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• COURT SPECIFICATIONS
The four-wall racquetball
court is 20 feet wide, 40 feet long and 20 feet high, with a back wall at least
12 feet high. Courts are marked with 1 1/2 inch wide lines (short line, service
line, drive serve lines, and receiving line) that indicate the service zone,
service boxes, and receiving zone.
• RACQUET SPECIFICATIONS
The racquet, including
bumper guard and handle, may not exceed 22 inches in length. The frame may be
any material judged to be safe, with a thong that securely attaches it to the
player's wrist, and string that does not mark the ball.
• APPAREL
In sanctioned tournament play,
lensed eyewear designed for racquetball (which meets
or exceeds ASTM F803 or Canadian [CSA] impact standards) is REQUIRED. Players
who require corrective eyewear also must also adhere to this rule. Protective
eyewear must be worn as designed and may not be altered. Shoes must not mark or
damage the floor. Approved eyewear must be worn and wrist thongs must be used
during warm-up. |
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• SERVE
In tournament play, the player or team
winning the coin toss has the option to either serve or receive at the start of
the first game. The second game will begin in reverse order of the first game.
The player or team scoring the highest total of points in games one and two
will have the option to serve or receive first at the start of the tiebreaker.
In the event that both players or teams score an equal number of points in the
first two games, another coin toss will take place and the winner of the toss
will have the option to serve or receive. In everyday play, the "lag" or
courtesy "you serve" will determine the first server.
• START
The serve is started from any place
within the service zone, with the exception of certain drive
serves (see "Drive Service
Zones" below). Stepping on, but not over, the lines is permitted. The
server may not step over the short line until the ball passes the short line.
• MANNER
The player begins the service motion with
any continuous movement which results in the ball being served. The ball must
be bounced and hit before it bounces a second time.
• DRIVE SERVICE ZONES
The drive serve lines are
three feet from each side wall in the service box. The player may drive serve
between the body and the nearest side wall only if the player starts and
remains outside of the 3-foot drive service zone, and the racquet does not
break the plane of the zone while making contact with the ball. The drive serve
zones aren't observed for crosscourt drive serves, the hard-Z, soft-Z, lob or
half-lob serves.
• SERVE IN DOUBLES
At the beginning of each
doubles game, when the first server is out, the team is out. Thereafter, both
players on each team serve until the team receives a handout and a
sideout. On
each serve, the server's partner must stand erect with their back to the side
wall and both feet on the floor within the service box until the served ball
passes the short line.
• DEFECTIVE SERVES
There are three types of
defective serves: 1) a dead-ball serve which results in no penalty and the
server is given another serve (like a wet spot or broken ball), 2) any fault
serve (foot fault, short, long, screen, three-wall, etc.), and 3) an out serve
which results in an out (double fault, server hits self with serve, etc.)
• RETURNS
Once a "good serve" puts the ball into
play, the receiver may not enter the marked safety zone until the ball bounces
or crosses the plane of the dashed receiving line – particularly in making
an on-the-fly return attempt. After "legal" contact with the ball (after the
bounce, or behind the line), the receiver's follow-through may carry the
racquet or the body past the receiving line. Failure to return a serve results
in a point for the server.
• SIDEOUT
A server continues to serve until an out
serve, OR two consecutive fault serves, OR one player hits partner with an
attempted return (in doubles), OR a player or team loses a rally, OR a player
or team commits an avoidable hinder. In singles, retiring the server is a
sideout. In doubles, the side is retired when both partners have lost service.
• RALLIES
Play initiated after the successful
return of serve is called the rally. Play stops when: the ball is carried
(resting on the racquet long enough that the effect is more of a sling or throw
than a hit); the ball caroms off a player's racquet (or rebounds from any court
surface) into a gallery or wall opening; a ball obviously doesn't have the
velocity or direction to hit the front wall and strikes another player; an
avoidable hinder occurs. The ball remains in play until it touches the floor a
second time regardless of how many walls it makes contact with—including
the front wall. In singles, if a player swings at the ball and misses it, the
player may continue to attempt to return the ball until it touches the floor
for the second time. In doubles, if one player swings at the ball and misses
it, both partners may make further attempts to return the ball until it touches
the floor the second time. Both partners on a side are entitled to return the
ball.
• HINDERS
There are two types of hinders, 1) a
dead-ball hinder which is replayed without penalty (court hinders, body
contact, safety holdup, screens, etc.) and 2) avoidable which result in the
loss of rally by the offender (these are not necessarily intentional, but
clearly take away an offensive shot from your opponent, like blocking, making
distracting noise, or playing so close as to be hit by the
backswing, etc.). If
your court position or manner takes away an offensive shot from your opponent,
the right thing to do is call an avoidable hinder on yourself. |
