have a Ph.D

[Silverobama]

I wrote the following sentences.

a) When he claimed to have a Ph.D., he was lying.
b) When he claimed that he has a Ph.D., he was lying.

Are these sentences both natural and do they mean the same?

 

[PeterCW]

While Ph.D is not incorrect the modern standard is to write it as PhD without the full stop.

 

[Silverobama]

While Ph.D is not incorrect the modern standard is to write it as PhD without the full stop.

a) When he claimed to have a PhD., he was lying.
b) When he claimed that he has a PhD., he was lying.

Are these sentences both natural and do they mean the same?

 

[Annabel Lee]

I wrote the following sentences.

a) When he claimed to have a Ph.D., he was lying.
b) When he claimed that he has a Ph.D., he was lying.

Are these sentences both natural and do they mean the same?

They mean the same thing, but I'd use "backshift" in (b) -- had not has -- and would spell Ph.D. with two periods:

b') When he claimed that he had a Ph.D., he was lying.

 

[5jj]

a) When he claimed to have a PhD, he was lying.
b) When he claimed that he had a PhD, he was lying.

Those are the versions most BrE speakers would write these days. We don't go in for stops in abbreviations.