Bob Callaway & Michael Hughes, Jay Iseman, George Sullivan, Doug Russell and Ernest Chu, Bill Ballard & Jim Hevener all had book published
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In the fall, the Suburban Indoor Tennis Club in Randolph, Massachusetts held the inaugural tournament. Draws were held for both boys and girls in the 11 & under and 15 & under categories.
Read MoreAPTA struggles with balance between amateur and professional play. At the Annual Meeting, APTA President Mike North reflected on the issue: The key question is this: How should the APTA cope with growth and commercialization? These are the conclusions I have come to: There should be a clear-cut division between commercial and non-commercial activities within the APTA. Commercial activity should continue to come under the aegis of the APTA board so that the “sound development of the game” can be controlled, but, because of the time demands, the APTA office should be split into two function areas, with the commercial headed by a second paid Executive Secretary. There should also be a separation of commercial and non-commercial tournaments, with the tournaments, at least initially, held on the same weekend at the same location, as is being done at Cleveland this year. This has[...]
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Source: Paddle World Vol. 1, No. 5, Fall 1976
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Charles Millard, President of the Coca-Cola Bottling Company of New York and a key supporter of the game, commissioned the painting1. Source: Paddle Talk, Vol. 2 No. 2 (December) Who are the players? “My guess is that Sticker drew the players from scrap art - several pictures that he patched together with his brush. He must have visited FMTC for he beautifully and accurately portrays the Club, snow, court, bleachers, and spectators. As to the players, I've always related to the guy hitting the overhead. I recognize the posture, the pants, the green socks and the sweater. But who knows. The other player in the foreground court sure looks like the back of Paul Sullivan's grey head. And it makes sense that he would be there. Too bad Bob Brown isn't on the other side of the net, because he was usually in that FMTC group. The guy with the hat looks like Dave Jennings. It doesn't[...]
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APTA President Mike North expressed his view at the Annual Meeting as part of a discussion on the growth of the game: “The second necessary development is for the rules to be changed to encourage spectator interest. I agree with Dick Squires' excellent article in a recent issue of Paddle World that urged reconsideration of the rules as proficiency increases. For instance, we should consider returning to a less lively ball, introducing the return of serve before the ball hits the screen, and the provision of a winning shot.” Source: Paddle Talk, Vol. 2 No. 2 (December)
Read MoreThe circuit proved almost as popular as the men’s. The 1976–77 season kickoff was the Tribuno Platform Tennis Tournament of Cleveland, followed by Canoe Brook (New Jersey), Norwalk (Connecticut), Bronxville (New York), Detroit, and the World Championship at Forest Hills, New York. The prize money for the Women’s World Championship was $15,000. Because Tribuno offered equal prize money to men and women for the World Championships, the women voted to play three out of five sets, like the men did. In the semifinals, the spectators got their money’s worth as they watched Gengler and Hilton beat Wendy Chase and Linda Wolf (7–6, 6–3, 4–6, 1–6, 6–4).
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The PRO-Keds Classic, held in New York City, was one of the game’s greatest marketing ideas. The event was the brainchild of Dick Squires, and was co-sponsored by Uniroyal and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. A court was erected in midtown Manhattan, at the site of the fifty-story Burlington House, on 54th Street and Avenue of the Americas. The area in front of the skyscraper was offered rent free, in exchange for $5,000 worth of PRO-Keds sneakers for the New York City Urban League underprivileged children. An integral part of the tournament was the junior program. Ninety-six children were chosen from the city's boroughs to participate in lunchtime clinics on the court, given by Bob Callaway. General Sportcraft contributed paddles for the kids and Burlington Industries provided socks and lunch. And, of course there were free sneakers for the children from U[...]
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Phoebe Creamer became the first woman to serve on the Board since the early 1900’s: "I think they thought that if they had to have a woman on the board they would take an old-time conservative person who wouldn't rock the boat too much," she said. The club's constitution had been re-written in 1913 and women were excluded from the governance of the club. Prior th the change Hopeton Atterbury had served as President in 1907 and 1909. Source: Diana Reisch Fox Meadow Tennis Club - The First Hundred Years, 1983
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John R. Moses was an exceptional tennis player, earning a number one ranking in Interscholastic doubles, and a number five ranking in singles. He was captain of the Yale tennis team, and was a finalist in the National Men’s at nineteen in 1943. Four years later, at age twenty-three, he won his first title, and a second followed ten years later, in 1957. John also won the Mixed in 1955. His record could well have been extended, but he moved to Kansas City where there were no courts. Blanchard thought that, at his best, Moses had few equals with quick hands and remarkable court coverage. (Fox Meadow Tennis Club). Susan Beck Wasch inherited her mother’s racquet genes and grew up playing both tennis and paddle. She had played Junior Wightman Cup tennis for two years when a serious illness interrupted her racquet career, and there was thought that she might not play again. [...]
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