Racquetball Strategy Blog

Two Non Negotiable Racquetball Skills that will dramatically raise your game! To Levels yet Un-Obtained! Bonus Finals Video

2022-05-10T13:49:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about writing about this subject for a long time, and am now just getting around to it. I think it is so important, that it needs to be said in this way. I watch so many players play thinking about many other strategies, with many different game plans, and then destroy their plans by failing consistently at these two Non Negotiable Skills.

Racquetball really is about the mastery of these two skills.

If you watch the best player in the world, Kane Waselenchuk, you see someone who does "everything well" as many commentators will tell you. He has the best hands for soft touch shots in the game, and has power that can debilitate his opponents. His execution is as close to flawless as the game has ever seen. But no game can survive, or thrive, unless you perform these two skills well. The worse you perform them, the more your results suffer and the more points, and ultimately games you will lose. All other skills are subordinate to them, though all other skills can raise your game. But these two skills are the foundation of your game.

Take a guess from the list below.

But before you do, do some stats by watching some videos on YouTube of the best players in the world and see by the numbers how many rallies, per game, were won or lost by accomplishing, or not accomplishing the two skills I will soon share. See which opponent made these two mistakes fewer times in each game, and did that give them victory?

Here is a list of popular skills great racquetball players have mastered. Both pro's and top amateur's.

The first three are not the two I'm talking about. The first three are a given, to hit the ball well.

1) Develop a smooth consistent stroke.

2) Develop the proper point of contact.

3) Always use great footwork. Just watch Paola on the women's LPRT tour. Her footwork sets her above all the other women, and allows her to execute the two skills I will talk about in a minute, at the highest level on the women's tour. Part of it is how quick her feet are, but that is a story for another day.

Now for a number of game play skills or strategies among which the two non negotiable skills are listed.

4) Hit the ball away from your opponent.

5) Make great shot selection based on your opponents court position. This is part of #4.

6) Don't skip the ball.

7) Always watch your opponent hit their shot, so you can respond more quickly and anticipate better.

8) Never give up on retrieving a shot. Many rallies are extended by great gets and later won.

9) Keep your eye on the ball, when hitting your shots. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4qCFgzysF8 First the right fielder takes his eye off the ball, and then the catcher in the SAME play. With devastating game ending results. If it can happen to the pro's, it can happen to you.

10) Don't leave the ball off the back wall during rallies or serves.

11) Control center court. And move your opponent to the corners as much as you can, or backcourt.

12) Pass more than you pinch. If you miss a pinch shot up, it is an easy re kill for your opponent.

13) Develop great ceiling ball shots, as a necessary defensive strategy.

There are many more, but lets see which two you feel are indispensable.

If you can do both of these consistently in every rally, the pressure will transfer to your opponent to execute perfectly. They will have to chase down more difficult shots, and more than likely leave you with multiple easy attempts to finish most rallies.

If all you think about, while you play, is accomplishing these two things, it is almost a guarantee you will win the majority of rallies, and win the most points.

The two are Don't skip the ball, and Don't leave the ball off the back wall during rallies or serves.

A skip is giving away a rally, and takes all the pressure off your opponent. Someone who skips the ball every other shot, falls behind quickly.

A ball left off the back wall translates to easy set ups for your opponent, and unnecessarily giving your opponent extra chances.

Bottom line, Kane skips fewer shot each game and leaves fewer, by far, balls off the back wall. Therefore he wins.

Yes, his serves are great, but notice, they fulfill these two mandates. If his serves were just as fast, but always came off the back wall, guess what. The rallies would last longer, and he would have to field many tougher shots. If he left his shots off the back wall during rallies, same issue. But he doesn't. He has worked hard to master these two skills, and so should you!!

Even if you have a great stroke, make great shot selection, and even try to control center court, pass more than you pinch, failing at these two skills will ruin your game consistently.

Watch the pros, with these two things in mind, and see how individual rallies, and game outcomes go. When I watch Kane play, he is the best by far at these two skills. His rallies end quicker than any other player for these two reasons.

Watch him use down the line, and wide angle passes and see how many come off the back wall. Very few. Almost never. He skips fewer shots than his opponents. And he racks up points faster than any player in history, I think primarily because of these two skills he has mastered. Here are a couple of videos of him in play.

This first video was just played 1/23/2022 in Kane's first comeback tournament since the US Open last year. Playing against the up and coming Andree Parrilla in a spectacular finals match that illustrates everything I've been talking about in this article. Many incredible irretrievable wide angle passes mixed in with excellent down the line passes that don't come off the back wall. Not to mention an assortment of bottom board kills, both pinches and flat rollouts. If you want to know what to do to win, just watch this match and take notes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6DmPAyL2M0&t=9s

This video was really an excellent match last January 2020. Daniel De La Rosa put lots of pressure on Kane. They both have great hands, pinch shots like no one else, and especially accomplish the two skills with amazing regularity. The games were closer than Kane usually experiences because Daniel's consistency, shot quality, and executing the two skills were on level with Kane for much of the two games.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO9R7KhqpWQ&t=1384s

In particular, Kane's wide angle passes almost always hit the front wall and then the side wall BEFORE bouncing, and wrap around his opponent with no chance to be retrieved. The reason it is better to hit the side wall before it bounces, is the speed of the ball remains closer to it's peak. If you hit the floor, then the side wall on a wide angle pass, and then the floor again, the ball slows down much quicker by hitting three surfaces, instead of hitting two surfaces, the side wall then the floor. Making it much easier to retrieve at least into the back wall. His wide angle passes are usually impossible to catch up to and hit into the back wall. Watch for these on the videos. Here is one against Alvaro where the wide angle passes occur more often than the first video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAnIjjrfb9k&t=1982s

Watch for these two skills, and see how they influence the outcome of the rallies, especially compared to his opponent's execution of the same skills.

As we all know from watching him play, the pressure always seems to be on his opponents, and no matter how well they play, they always crack first, and Kane runs away with yet another game.

Why not try playing the next few games thinking only about these two things. I believe you will see everything else will fall into place, and your game will begin to elevate to levels never before achieved, as you execute the Two Non Negotiable Skills.

IRT Racquetball Finals and Semis Videos at The Lewis Drug Pro Am January 2018

2018-01-21T17:03:00.000-08:00

This weekend Jan 18th through 21st 2018, with #1 Kane Waselenchuk sidelined with a knee injury, the door opened in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to crown a different champion in a wide open field of outstanding professional racquetball players.

Watch the three videos in order, if you don't know the winners already. It will be like a new tournament.

We want to say a special thank you to Lewis Drug, who with IRT's John Scott, stepped forward to present free viewing of the longest running racquetball tournament in racquetball history. This tournament has featured every great racquetball champion in the last 40 years, since 1978.

The commentators, along with host John Scott, are 5 time pro tour champion Sudsy Monchik, and perennial top 3 ranked professional Alvaro Beltran on the current pro tour. Their insight alone, is worth this viewing, as they pick apart the best strategies and analyze the finals match. Sudsy is also in involved in the De La Rosa vs Beltran match.

So, here we go.

Daniel De La Rosa and Alvaro Beltran in a top notch semi final. This match could have gone either way, and features classic Alvaro humor, amazing shots and control of game pace. He is countered by an incredibly talented Daniel De La Rosa, who has some of the most amazing splat shots on tour. Along with a relaxed, but effective approach. He can turn up the volume at will, and never loses his cool under pressure. The true mark of a top pro. Here is a link to that semi.

Alvaro vs Daniel

The other semi final between Alex Landa and Rocky Carson is also a barn burner. Intensity if fully on display in this ground breaking semi for Alex, as he battles to break through to his first finals. Rocky, in no way is ready to relinquish his shot at another finals. Both their solid shot selection and high percentage racquetball is a lesson to all of us striving to improve our tournament results. Here is a link to their semi. For a second or two, it looks like the wrong match, but then kicks into the right match.

Alex vs Rocky

HERE IS A LINK TO THE FINALS. It is an outstanding match.
This match is not to be missed. It is the best of the three, going down to the final point.

Lewis Drug FINALS

LPRT Racquetball Ladies Live and Posted Matches

2017-12-08T12:40:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to the live event LPRT womens Christmas Classic. It will be good all weekend and matches are posted on the right side of the page, for you convenient later viewing. So keep checking back to catch the live matches, and to look for posted events.
16's are going all day Friday

Quarters are tomorrow morning 10am EASTERN and Semis 4pm EASTERN

Enjoy!

https://livestream.com/lprtour/events/7970472

And here is a link below to past events including the US Open and many others from this season and before

Check back often to watch all that has occurred in this link below.

https://livestream.com/lprtour

Racquetball 1985 Finals || Watch 19 year old Cliff Swain burst on to the Pro Tour Scene

2017-12-07T16:05:00.001-08:00

This extraordinary racquetball finals (link at the bottom of the page), of the 1985 Ektelon National Championships in Anaheim, CA match, between 19 year old Cliff Swain and Gregg Peck, with commentator of legend, Mike Yellen (multiple times national champion), in suit and tie.

And the other commentator is Charlie Garfinkel (The Gar) who was the early Babe Ruth of the sport, as the articles say. Here is an amazing link to Garfinkel's history, who holds racquetball records that have never been broken. In this link is a video of his racquetball history, way back in the day. He was also a champion squash and tennis player.

http://www.buffalosportshallfame.com/member/charlie-garfinkel/

On his way to the finals, Cliff beat Marty Hogan in the quarters, and then Dave Peck (Gregg's older brother). Racquetball in it's heyday. This match was aired on television, with a national audience, giving racquetball exposure that launched the racquetball boom in health or athletic clubs nationwide. Clubs were built with (or added) racquetball courts as a major amenity, often 10 to 20 in any one club. Everyone was trying this exciting new game. Colleges put in courts (or used handball courts) in an effort to stay current with this new trend. Juniors programs abounded, along with junior national championships. And racquetball had minted it's first millionaire, Marty Hogan.

In this match you see Kane Waselenchuk type dominance from Cliff in game one. He clearly has all the shots of a great player. But the tide changes in game two (as you will see), and sends the match to an eventual fifth game exciting tiebreaker.

You will notice a few differences in the court markings from today's game.

No 17 foot zone lines. Only one doubles line per side in the service box.
No encroachment line (dotted line), that now prevents players from coming too close to the service area, and endangering the server on a short hop attempt off the serve.

The rackets are 18 inches long, and the two stage transition to today's 22 inch versions still awaits the future.

Enjoy this excellent finals match and professional commentary, designed for a growing presence on the then national stage. We can hope, and work, to go there again.

Be sure to turn you speakers up, and you will get a history lesson as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J4OZtBuoB4&t=583s

WRT Alamo City Open Live Now

2017-12-02T12:38:00.001-08:00

A different tournament than yesterdays IRT in Portland. This is the Alamo 'City Open now.
Features all the WRT tour professional players. Too many to name.

Enjoy

http://worldracquetballtour.com/live/

This was a live event. They do not post them for later viewing, except on YouTube in a month or so. But thank you if you watched the live event on December 2nd and 3rd, 2017.

Portland IRT Pro Racquetball Tournament Live and posted matches

2017-12-01T11:40:00.004-08:00

Enjoy live the IRT Racquetball tournament in Portland, Oregon today December 1st. Matches 10am and 5pm. They may post matches on this Facebook site, that can be view at your convenience.

Here is the link to IRT's Facebook live site. You may have to sign in to Facebook to see, once on the site.

https://www.facebook.com/IRTfan/

A Rare #2 Rocky Carson vs #1 Kane Waselenchuk Racquetball Finals in St Louis

2017-11-19T16:08:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the IRT Network and Pro Kennex, this finals was broadcast free yesterday November 18th 2017, between Rocky Carson and Kane Waselenchuk. Kane is number 1, and Rocky number 2 on Racquetballs premier professional racquetball tour.

Recently the tour has been making in roads with ESPN, interviewing John Scott, the owner of the the IRT Network. They were able to share a video on ESPN, promoting the tour and it's outstanding assemblage of pros that currently grace the brackets of Tier 1 stops.

Racquetball's two premier players face off for the 75th time in this final. You will see serves from Kane that have no rival in the sport, along with a well rounded game, better in every component of the game than anyone in the sport, currently, or in the past. Great hands, soft touch shots, power passes and accuracy unrivaled. Rocky also is one of the games best. with a quickness and contingent of shots that would leave anyone but Kane behind.

Look at this match for serve and kill formulas. What shots are taken when the opponent is positioned in different parts of the court.

Anticipation of opponents serves. The commentator Tony Carson discusses the strategies that could be used to anticipate a particularly effective serve from Kane.

Who best controls center court.

Who does the two most important things (my opinion) in the game.
1) Keep the ball off the back wall (avoids easy set ups in back court)
2) Don't skip the ball (don't let the floor beat you)

If you can do these two things, you will win the most rallies.

This is easier said than done, especially when dealing with the kind of power and speed of the ball produced by players like Kane. If you can't catch up with the ball, and get your feet in position, there is little hope of implementing the two strategies listed above. But it is a rare opponent that will dominate like that.

So enjoy the match with these, and other things the commentators will bring up. It's on the Facebook links below.

https://www.facebook.com/IRTfan/videos/10155850635866737/

or scroll down once on page to see ST Louis Final, about 45 minutes long

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=international%20racquetball%20tour

Live on Facebook today IRT Tour Event

2017-11-03T16:02:00.001-07:00

Here is the live free day on Facebook for the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). Kane and Rocky and others round of 16 matches featured today.

https://www.facebook.com/IRTfan/

and also on Enet live, but you need to create a login and password for this link. You can sign up for a free membership, but only get limited days for free. Membership for the Enet IRT site is 9.99 a month and $499 for a lifetime.

https://enetlive.com/irt2/live-irt/

You can find matches from the tournament posted free on the Facebook link above.

Enjoy the matches
Dirk

WRT Live Racquetball Tournament Link Oct 2017

2017-10-13T17:34:00.000-07:00

Watch Alvaro Beltran vs Jake Bredenbeck. Classic power vs control.

Click this link below to watch the tourney all weekend. Live Now

Enjoy!

http://iframe.dacast.com/b/14520/c/45825

and Facebook link live and scroll down once on page
https://worldracquetballtour.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ceadbea52002fd9b28a7866f9&id=fc19f007c6&e=f8e7f01d5f

Racquetball | Cliff Swain provides excellent commentary - The Finals-Paola vs Salas

2017-04-25T20:20:00.000-07:00

Don't miss any of the listed points below, especially #4, that Cliff Swain makes during this LPRT Racquetball Finals match at the Battle of the Alamo.

Cliff joins the match at the beginning of game 2. But don't miss game one. A barn burner.

This is an excellent racquetball match for several reasons. Samantha Salas uses a little different serve pattern, and produces some great results, and Paola Longoria counters with her usual ability to adjust to just about anything that's thrown her way.

As Cliff Swain points out, she's (Paola) a practice machine, or words to that effect.

I believe, somewhere in her practice time, and no small amount of that, she's already drilled repeatedly on every possible shot, or shot strategy that could come her way. So when she makes her adjustment, that comes from experience, and a "practice makes permanent" philosophy that characterizes her entire approach to racquetball.

Cliff makes a number of important points, so you don't want to miss any of his commentary. Cliff has a resume that few can approach. To name a few, 6 times pro tour champion, a passion for teaching the game, and a willingness to share in a public arena his insight.

Here are a few of the highlights of his commentary.

1) Be willing to reset the rally, when necessary. This means that there are times when your most aggressive shot should not be taken, going defensive instead (like hitting your shot to the ceiling), getting back to center court, and attempting to take back control of the rally, waiting for the right time to attack.

2) Focus on why you are playing the match. As he points out, his Dad used to ask him things like, "What kind of a plane ride do you want to have home" if he felt Cliff needed encouragement to stay focused and intense during a tight match.

3) Shot selection, and the why's of shot selection, in a number of cases. This is very informative!!

4) WHY to take a certain court position on the rally at 58 minutes in. At 58:25 Cliff takes us through shot by shot, what court position Samantha Salas takes and what it accomplishes, and the result it produced. SENSATIONAL. And then augments this point as the match continues with further illustrations.

5) The value of great rivalries and their various benefits.

6) The decision making of Paola, during rallies, and how she manages risk. Many very great points here.

7) How we should do exactly to opposite against great players like Kane or Paola. This would apply to great players in your area, or just players that put a lot of pressure on your game, because of their skills vs yours. Cliff points out that we often take too much risk, because we feel the pressure, instead of managing the risk with more defensive shots, saving more aggressive shots for when you are in a more controlled position. And reducing poor shot selection that result in easy to avoid mistakes, and points given up.

8) Various sequences to construct rallies, from the serve to the kill.

Cliff makes many other great points, so enjoy the advice of one of the best pros to ever walk on a racquetball court. Here is a link to his website. At Cliff Swain.com.

With all these in mind, enjoy the match, and turn your speakers up!

I watched this match on Chrome. Mozilla, you need to download Adobe player. I just copied and pasted the link to the Chrome browser and did fine. In case you need to.

You can also see other matches from this tournament by clicking the X and then on which post on the right, once on the page.

Here is the link below to this match.

https://livestream.com/lprtour/events/7299341/videos/154800843

Racquetball | Kane Slow Motion Superb Form | Video

2017-03-13T19:36:00.001-07:00

This 2 minute video at the bottom of this article, of #1 Professional Kane Waselenchuk is worth your time, in a big way. Increase your power, control, and improve your outcomes. And worth sending to other racquetball players, if you have the time to forward. They will thank you.

Racquetball is a game of mechanics, just like any sport, where the foundation of your game is based on their execution. And to accomplish that execution, it takes knowing what to practice, and then repetitive practice to make it second nature, under pressure. Not just any practice, but perfect practice.

I heard a phrase coined by a music teacher made to one of his students "Perfect Practice Makes Permanent." The student was later to take second place in the vocalist state competition in Washington.

To further illustrate this is a great story, paraphrased from the past, from a football coach. A certain NFL team with a poor performance for the last several years, hired a new coach. However, nothing changed that first year or two. SO, the coach decided on a new approach. He, much to the chagrin of his seasoned professional players, went back to basics, in their most basic form.

"This is a football". The goal is to move it until you score.

To do this, he said, we are going to learn how to tackle, block, pass, catch and so forth, learning the fundamentals in every detail.

The players joked about how coach was teaching them things they already knew since childhood. And treating them like beginners. They even kidded him about it.

But coach persisted. Today we learn how to block. And spent the entire day on learning and practicing each technique of this skill. And then on to tackling, catching and so it went. Tedious and repetitive. Week after week.

Perfect practice. In the racquetball world you can thank Jim Winterton for his exacting coaching of Kane, and other great players.

The results were victories in the Super Bowl the next two years. The players no longer complained

The coach, Vince Lombardi, Green Bay Packers

The lesson, assume nothing, and practice perfectly, until you can't get it wrong. Don't be lazy in your practice techniques.

Amateurs practice until they get it right, Professionals practice until they can't get it wrong.

We should never complain if we don't win in racquetball, for this reason or that. Just practice like the pros, until your shots look like theirs. Then, the victories will take care of themselves.

Here is Kane in Slo Mo. Now we can really see exactly what great mechanics for the swing look like, from the best in the game. Not to mention footwork, body control, point of contact and probably a few other components.

Pay special attention to:

1) How flat (Parallel to the floor) Kane keeps his racket at the point he contacts the ball, whether he takes it at the knees or below, or between chest and knees.

2) How he is willing to bend his knees to maintain that flat swing.

3) How he prepares the racket ahead of the swing.

4) How he follows smoothly through.

5) His great footwork, to get into proper hitting position, if he has the time to do so. Even when he doesn't, he still accomplishes the first four points.

6) How relaxed, but controlled he stays, evident in how his hips, shoulders, and arm work together in sequence.

7) He keeps his eye on the ball all the way through contact.

8) And finally shot selection can be seen on certain shots when the other player's position reveals why Kane chose a particular direction to shoot.

Enjoy by clicking the link below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CCNXeAY8zw

Racquetball-1989 Michele Gilman (Gould) vs Cindy Doyle National Singles Final

2017-02-20T14:07:00.000-08:00

Another installment from the 1980's archives recently put out by the International Racquetball Federation. This match is back and forth, and down to the wire. Michele is, by statistics, one of the three most historically dominant players on the women's professional tour, later winning 8 National Pro Tour Championships. Here she is attempting to win her first National Singles Title, finishing 2nd the previous year. And she has just graduated from high school, a few days before, with commencement ceremonies in just a few days.

This is an ESPN like covered event with full color commentary by Steve Strandemo, a writer, teacher and professional racquetball player of that era. His commentary is in depth, and reveals intricacies and details of techniques and strategies that bring a more thorough understanding to every level of player.

As we all know in racquetball, the game can have major inter game or game to game swings in momentum. This match is a great demonstration of that.

I had the privilege of meeting Michele a year before this match in Boise Idaho, when I was managing a health club in Boise. We held a tournament that drew players from both Idaho,Washington and Oregon.

As I remember, Michele came and played in the men's division opens. I don't remember that result, but it was clear she was someone special and upcoming in the racquetball ranks.

She was using the new oversized Head 20" blue racket (not yet to the 22" sizes) as a sponsored player, the same racket you will see in this video. I ended up using the same racket for several years, since it was lighter than most other oversized rackets at that time.

I had a newly torn wrist cartilage known as a TFCC tear (more seen in gymnasts), that couldn't be repaired surgically, (not enough blood supply to the area) and so with wrist braces and this lighter racket, I was able to restart playing, tens month after the injury occurred.

Michele and Cindy both hit the ball a ton. Match intensity in at a peak.

Enjoy the full match video in the link below. Don't forget to turn up you speakers!

Michele Gilman vs Cindy Doyle

And enjoy the next video of Kane in slow motion here. Amazing video.

Kane Waselenchuk-slow-motion-superb.html

Racquetball | 1992 Tim Sweeny USA vs Mike Ceresia CANADA Racquetball International Final

2016-12-20T19:52:00.000-08:00

Back to the early 90's we go. This match is special in a number of ways. Lynn Adams is the color commentator and Otto Dietrich the referee. Fran Davis is one of the coaches of the USA team. At one point Lynn interviews Fran during the match, and they discuss strategy. In the opening a very young Jim Hiser is with the commentator.

The match itself is one of shifting momentum and strategies, as it goes down to an exciting conclusion. Replay's of important rallies are excellent, timely, and the commentary superb.

A part I really enjoy is how the referee explains controversial calls and controls play in an engaging and thorough manner. Very professionally done.

There are a couple of humorous moments you won't want to miss, as the players banter, and use every trick in the book to control the pace of the games.

Tim is the proverbial power player and Mike the consummate control player. Tim is quiet and Mike likes to talk and entertain (as a strategy). As you will see, he never loses his sense of humor, even in a tense, critical moment. All the while sending the crowd into peals of laughter

And there are post game interviews with both players that you won't want to miss. For that matter, the whole match, with every little comment from Lynn Adams, and the broadcaster add flavor, and bring this era of racquetball to life, again.

Enjoy another excellent match in the link below. Oh, and don't let the pic on the video fool you, of one of the USA team female competitors. It really is Tim vs Mike
Remember to turn up your speakers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKpp9RFNrWs

#1 Lynn Adams vs #2 Caryn McKinney 1986 Women's Final

2016-12-08T18:46:00.003-08:00

This is a real treat, because footage of these two great players is more than rare. I had the opportunity to see both players live in April 1983, in Kent, Washington at the newly opened Pacific West Sport and Racquet club's newest location. Lynn won that pro stop, and was impressive, to say the least. With intense focus, that you will see in this video, I thought would be lost, existing only in my and others memories of the long past, Lynn blew away the competition in the same fashion that you will see here.

Caryn was #2 when I encountered her both at that same tournament, but also about a year later. After having placed 2nd in a local A tournament, both the other finalist and I were asked to play Caryn in an exhibition game to 7 points each.

In my game, I scored the first point on an ace serve. She returned my second serve for a side out, and that was the last I saw of the service box. Caryn was incredibly consistent from both sides, and I remember roll out and pinches in the corner, time after time. She won 7-1.

The women pros consistency is remarkable. You don't get more than one mistake per rally.

This isn't a full match, but what is here will tell the story of those years. Lynn's dominance of the women's ranks, I believe, and so do many others, places her in the top three women all time. Lynn Adams, Michelle Gould, and Paola Longoria. Given equal racket choices, I think it would be a toss up among the three, each with multiple consecutive titles to their names.

Lynn was known for her powerful drive serve, intelligent shot choices and tenacious competitive and consistent focus that served her well and resulted in multiple national pro titles.

In particular, I would like to point out, in this match, her use of sharp wide angle passes from the front left court, on several occasions, to finish the point. A great choice of shot, leaving almost no possibility of return or chasing the ball down. She kept it very low, often hitting the left side wall around the service line knee high or lower, and angling around Caryn. She hit it hard, as a power shot as well, but it never came off the back wall. A great one for us to practice. And with less room for error and leaving the ball up in front court to be re-killed, like with a pinch, or even a down the line attempt.

Here is the link to the video. Be sure to turn your speakers up for the first class ESPN commentary.

Adams vs McKinney

Unbeliveable 1986 Hogan vs Yellen National Title Match-Full Match Video-WOW!

2016-08-05T22:28:00.001-07:00

I haven't written in a year, or so. But I just found a video that will blow you mind, as you might guess by the title.

This was when Professional Racquetball was at it's height, with matches being carried over multiple years on ESPN. In fact, health clubs were putting in often more than 10 courts, to draw the massive influx to the fastest growing sport at that time, in the United States.

The game produced it's first millionaire in Marty Hogan, seen in one of the videos here, vs Mike Yellen. In this video you will see short video footage of other greats of that era, such as Lynn Adams (one of the 3 most dominate players ever, on the women's tour) and Dave Peck, with interviews of various players, including both Hogan and Yellen, before this match. To get to the finals, Hogan had to defeat Cliff Swain in the semi's.

If there was any question in your mind of whether these guys could challenge today's very best players, this will dispel that notion. These guys execute at the highest level, even during the transition from standard 18" rackets to the new then 20" oversize rackets. You might often see one player using the new oversize racket, while the other staying with the standard size.

I remember my first encounter with one of the first oversize rackets, the Ektelon Toron, that hit the ball a ton. Of course now we use 22" rackets, due to another step up in the 1990's.

Enjoy the match, It is back and forth, and highly strategic. Notice how serve strategies change throughout the match, as each player adjusts, and looks for weak returns.

Here is the link on YouTube. Be sure and turn your speakers up. During the commentary, which is ESPN first class, you will hear many of the great names and history mentioned while you watch some of the best production of Racquetball you could hope to see.

I will follow up with some of the other videos that have recently been posted from this era.

This was just posted on YouTube, August 5th 2016, by USA's racquetball permission. My link is to that posting.

As any sports announcer worth their salt will say, UN BELIEEEEEEVABLE!!!!!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ns-vnGH4dw0

Next we see Lynn Adams and Caryn McKinney Racquetball 1986 National Finals Pro Match.

Superb Jeff Stark vs Jiimmy Lowe Full Match Racquetball Nationals Final 2015

2015-05-24T14:59:00.000-07:00

Now it's finally a reality. A full match between these two perennial Washington rivals, both top ranked in the 40+ divisions, here the 45+ Nationals final 2015. It is one of their best, although you can take this match as an illustration of their career finals since they have been there and done this more times, almost, than can be counted on both your fingers and toes. Jeff Stark has owned the recent history and today that will be tested to the full by Jimmy Lowe.

Both athletes are in their usual prime physical condition. No fatigue factors here.

This is also a match of streaks, very typical in racquetball. Momentum can be very difficult to break in racquetball. Both these guys have used every technique and trick in the book to gain the advantage. Both have the two best pair of soft hands shots in the game, in this division.

Jeff mixes his serves, straight drives and Z's in his usual unpredictable effective manner and Jimmy tries out many serves, until he settles primarily on an overhead Z to Jeff's backhand, with great effectiveness.

This goes down to a tight back and forth heart wrenching finish

YOU WILL NEED TO SCROLL DOWN TO THE JIMMY LOWE JEFF STARK MATCH once you click the link.

http://livestream.com/usaracquetball/events/3980891

or direct to match

http://livestream.com/usaracquetball/events/3980891/videos/88214462

Enjoy

And here is the link to the next match video, Hogan vs Yellen 1980's

Mitch Williams vs You! in Racquetball What would it be like?

2014-12-29T18:20:00.001-08:00

You're playing racquetball really well lately and feeling your oats as it were. You think in your mind, "I'll bet I'd at least give one of those pros a run for their money, maybe score a few points, especially if I play like I did today when I dusted everyone who thought they'd challenge my domain. You have been playing the opens for a several years now, and it's getting harder and harder to find a good game. You have reached the top rankings in your state

Well, a guy shows up who you've never seen before who mentions he's in town for the week, and says "got game?". So you relent, graciously, Would you like to warm up? I'll hit just a few, he says. You think "this guy looks kind of familiar" but dismiss the thought. Then he begins to hit the ball. "Lot of power" you think. We'll, when I ramp it up he won't be able to use it so easily as in warm ups. I'll just keep him on the move.

You shake hands, Mitch, he says. Hmmm......Mitch, Mitch, Mitch you think. Familiar name with that face. Well, lets see what he's got.

And here's the devastating result

Disclaimer: The person described in first person above in no way resembles the character, attitude or thoughts of the player in this video. It was just an example. Actually what happened to this guy, at the hands of Mitch, in this video happened to me at the capable hands of Marty Hogan around 1986 at a racquetball exhibition in the Seattle area.

Spetacular Racquetball Top Notch Final With Controversy-Rhonda Rajsich and Maria Jose Vargas

2014-12-20T17:51:00.000-08:00

The last racquetball tournament of the year on the LPRT, missing Paola Longoria, was not missing any drama. Rhonda Rajsich, probably the best natural athlete to ever play women's professional racquetball, is looking like a 25 year old, even at 36. She moves with more ease and quickness than anyone on tour.

Maria is coming on stronger every tournament, focused like a laser and athletic. She has maybe the smoothest flat, flat swing, most notably on her backhand, and forehand serve, thanks to the tutelage of Cliff Swain. If you want a tutorial on either shot, just watch this match. Filmed from ground level, you can see how smooth and near perfect her swing is.

This match, however, was decided I believe, more by emotion and the ability to stay focused on playing well, than by pure mechanics of the game. The driver of this critical component of the game was sharp disagreement over the drive serve used first by Maria, then later by Rhonda, and whether it was a screen serve, or not.

The serve, made famous by Ruben Gonzalez back in the 80's, is serving a low drive behind yourself, while standing close to the left wall, as a right handed server. My understanding is, the 3 foot line (and thus the 17ft zone) was installed in answer to this serve by Ruben, to give the receiver a better view of the serve by pushing the server out from the wall. The ball generally has to make the side wall, or very close, for the ball not to be a screen serve, before it gets to the back wall. Also the racquet cannot break the plane of the 3 foot line during the swing.

I've personally gone round and round in one tournament in the late 80's in Boise, Id in the open semis, when the referee refused to allow me to use this serve, calling it an automatic screen, every time I served it behind me, no matter what the clearance, and even when it hit the side wall and cracked out. Then, a couple of weeks later at NW Regional, many players were using it, including me, with no referee problems. More than a little frustrating for me in that semi. What's worse, were all the months of practice that went into just that serve sequence; either drive behind, Z, or cross court drive, all from that spot. I was actually winning that semi, until having that served banned, lost my focus, and lost the match.

A very similar thing happened here, though, I believe, in this case the ref was correct and the serve was allowed. But the disagreement that occurred changed, in my view, the direction of the match.

In this match both players, eventually, had complaints about at least some serves behind, and frustration levels began, it seemed, to influence play. Watch now as this unfolds, mostly starting in game two. The referee here, I believe, was making the right calls, since on the good calls, the ball cleared the player with the usual room required. When close to the body, he called the screen.

No matter what, the view is never great on that serve for the receiver. Come to think of it, the other side fore hand wall drive serve isn't perfect either. It's always a judgement call, and part of the game. A couple of years ago I read much discussion about this serve on various racquetball sites, including rules sites, and interpretation of rules sites, with specific diagrams showing what "shall be not considered a screen" and what will, on this particular serve.

Both players shot lights out at times, and the battle could have gone either way at critical tipping points in the match. Enjoy some of the best play and camera angles, as you watch this intriguing match, and controversy, unfold.

The real lesson here, and for me previously, is what do you do when you get knocked off your focus by calls that rightly or wrongly frustrate. It can either play to your advantage, or disadvantage, as you will see here, depending on how you let if effect you.

And next time we see a fascinating video of a pro vs open.

Here is the match link. Click to view.

http://new.livestream.com/lprtour/events/3648536/videos/71207342

Racquetball Tips Shane Vanderson vs Alvaro Beltran Move Your Opponent

2014-12-15T17:39:00.001-08:00

This is a five game match condensed into10 minutes in a back and forth match between Alvaro Beltran and Shane Vanderson. This is a match of court position. Both players use a wide variety of shots with some unbelievable gets. It goes down to an extra inning tie breaker. A great example of using every trick in the book by two of the best players to ever play the game, at their peak points in their careers. The format makes this a quick watch, with no lag time. Spliced for your convenience.

I guess if this match has a standout theme, it would be, Make the other player move as much as possible, and stay mentally tough. Never give up.

Next week we see a controversial match in the women's final with new up and coming Maria Jose Vargas

Very entertaining match.

Racquetball Tips with Paola Longoria and Rhonda Rajsich In Monterrey 2014 Dec 7th Finals

2014-12-10T16:13:00.000-08:00

The stage was set a month ago when Rhonda Rajsich upset Paola Longoria in Stockton, California. So now we go south a number of miles to Monterrey, Mexico to catch round two (Video Link At Bottom Of Page) in the Paola Longoria Racquetball Invitational where media attention, police escorts, and much pomp and circumstance attended this now annual racquetball extravaganza in an outdoor beautiful venue, with no less a Ferris Wheel right behind the courts front wall.

After snapping Paola's 152 match winning streak, Rhonda no doubt knew Paola would ramp up her game to even newer highs in order to regain her desired spot atop the LPRT. Knowing of Paola's intense practice schedule in the past, I wouldn't put it past her to double her schedule, (that means instead of her usual 6 hours a day, now must approach........well, I'll let you speculate) to insure a better outcome.

Game one was played very well by both players. Paola was clearly on a mission, aggressively maintaining center court control and pounding most every shot with solid direction and power. Rhonda did the same, just not quite as often. It was a game of very well executed shots with little room for error. As so often occurs in racquetball and every sport, the fewest mistakes wins the game.

Game two looked much the same for Paola, until Rhonda made a solid comeback down 8-2, tying the game after a few minutes of great shot selection and excellent execution. Then "that thing" that happens to all of us in racquetball at the most inopportune times, kicked into gear. First a bad back court bounce during a rally and a spectacular behind her back desperate save by Rhonda, unfortunately setting up an easy kill for Paola in front court. Then an ace crack drive serve on the backhand side gives Paola a 9-8 lead and breaks the momentum. Rhonda fights her way back.... and I'll let you see the outcome here on the video.

Game three is initially almost a replay of game two, except the start. As often happens in racquetball there was a battle for control of this critical game three, right from the outset. There were no less than 4 side outs, until a point (by Rhonda ) was scored. But then solid shots by Paola. And almost no mistakes gained her a big lead. And then the comeback started as once again momentum shifted, and is often hard to stop. What happened? Will there be a game 4 and 5? Click the link below to go straight to the finals match. And one suggestion for best viewing. Use the expand arrows in the upper right of your screen to make it full screen, after clicking on the match link once on their site. Much easier to see the ball and all the play.

Racquetball Tip #1
Hustle!!! Move the feet to get the ball and extend the rally. Both player's made fantastic gets resulting in later winning the rally, that would have been lost if not by extra effort. This, with tip two, made the difference in this match. Many points would never have happened if not for the superb stabbing get, a couple of shots before, just to get the ball back to the ceiling, or somewhere in play.

Raquetball Tip #2
Move the feet quick to get in offensive hitting position for your next shot. Paola won the day on this point alone today. In this view of the court at floor level, you could see her quick feet as she positioned herself to hit what then were solid shots, with great power, on her small frame. Amazing how hard she hits the ball. That requires great footwork. Watching both players on this point alone will greatly enhance the consistency of your shots. With you feet set, you can then use your hard worked on racquetball swing mechanics, but not until.

Here is the match link below. Enjoy. It will be the match on the left screen. If a match is playing on the right margin, just click the match on the left and the other will stop and play your match.

http://new.livestream.com/lprtour/events/3632976/videos/70733464


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FINALS WRT Tour- The Kid-Coby Iwaasa vs Alejandro Cardona Show Us Mentally Tough plus Cliff Swain Commentary

2014-12-05T18:58:00.000-08:00

The Kid from last week's articles advances to the finals of the same tournament 2014 WRT Fall Brawl. In this match you will see some of the most amazing gets in racquetball today. And the unsurpassed professional commentary from Cliff Swain, former 6 time #1 player on the pro tour. Cliff actually coaches Coby Iwaasa at least part time, and then acts as color commentary for the match. I want to go out of my way to say that having Cliff sharing his wisdom, from the standpoint of the best racquetball can offer, is just like having John McEnroe in tennis. It gets no better than this. The comments and insights Cliff shares takes your understanding of the game, and particularly the pro game, to a new level you don't find from very many other commentators in the game. As it should be.You can find Cliff on his website http://www.cliffswain.com/

This match goes to a tie breaker. You get to see all the ebbs, flows, runs, pressure play and mistakes that characterize tournament racquetball. Cardona is ranked #1 and Coby #7 and Coby, without a tournament win as yet, (and as you could see from the match last week) is coming on like gangbusters.

Watch the serve choices as the players go through the match, and what Cliff says about them. We can all learn valuable principles and apply them to our games. In the tie breaker some potentially critical serve choices are made at 3-0 that turn the tide at that moment, and may change the outcome. See if you can pick that up. Cliff also brings it up in his commentary after it happens. Listen closely.

Both players have outstanding strengths that they both attempt to play to. Again Coby keeps the pressure on with his consistently flat steady shots, incredible gets, and never say die attitude that keeps him in this match.

Enjoy. Every minute offers some of the best racquetball you will see.

Next time two old pros show us center court control.

The Kid, Coby Iwaasa and Bobby Horn -Cliff Swain Excellent Commentary

2014-12-03T18:53:00.002-08:00

This semi final, as a follow up to the quarter final of Coby Iwaasa I posted a week ago, is full of several helpful tips from Cliff Swain's commentary. Two occur before the halfway point. The first is what to do if you don't have your "A Game" either at the moment, or that day at all. Cliff gives the type of commentary you will only hear from a player of his long highest level experience. And by the way, you can find Cliff at http://www.cliffswain.com/ for all kinds of excellent advice.

Second Cliff addresses what to do with shots that float through the middle area you occupy during a rally, and when and why to either cut it off, or let it go. The answer may surprise you. A true pro talking.

This match is very clearly filmed, mostly at floor level, in a way that really gets you the views you need (thanks WRT) and Pablo for your expertise. It truly elevates the recreational players experience and ability to see the fine points of professional players in action. Execution of every fundamental part of racquetball is easy to see, from footwork, racquet preparation, stroke mechanics, shot choice, and anticipation, all under laid with Cliff's insightful analysis.

Coby continues his flat stroke approach. And notice on his drive serve how he pre prepares his racquet before serving. You can see clearly when he departs from it (flat stroke), often on up front pinch attempts, and the less than ideal results that often occur. But he is so mentally wired in, no doubt from long hours of practice, to quickly correct this let down, and come back with the focus to turn the tide immediately, rather than let several points get lost while meandering mentally for too long. He keeps the pressure on and lets that do it's work. A lesson for us.

Watch for how Coby mixes up his serves at different points and gains momentum when he does this.

The tiebreaker has a couple of things to look for. First more great advice from Cliff on several points. Also, you don't Z serve Coby, either side. He short hops hard Z's and destroys them, most often pinching them with power. Incredibly hard to do. He looks like he's worked on that shot until he can do it in his sleep. "Don't try this at home" comes to mind. Bobby Horn give a great post game interview. This match was very close with more incredible gets than I can remember seeing. These kids are so quick and a pleasure to watch. Who is going to stop this kid.He's only 18!! In a couple of days you will see the finals. Will the kid be there?

Rhonda Rajsich vs Paola Longoria Video 2014 Recent Epic Battle and Quick Racquetball Tips

2014-12-01T20:03:00.001-08:00

Today is a real treat and a real battle. This is the women's final from Stockton, California played in the middle of October 2014 between Paola Longoria, currently on a 150 plus match consecutive win streak, and Rhonda Rajsich, the former number 1 player in the world (7 times) and 4 time US Open Champion. These two have battled numerous times recently with Paola taking victory after victory, roughly 37 times over 3 years according to the announcers. The questions, in many peoples minds, of Rhonda's chances of ever regaining the top spot, linger as we watch this epic battle today. Actually today (a day after I wrote and published this) I read Restrung magazines article about this match. He said the number of wins Paola had was 22, not 37. I stand corrected.

Rhonda needs to come up with a different plan to jolt Paola off her perch atop The LPRT, the pinnacle of the Women's Racquetball world. Rhonda has formidable athletic skills. She could have taken a career in Professional Women's Basketball, but chose instead to follow her passion for racquetball. Paola, on the other hand, has always been all about racquetball. Her mental focus is already legendary in the racquetball world. Once in a match she cannot be distracted from attaining victory. Her unequaled practice intensity (as Mike Orr of Head Racquetball describes in this video) has positioned her for the consistent success gained over the last couple of years. This has earned her incredible social popularity in her home country of Mexico, and a high level of media presence, appearing in many TV talk show and modeling engagements. But don't let this visual image fool you. She has a competitive fire in her belly unsurpassed in the women's pro ranks.

Watch for three things in this match or as I call them Quick Racquetball Tips. I have thought in watching these two for the past year, that Rhonda should rely mostly on the pass shot, since she hits the ball so hard, and as quick as Paola is, the reaction time in the women's game is not what it is in the men's. A solid pass should win many more points, or at least create a weak non re kill return, than does the pinch. While they both have some great gets on passes, you don't see the re kills like you do in the men's game. They both, particularly Rhonda, hit some astounding pinch shots, especially in the last game of the match, as the intensity ramps up. Non withstanding this, in quantity, I hold to my analysis above.

Second, I believe is different, is Rhonda's hustle is . She really pushes it hard and tracks down many near winners, extending the rally, often for a win. Will it be enough?

And third, Rhonda's selection in her service game. Not very many lob serves, more characteristic of past matches. In this match she keeps the pressure on with drives, Z's, but fewer soft serves which make them, for her, more effective. I think this really helps her get many more kill opportunities. No wasted serves. A by product of Rhonda using less soft serves is that she stays much more aggressive, it seemed to me, than when she uses mostly soft serves. That should be a message to all of us who tend towards not enough aggression. I've seen this kill many a player's game. A lazy service game, without much thought, often giving up easy re kills by opponents and unnecessarily easy side outs. Rhonda is very mentally tough this match.

So enjoy this match. It is a full match, but well worth every minute as you experience this wild, down to the wire finish. Here is the video link just below. And great announcing by Nick Irvine (man's got an announcers voice) and Andy Kulback the commissioner of the LPRT offers his in depth color commentary. We also get a word or two on Paola's practice mentality from Mike Orr, so listen in with your speakers up.

And don't miss the next LPRT tournament this week from Monterrey, Mexico starting December 5th 2014, The Paola Longoria Invitational. This match should provide a great warm up for Monterrey. And don't miss the next great post featuring the new kid on the block, coming up fast. Coby Iwaasa.

Here is the match video link.

http://new.livestream.com/lprtour/events/3477299/videos/65531810

Racquetball Tips Ruben Gonzalez and Mike Guidry Show How To Control Center Court

2014-11-30T22:31:00.002-08:00

This often spectacular, always enjoyable match illustrates how the pros go about control of center court. It is a pleasure to watch Ruben play here in his late 40's still with a good deal of the speed that made him famous when he won the 1988 Pro National Title, ranked #1 that year. Us youngsters at that time thought it was amazing that a 35 year old could out run all the other pros. Here we see hard to believe rallies with Mike and Ruben getting balls usually reserved for 20 somes and just a few in their 30's. You get a little sense of what Ruben must have been capable of in his mid 30's, about 13+ years before this. Both their hand speed is remarkable, allowing them to retrieve balls in close quarters most of us would just waive at. They are good friends, competitive and gracious on the court. Something all younger players should aspire to.

Racquetball Tip #1
Don't give up center court if you can. Far more rallies are won hitting the ball from that area, rather than from the back court, as fun as it is to kill 38 foot shots.

Racquetball Tip #2
Hit to the open court which makes you opponent hit on the run if they get the ball at all. That usually gives you another opportunity to kill the ball with total control of court position. Watch Ruben do this toward the 8 minute mark at the end of the film. He passes one side, then the other as Mike is run back and forth, and finally takes the rally from Mike.

This is one my favorite racquetball videos. Racquetball as it should be broadcast.

Next time we go to the womens final in Monterrey Mexico 2014

Kane Demonstrates Core Strength Value!! Quick Racquetball Tips

2014-11-28T19:31:00.001-08:00

Now that you have eaten yourself under the table, as have I, this very short, but powerful video of Kane making an unbelievable, but commonly necessary move, in this fast game of racquetball and will convince you of the necessity of including core strength exercises in your workout routine. The exact time to stop the video is at 1:13, if you can accomplish that exactly. You will see how powerful Kane's core is and how it allows him to pull off this shot. Try watching it through first and then go back and watch it until you can stop it exactly at 1:13.

The other point I would make from this video, is how Fast.....Kane gets to center court after taking his shot. You can see that he heads directly, without passing GO, to that Spot at center court. No dawdling about admiring his last shot, especially when he knows that it is even remotely likely his opponent will get the next shot. In this game you just cannot afford to "not be ready" to retrieve the next offering of your adversary.

Those commercials on the IRT broadcasts of Kane working out see their applicability here in both these skills I mentioned above, especially the first. Remember to stop the tape at 1:13. Enjoy! And next time we will see a superb match between Rhonda Rajsich and Paola Longoria. You will find our what Rhonda did different!