Age Catches Up With Piedmont’s Dodge : Tennis: Defending division champion, 56, falls quickly, 6-1, 6-2, in final at Huntington Beach.

On Saturday, Larry Dodge played six sets and more than five hours of tennis at the U.S. Tennis Assn. National 55 Men’s Hardcourt Championships at Lindborg Racquet Club.

On Sunday, Dodge’s 56-year-old body said, “Enough already.”

Dodge, the division’s defending champion and third-seeded player from Piedmont, never got started against his old friend Gil Howard of San Francisco and lost, 6-1, 6-2, in a final that took less than 90 minutes.

“It was over so quickly,” said Dodge, who on Saturday won a three-set singles semifinal over Les Dodson and lost a three-set doubles match with Lenny Lindborg to Richard Leach and Jim Nelson. “I didn’t feel worn out, but everything looked a little too fast,” Dodge said. “I just couldn’t get going and he hit the ball too hard. I never got my rhythm.”

The second-seeded Howard said he was just trying to make sure Dodge never got any rhythm.

“He has so much power that if you let him into the match, he can control it,” said Howard, who was Dodge’s doubles partner and hitting partner for more than 15 years. “He’s really tough for me to play. I was fearful of him until I won the match.”

Although Howard controlled the first set, he wasn’t as sharp in the second. His serve was nearly broken twice. In the fourth game, he faced two break points but recovered to win the game and go up, 3-1. Then in the seventh game with a 4-2 lead, he almost let his temper get the best of him.

Howard hit a ball down the baseline that appeared to go out, but Dodge did not make a call and neither did the umpire. So Howard won the point and the game to take a 5-2 lead. But some spectators thought Howard’s shot went wide and almost got the umpire to change his call.

“I really got frustrated at the end,” Howard said. “The umpire was letting the crowd call the line. If I had seen a space, I’d have told Larry. Maybe the crowd wanted to see a third set, but I didn’t.”

Dodge said he has seen Howard’s quick temper.

“If he does any more arguing, I’m thinking I’m going to go over there and say something to him,” Dodge said.

Instead, Dodge was only able to congratulate his long-time friend and foe five minutes later when the match ended.

“I was trying my best,” Dodge said. “I just wimped out. He was playing really good.”

The victory earned Howard his third USTA national title, but his first on the hardcourts. Last year, Howard won the world 55s championships in Los Gatos.

In the men’s 50 championship, Charlie Hoeveler of Ross beat Leland Housman of San Francisco, 6-3, 6-1, in the final.

In the 50 doubles final, Hoeveler teamed with Len Saputo of Walnut Creek to beat Ken Robinson of San Carlos and Chuck White of Moss Beach, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.