APTA revitalizes Equipment Committee – paddle specifications adjusted and hole size becomes a problem

Bob Brown, an ex-President of the APTA, was named Chair of a revitalized committee tasked with evaluating balls and rackets to see that they met standard specifications.

The Mid-Winter edition of Platform Tennis News gave the background to this new initiative:

“One problem has surfaced: Rackets with holes larger than the mandated 3/8-inch diameter. Some come that way accidentally from the manufacturer. Rumor is that some players have made them wider at home. Bigger holes afford an illegal competitive advantage, giving more spin and better control to the user. THEY ARE NOT ALLOWABLE. If you bought one by accident (just get a 3/ 8 inch dowel to check), take it back to the person you bought it from and get another. Nobody should use illegal rackets at any time, whether it’s a pick-up match or the National finals. If a racket is found illegal at an APTA sponsored event, it will be disallowed from that tournament. If you get caught using it a second time at such an event, YOU will be disallowed from the tournament.”

Note: At the May 1990 BOD Meeting the racquet specifications where adjusted as follows: total length is 18 1/16″; thickness is expanded to 9/16″; and, the paddle face is predominantly one color, excluding yellow.

Source: Platform Tennis News, Mid Winter 1990 and APTA May 1990 BOD Meeting Minutes

NOTE: For the history of the paddle from the early days through early 1990s: Jim Tate’s article The Paddle Itself has a History Too!