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Club
of the Century? Net & Paddle ClubBy Steve Isaacson
Nearly every issue of this magazine features a “USATT Club of the Month,” and I look forward to each article. This month, however, I would like to present my nominee for “Club of the Century!!” Yes … I know that’s a bit presumptuous, but just as there were the 1927 Yankees and the 1940 Chicago Bears, (winning NFL Championship 73-0) there was also the unparalleled Net and Paddle Club of Chicago!
The Net and Paddle Club was opened in the late 1940’s at 1026 W. Wilson, on Chicago’s north side. The original owners were Dick and Peggy Ichkoff along with Allan and Betty Levy, who ran the club until it was taken over by former St. Louis star Mildred Shahian. The club remained at the same address until the late 1960’s and Millie, who had won the English Open, two U.S. Opens, and was on the 1949 World Championship Team, was in charge … and I do mean IN CHARGE!
Membership was $15 per month and the club was open every day of the week … weekdays from 6:00 and weekends all day. There were several major tournaments each year, including the Illinois Open, the Western Open, the Central Open, and the National Team Championships for both men and women. Playing conditions were perfect …with permanent cloth barriers and great lighting. Soft drinks were available and there was a TV set, several couches, dressing rooms and paddles for sale. (Hocks were $3.00 … Maccrossens were $5.00) There were several restaurants and four kinds of public transportation within one block! (Train, bus, streetcar, elevated.) A Friday night tournament, with a $10 first prize, could be as hard to win as a U.S. Open … harder if Richard Bergmann or Dal-Joon Lee happened to be passing through with the Harlem Globetrotters.
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