Racquetball
Racquetball racquet and ball
Racquetball is a
sport played with racquets and a hollow
rubber ball on a special indoor court. Unlike other racquet sports, the walls, floor, and even ceiling of the racquetball court are considered in-bounds. The game is normally played by two players, though there are variations with three or even four (which can get very crowded). Two players games are called singles, three player games are typically called trips or cut-throat, and four player games are called doubles.
It can sometimes be confused with the very similar sport of Squash.
Rules
The player who won the last point is the server. The server bounces the ball once on the ground, then hits it against the front wall with the racquet. If the ball hits the side wall or floor before hitting the front wall, it is an automatic side out. Bouncing off the front wall, the served ball is required to bounce first somewhere on the floor between the back line of the service box and the back wall. The ball may not hit the ceiling after hitting the front wall after a serve. It can hit one side wall, however. Once it passes the back of the service box, the ball is in play and can be returned.
At this point, players alternate hitting the ball against the front wall. The ball is allowed to bounce on the floor at most one time before being hit against the front wall. After being hit by a player, the ball must not touch the floor at all until hitting the front wall, even if it has not yet bounced. Professional players play best of 5 games to 11, requiring a two-point margin of victory. Amateur players play 2 games to 15, with an 11-point tiebreaker if necessary. It is not necessary to win by two points in amateur racquetball.
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