The “Weekend Warrior” (nicknamed so after winning 13 of 15 weekend invitational events in one year), will long be remembered as handball’s ambassador to the world. Pat started playing at the age of seven in his native Ireland. He went on to win 16 Irish National Championships and three World Titles. In addition, Kirby dominated USHA Masters play, regularly capturing titles in age divisions 10 years younger than he was eligible to compete. He is the only player to have won national titles in three different countries, adding the Canadian national title to his U.S. and Ireland championships.
One-wall kingpin Steve Sandler will be remembered as much for his domination of one-wall handball as for his amusing challenge games. Sandler was known to play with handicaps of one hand tied behind his back, carrying a chair, using only his back hand, etc.
Matched against the game’s all-time greats, Sandler had an uncanny knack for winning. At his best, he was the game’s best volleyer, server and shooter. Witnessing Sandler play was breathtaking, the endless retrieving, impossible gets, famed back-hand shots and the floating ace serves with pin-point accuracy. Most impressive was his amazing durability. Sandler won a national open title in each of three decades.
Sam’s floor-scraping left-hand kill off the back wall may never be duplicated, and it made him the premier left-handed, left-side doubles player in his day. Offense was his strong point, not to mention his uncanny accuracy and percentage of success. As an ex-one-waller, his sweeping fly kill was also a weapon he used to great advantage. Although he was a formidable singles player, his stiff right-arm stroke prevented him from achieving national prominence in singles.
Of course, Sam achievements cannot be acknowledged without mentioning his fathering another of the game’s all-time greats and fellow Hall of Fame member, Paul.
Decatur will be remembered as one of the best doubles players ever. His record of eight four-wall titles, six three-wall crowns and four one-wall championships speak to that. “I would rate him as the best player in the world when the other team was hitting the ball,” said long-time partner and all-time great Jim Jacobs.
Throughout his career, Marty never took the credit, “I simply played a role with a better player,” Decatur remarked at his induction. Decatur proved to be an exceptional singles player as he won five three-wall singles crowns.
It was an accurate ceiling shot that won Haber his national championships. He could drop the ball into the left rear corner from any place on the court, with any stroke: overhand, underhand, or sidearm. Paul was the first player to use the ceiling as an offensive weapon; his patience and determination with it were legendary.
For almost five years, Haber played up to 100 exhibitions a year, not counting tournaments. He was playing so much in practice – sometimes six hours a day – that he often complained that a weekend tournament got his arm out of shape. So much play made Haber a court philosopher; there was little he didn’t know about handball.
In his early career, Paul was a professional golfer. After his handball success, Paul returned to golf as a club pro in the Chicago area.
Paul’s father Sam is also a member of the Handball Hall of Fame.
In more than two decades of scrutinizing handball’s very best tournament performers there has been no player that personifies the true meaning of the word “pro” than Johnny Sloan.
Sloan, just turned a Masters 40, was ushered into the citizens Savings Foundation Handball Hall of Fame at Las Vegas during the national big week … an award justly earned if one were only to look at the record books.
Unfortunately, the native Chicagoan came along a decade too soon for the pro handball tour; had professional handball presented itself during Sloan’s palmy days, I’m sure he would have retained the zest of conquest and maintained both the physical and mental edge needed for championship play.
Total achievement in handball came to Johnny at an early age … he was 18 when he won the national Y doubles with Jack Gordon, and 22 when he pulled the game’s “Hat Trick” in winning both singles and doubles (with Phil Collins) in 1958 … over the short but brilliant career he won three USHA “singles/doubles grand slams”; overall a 7-time doubles winner; two-time three-wall doubles titlist. A couple of years in the Army and the abating of the “hungry” feeling eased Sloan from the top of the hill. Then he moved to Honolulu, content to enjoy the tropical breezes and show the 50th Staters flashes of his former brilliance.
Sloan has made sporadic showings in our nationals in recent years, was respectable in the open doubles last year at Vegas with Jack Hulick. Now a Master, I doubt whether Johnny will seriously train for either singles or doubles in that category … he will continue to participate for the fun of it and let it go at that.
Well, can we remember the lightning-fast reflexes and court coverage of Johnny in his early 20s? Jack Gordon taught him the importance of the fly shot in his apprenticeship at the Irving Park YMCA in Chicago; Gus Lewis’ pinpointed right corner fly kill was copied to the T … when Sloan had in addition was amazing control of his offhand fist shots, keeping the foe(s) away from the offensive in either singles or doubles. His partnership with Phil Collins demonstrated real teamwork, and they must go down as one of the game’s all-time great doubles teams.
There was only one player in the Sloan glitter era that had the edge and that was an oft-injured Jim Jacobs. Jim with all the tools that included power didn’t play Sloan in a USHA national singles final … had to default in ’58 because of a back injury suffered in the doubles final the day before.
In handball circles when anyone talks about the four or five best-of-all-time, the Sloan name is 100% included. Bob Kendler tabbed him the “Little Court General” and that’s just what he was.
Elected to the Hall of Fame with Jacobs was another “shoo-in,” Oscar Obert. Oscar won more open USHA national championships than any other player in the history of the game, accumulating 20 crowns. – Four wall: singles, 1962 and 1963; three-wall: singles, 1962; doubles, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1964, 1965, and 1967; one-wall: singles, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1964, and 1965; doubles, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, and 1963. All his one-wall and three-wall doubles titles were achieved with his brother, Ruby. Oscar developed into a champion four-waller comparatively late in his career mainly because he had concentrated on one-wall. He brought a real crowd appeal to handball as a tremendous competitor, exciting all-out shooter, with championship “killer instinct” demeanor on the court.
Jim Jacobs’ admission into the hall of Fame was just a matter of when he would become eligible. The original requirement has set up eligibility for players who no longer competed in open events but was recently amended to permit nomination when a player reached the age of 40. Jacobs is considered the “complete player” … power, stamina, two-handed skills, speed, anticipation, and control. He developed a control volley game, using the percentage offensive shots, wearing down his opponents, and letting them make mistakes. In 1955 he defeated Vic Hershkowitz in the finals at his home Los Angeles Athletic Club, to take the first of six USHA singles crowns. Jacobs also has six doubles crowns to his credit, once with Dick Weisman in 1960, and five times with Marty Decatur, along with three 3-wall singles titles. In 1970 in a tribute to his achievements, the U.S. Handball Association made a special award to Jacobs as “Greatest Handball Player of the Generation.”
George Brotemarkle became the 20th member of the Hall and has the distinction of being the only inductee admitted as both a player and contributor. An outstanding basketball player at UCLA and a consistent singles and doubles champion in Southern California. George participated in every national tournament since 1939 through 1972 with the exception of the World War II years, when he served as an officer in the Army. In 20 years of Masters doubles competition, he has four championships to his credit and never finished lower than third. In 1973 he won the first USHA national invitational Super Masters singles for men over 60! As our national treasurer, George is one of two original founders of the USHA still active in the organization, President Bob Kendler being the other. He is directly responsible for establishing the handball Perpetuation Trust and negotiating the tax-free corporation status of the USHA.
Schneider’s tournament career spanned more than 30 years. He won the national singles in 1950, and three straight national doubles with Sam Haber (1954-56). In Masters play, Ken captured 15 titles, a feat earning him Grand Master distinction.
Originally a product of the Castle Hill Beach Club, Schneider later joined the 92nd Street YMCA. He displayed amazing speed and court coverage, a deadly back wall shot, a keen sense of anticipation and the art of rekilling.
Schneider moved to Chicago to become a part of Bob Kendler’s Community Builders’ stable of champions. As an attorney, Ken also served as the USHA’s National Commissioner.
