesutto's loss in a defamation case brought by Moira Deeming, stating: "In good conscience, I can no longer continue to serve in this role". This move was criticised by some moderate members of the party.
Expenses controversy
Groth came under scrutiny in May 2025 after it was revealed he borrowed Liberal Party colleague Georgie Crozier’s chauffeur to drive him home following a fundraising event at the 2024 Australian Open tennis tournament, with the Herald Sun newspaper claiming Groth was ‘smashed’ at the event.
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Personal life
Groth was born in Narrandera, New South Wales, and grew up in the Riverina area of southern New South Wales. Groth is an avid supporter of the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League. He was also a member of Vermont Football Club reserve squad during a hiatus from tennis in 2011.
Notes
External links
Categories: 1987 Births, Living People, Australian Male Tennis Players, Tennis Players From New South Wales, Olympic Tennis Players For Australia, Tennis Players At The 2016 Summer Olympics, Sportsmen From New South Wales, Members Of The Victorian Legislative Assembly, Politicians From Melbourne, 21st-century Australian Politicians, Liberal Party Of Australia Members Of The Parliament Of Victoria, 21st-century Australian Sportsmen
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