Chuck Jandreau has led a life that most people only dream about. He has done everything from teaching Johnny Carson, Willie Mays and a host of A-list stars and sports figures to instructing college students in political science.
Jandreau is not your ordinary athlete. Instead of focusing on one sport, he has done them all. His impressive sports background includes starring as a quarterback for Southern Oregon University, playing college basketball and a brief stint playing for the St. Louis Cardinals.
He earned all-Far Western Conference honors in three sports and inducted into the Southern Oregon University Hall of Fame in 1989.
But tennis is how he earned his notoriety. The amazing thing about Jandreau is that he didn’t decide to become a tennis pro until age 36 and a tournament player until he was 40.
His passion for sports, though, developed at age 14, when his family moved to Ashland, Ore., from East Los Angeles.
“Getting out of the L.A. environment was the best thing that ever happened to me,” recalled Jandreau, then a fledgling gang member. “It may have saved my life.”
At the end of his first year of college, he served in World War II as an infantry officer. After the war, he returned to Ashland to finish college and teach high school. From there, he moved to Torrance to attend graduate school at University of Southern California.
“I was teaching high school in Southern California and took only one tennis lesson. After that, I was hooked.”
Jandreau began hitting with Jeannie Austin (mother of 1980s tennis champion Tracy Austin). Shortly thereafter, he moved to Palm Springs and started playing against top players. He also gave tennis lessons to “a lot of big people of the world,” he said, including Lloyd Bridges, Burt Reynolds, Barbara Sinatra, Eva Gabor and Dinah Shore, along with classic rock band The 5th Dimension, to name a few.
“It was during this time,” Jandreau recalled, “that the wives of the mafia talked their husbands into bringing me over from Palm Springs to Las Vegas. I took a year’s leave from teaching and found out I made 10 times more in Vegas. That made my decision firm.”
After moving to Las Vegas, Jandreau began working as a tennis pro at the Riviera Hotel and Casino. He eventually ended up buying his own tennis club, including cabins for his guests. But he admittedly was a “player,” which cost him his marriage.
He said he left the “glitter and glamour” of Las Vegas after realizing he had neglected his family and become consumed with making a name for himself.
“I lost track of my mission in life, to follow my (Christian) faith. I was starting to stray and decided to cash it all in and get back to the real world.”
He bought a ranch and moved to Lubbock, Texas.
The turning point, as Jandreau recalls it, occurred shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“My daughters came out to visit and persuaded me move to San Lorenzo Valley in order to be closer to family.”
His life from that day forward took on a new light. Once he understood and accepted that he was cared about, he had a new desire to care about others.
Now, 10 years later, he has come full circle. He’s gotten back to his faith, his family and helping others. It wasn’t until leaving it all behind that he found his greatest reward.
At 87, Jandreau plays tennis almost every day at La Madrona Swim and Racquet Club, where he’s been made an honorary member. He volunteers every Saturday morning by preparing the courts for the 9 a.m. weekly drop-in clinic and assisting tennis pro Judy Newman.
These days, Jandreau’s passion is to inspire and help others. When he’s not spending time with his family, which includes 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren, or at the club, he can be found visiting food banks and delivering meals to shut-ins.
“I’m much happier than I’ve ever been,” Jandreau said. “No matter how bad life may be, you can always change it around and get started on a different path.”
Sandi Olson of Scotts Valley is a writer, speaker and teacher. She writes about interesting people in Scotts Valley and the San Lorenzo Valley. E-mail her at [email protected].
