Page 76 - The Hunt - Winter 2022

When Andy Podolsky talks about paddle tennis, he
does so with something of
a messianic tone. He isn’t necessarily striving to influence or convert, but he’s definitely interested in conveying the sport’s unique combination of competition and social interaction. What began as a way for spring and summer sports enthusiasts to keep occupied during winter has blossomed into something of a phenomenon.
And when the talk shifts to the 50th
Richard R.P. Morrow Invitational Tournament, Podolsky becomes even more effusive. “It’s definitely a passion,” he says about the tourney, which takes place Jan. 27-29. “We say it’s a party that happens to have a paddle tennis tournament attached to it. One of our mantras is: ‘Play paddle. Have fun.’ Some people want to win. Others show up and want to have a party. And there’s everything in between.”
It’s not always a party. The first flights of both the Morrow and the Metropolitan Area Paddle Tennis Association competitions are populated by some serious players. Still, the Brandywine Valley’s paddle scene has become
a confluence of athletics and frivolity that’s hard to match anywhere else. Once the weather warms, the tennis whites come out, and the pursuits become more serious. But there’s a definite allure to joining a few friends on an icy winter afternoon to play a few sets and consume a few adult beverages. Indeed, it takes a lot
to dissuade the paddle crew from hitting the court. “There are warming huts near the courts,” Podolsky notes. “It’s still competitive, but it’s more social than other sports.”
Paddle tennis (or platform tennis) began in 1915, when Episcopal minister Frank Peer Beal convinced New York City’s parks and recreation department to install courts in Washington Square Park for local youth. The first tournament was held in 1922, and the United States Paddle Tennis Association was formed the following year. Less than 20 years later, the sport was being played in almost 500 American cities. A paddle tennis court is smaller than its tennis counterpart, measuring 50 feet from baseline to
74 THE HUNT MAGAZINE winter 2022-23
Jeremiah De Jose, part
of the second-place team.