MAKING HIS MOVE : San Clemente’s John Eddo Finds Life Style to His Liking on Volleyball Tour

John Eddo remembers his first experience on the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals tour all too well.

Eddo, who was a star volleyball player at San Clemente High School and San Diego State, dug deep into his pocket for air fare to New Jersey for his first tournament in 1986. Money wasn’t easy to come by for Eddo, then a free-lance graphic artist with few clients.

Still, he had to go. It cost Eddo $350 to fly to the tournament in New Jersey, and a few more dollars for a cheap hotel.

“I knew I had to finish at least in ninth place or else I was finished,” Eddo said. “That was my break-even point.”

Eddo finished seventh and earned enough money to enter the next tournament, which was in Milwaukee.

“That first year was hard,” Eddo said. “How I did in each tournament determined whether I could go to the next tournament. It was great.”

Now 25, Eddo is enjoying a life style that’s hard not to like. He has a sponsor, for the expenses, and a lot of promise, for the future.

In less than three years, Eddo has gone from a relative unknown to one of the up-and-coming stars on the tour. In the last month, he has improved his national ranking from 25th to 18th.

Eddo will team with Rudy Dvorak this weekend in the Seal Beach Open. The tournament begins at 9 a.m. Saturday.

“Everyone’s goal is to win a tournament,” said Eddo, who has never placed higher than fourth in a tournament. “I hope that will happen for me soon. Right now, I really enjoy what I’m doing. It’s a fun life style.”

Eddo grew up in San Clemente, where he got a healthy dose of surfing, swimming and beach volleyball, which he started playing at age 12.

Eddo learned beach volleyball by watching such quality local players as Bob Yoder, who later starred at USC and now is the Trojans’ volleyball coach.

“I would spend the entire day at the beach, watching Yoder and other great players,” Eddo said. “Beach volleyball is easy to get excited about.”

Eddo starred in volleyball and basketball at San Clemente and was a four-year starter in volleyball at San Diego State.

After replacing an injured player for a week, Eddo performed well enough to earn an invitation to try out for the team in 1986.

However, he decided he’d rather follow the sun, so he turned pro.

“Volleyball just loses too much when it’s played indoors,” he said. “It’s like if you took tennis indoors and put six players on each side . . . you’d lose the personalities, like McEnroe and Lendl. Volleyball was meant to be played at the beach. It’s what the life style is all about.”

In 1986, Eddo’s life style consisted of bumming around the tour . . . literally.

With no sponsor, he had to cover all his expenses. That meant no frills.

Like lunch.

Eddo made just enough money to survive a week at a time. He also said he had the best time of his life and was certain he made the right descion.

“I think my parents thought I was crazy,” he said. “At times, I thought they might be right. I stayed in some pretty bad motels and I never knew if I’d be able too afford the next week, but it was a sacrifice I had to make in order to move up in the ranks.”

Eddo has been on the move. Picking up a sponsor in 1988 helped to take the pressure off. He no longer had to win just to compete.

“That really got me to relax,” Eddo said. “I didn’t have to worry about money. I just concentrated on volleyball.”

In 1988, He finished fourth in the Daytona and Rochester tournaments and was fifth in the U.S. championships in Hermosa Beach.

A tournament championship might be a year or so away, but Eddo’s in no hurry.

“I have no timetable,” Eddo said. “I’m just going to play this game as long as I can.”

Tournament Notes

As usual, Sinjin Smith and Randy Stoklos are the tournament’s top-seeded team. Tim Hovland and Mike Dodd are seeded second, Brent Frohoff and John Hanley third and Andrew Smith and Pat Powers fourth. . . . The tournament continues at 9 a.m. on Sunday, with the championship final scheduled for 3 p.m. . . . Besides Eddo, San Clemente High graduates Sean Fallowfield, Larry Mear and David Yoder also are on the tour. Yoder is the younger brother of USC volleyball coach Bob Yoder, also a San Clemente graduate.