When the birds head south and trees begin turning colors, the sap begins to rise in stalwart players of the game that many still call paddle tennis (or just paddle), even though its official name was changed to platform tennis some years ago.
By Paul Hicks
When the birds head south and trees begin turning colors, the sap begins to rise in stalwart players of the game that many still call paddle tennis (or just paddle), even though its official name was changed to platform tennis some years ago.
Paddle tennis was invented about 75 years ago by two next-door neighbors, James Cogswell and Fessenden Blanchard, on a backyard court in nearby Scarsdale. They were looking for a sport that could be played outdoors in the colder months and which was easy to learn and inexpensive.
Fox Meadow in Scarsdale became the first club to build a court, and it was followed by Manursing Island Club in Rye, which installed six courts soon after. In 1934, those two clubs joined with the Field Club in Greenwich to form what is now called the American Platform Tennis Association (APTA).
In the early days of the sport, the platforms and wire enclosures were erected seasonally on top of existing tennis courts at Manursing and other clubs. Later, the courts became permanent structures with such innovative improvements as sand added to paint to make the decks less slippery and heating elements to melt the snow from metal decks.
The original paddles were borrowed from the older sport of public playground paddle tennis, but they evolved into models made of plywood with holes and metal rims that were used for several decades. Today, they are made of composite material but still have the aerodynamic holes.
As the sport of platform paddle tennis grew in popularity it attracted many talented tennis players like Wimbledon champion Sydney Wood and nationally-ranked Frank Shields (grandfather of Brooke Shields). Tactics changed over the years, beginning with the use of lobs and carefully placed corner shots.
By 1940 paddle tennis was played at over twenty clubs as far west as St. Louis. Players from many of those clubs competed in the APTA National Men’s Doubles Championship, which was won that year by a pair from Manursing in Rye: Witherbee Black and Paul Hicks (my father).
Paddle tennis players, like many other sports enthusiasts, had to contend with gas rationing and other effects of World War II, but the sport resumed its growth in the 1950s. One of the appeals of paddle has always been the lack of anything approaching a dress code.
Some early photos show men playing in sports coats and soft-brimmed hats while the spectators were protected against the cold in raccoon fur coats. Later, the uniform of choice was a pair of corduroys or chinos for men and plaid skirts or pants for women, topped usually by a sweater.
Further expansion of the sport in the 1960s and 1970s was helped by the promotional efforts of people like Dick Squires, another Manursing player who wrote several books about the history of the game and how to play it. Professionalism and corporate sponsors entered the sport in the 70s, and a marketing coup was achieved when televised matches were played on a court erected in midtown Manhattan.
The highlights of paddle history, personalities and lore are wonderfully captured in “Passing Shots: A Pictorial History of Platform Tennis” by Christina Kelly. Published in 2010 by The Platform Tennis Museum and Hall of Fame Foundation, this coffee table book has over 100 photos and is available online at paddlepro.com.
Those who are interested in learning more about platform (paddle) tennis should explore the website of the APTA, platformtennis.org. Among the useful features you will find there are the official rules of the sport as well as some instructional videos about how to develop a good serve, volley, lob, and other key shots.
From its beginnings in a backyard and then at three clubs in Scarsdale, Rye, and Greenwich, the game of paddle is now played by thousands of people of all ages and talents across this country as well as in Canada and elsewhere around the world. So take your coonskin coats out of moth balls, it’s time for some paddle.
