The game grows in the Wild West and reaches the West Coast

Historical Factoid: The West is now in today's Region VI but it was a tortuous journey. The APTA established Regions in 1976 and at the time Region IV covered the Mid-West to the West Coast. Around 1978/79 Region V was created to cover the Far-West. In 1983 Region VI was established, covering lower Ontario and western New York. Finally, in 1989 the APTA reorganized Region boundaries and created a new Region V (Mid-Western States) from the former Region IV and the Western and Far West States were designated as Region VI

In 1972 Web and Dottie Otis returned to Ross, California, from a government assignment in Washington, D.C., where they had been introduced to platform tennis. Armed with plans for a court, they employed a local contractor, Bim Lansill, to erect an all-wooden court over a small swimming pool on a hillside above their home.

Two more private courts were soon erected in Ross, and in 1975 an amorphous group calling themselves the Ross Valley Hunt Club conducted the first tournament in Northern California.

By 1978 Ross, with a population of 2,700, had a public court in the town park.

In addition to Ross, the 1970s were a time of growth throughout the region. San Jose Steel constructed grade-level courts on a tennis court surface in various locations from San Diego to Salishan, Oregon. The facility that drew the most attention was the Cabrillo Athletic Club in San Diego. The manager advocated radical rule changes, such as moving the service line back six inches, rounding the corners, and cutting a hole in the back screen to allow for winners.

Ultimately these facilities were abandoned, leaving Ross as one of the main centers for the game in California, along with the Lagunitas Country Club, which built two courts in 1977 and became the headquarters for the Lagunitas Invitational run by Al Seidel for many years. This tournament continues to draw Eastern players who combine competition with visits to San Francisco or the nearby wine country.

In the early 1970s, courts were also built in Durango, Colorado, and managed by Gary Horvath. In subsequent years Horvath conducted numerous clinics at sites in New Mexico and Arizona.

Source: Article by Beach Kuhl in Passing Shots – A Pictorial History of Platform Tennis, 2010