Must have been a low end club. All the higher end clubs not only let you run tabs, but they encourage it. The managers will readily brag that their clubs have never lost to a customers challenge to the credit card company.
My experiance does go back 20-25 years. i guess things have changed. You could run a tab for drinks, but lap dances were COD. I guess that means that the girls have to pay tax, now that there is record of the income.