Squash 57 USA

02/17/2024

01/23/2024

In the latest edition of ‘Get to Know’, we hear from Switzerland’s Roman Allinckx, squash57 coach and owner of the Squash Systems Academy in Barcelona, who discusses the thriving scene in Bar…

09/15/2023

UK Vogue reports on the strong interest in racquet sports that are easy to learn and more forgiving to play including pickle ball, padel and Squash 57 (which is known as Racketball in the UK).

Why these racket sports are taking over from tennis.

08/15/2023

Nicol Squash, the business arm of the great Peter Nicol, is set to entwine squash and pickleball in a new venture for 2024. Based in the US, Peter and Jess Nicol, squash director and CEO respectively, have grown their offering after initially starting out with junior programmes. From May 2024, they....

08/02/2023

While the aftershock of the pandemic continues to ravage squash, one Somerset Club has found racketball a welcome source of rejuvenation and new life. Facing a £3,000 loss caused by increased gas heating charges, Street Squash and Racketball Club invested plenty of time and effort into running a 24...

04/15/2023

Cool event and great venue!

Wheelchair squash is proving a hit in Canada! Wheelchair squash players Shauna and Jeff explain after playing on the Canadian Open court.

03/13/2023

Great illustration of the fundamentals of doubles that shows the rotation of players.

02/13/2023

That looks a lot like Nick Matthews doesn't it.

The World Squash Federation (WSF) has recently launched a new Squash57 Fast Track Fundamentals course, which will introduce qualified squash coaches to the specifics of playing and coaching Squash5…

01/24/2023

Do people wonder why pickle ball is on TV and not squash? The answer is simple, there are many many more players in pickle ball now and that drives interest. Why are there more pickle ball players? Because it’s easy and fun and social. And as a result huge numbers of adults are playing.

Squash is fantastic, but it’s a challenging niche sport. The number of adults that pick up the sport (unless they are already very active tennis or racquet players) is MINISCULE. The main problem is the ball. The double yellow ball is impossible to learn with and not enough attention has been given to alternatives. Can you imagine never having played and trying to warm up a double yellow ball? That’s going to be a short session and the end of any interest. Contrast that to pickle ball where you can start playing and having rallies immediately.

A secondary problem is vision. Squash leadership (associations, equipment, pros, club owners) in the US are focused on 1) juniors, 2) national teams and 3) urban squash. What is missing is adult squash with club activities, leagues, and events. You can not build a sport on a membership base of ages 10 to 18 where most juniors quit after their junior career is over. Pickle ball has built their entire sport on adult play.

To attract more adult players to squash you need to make it easy and fun and social. One great alternative I’ve found is Squash 57. Shorter racquet and more lively ball make it much easier to play for an existing player and much easier to learn for a new player. World Squash is working to promote Squash 57 and is making progress but it’s a challenge and slow. Squash leadership at all levels needs to get on board and think of new ways to broaden the appeal of squash. And soon before more courts disappear and you start a downward spiral of fewer courts leading to fewer players leading to fewer courts.

They just announced a pickle ball event with tennis legends McEnroe, Agassi, Roddick and Chang competing in pickle ball for a $1million prize. Padel is also now growing as another racquet sport that is easy to learn and play and like pickle ball is doubles which also makes it social. It’s an increasingly competitive environment and maintaining the status quo and not adapting is not a good plan.

From the CEONews Message From the CEO: Pickleball vs. Squash December 30, 2022   Now that I likely have your attention based on the title, there’s a note about pickleball at the end. Before that, however, I’d like to share some reflections on the last few years leading up to 2022 and look ahead...

01/08/2023

My Japanese isn’t great but nice to see SQ57 around the globe.

このスポーツはイギリスでは盛んとのことです。ラケットボールのラケットを使い、ボールは直径57mmの専用ボールを使います。スカッシュコートを使い、ルールはサービス以外はほとんどスカッシュと同じです。ダブルス.....

08/24/2022

The National Cancer Institute says playing racquet sports is the best way (even better than running and swimming) to reduce mortality rates ages 59-82 and playing 2.5 hours per week decreases overall risk of death by 16%. They mention squash but I'm not sure how many people over age 60 are playing squash so Squash 57 is the perfect alternative. Squash 57 is easy to learn, fun to play and extends your life!

A NCI study found that playing racquet sports like tennis, badminton and squash can risk a middle-aged to elderly person's overall risk of death by around 16 percent.

08/24/2022

Greta to see Squash 57 growing in New Zealand.

06/24/2022

Squash 57 offers the chance for all skill levels to have some fun and get some exercise. Here is a great application.

05/23/2022

Good commentary, perhaps this will be a wake-up call to the sport we love. Squash is a niche sport, it’s wonderful but very specialized and demanding, and the sport needs to broaden its base. Unfortunately the double yellow ball makes that a challenge and not enough effort has been done to promote other balls or forms that will keep people playing after age 30 or 40 and make it easy for new adult players to try and play.

My understanding is that Life Time has also been experimenting with Squash 57/UK racketball in select facilities for some of the same reasons the CEO mentioned, that “it is accessible to everybody and easy to learn”. With a short handled racquet and a lively ball, Squash 57 is another terrific option to accomplish this and I’d love to see squash leadership including associations, clubs, pros, manufacturers and retailers get on board. World Squash has seen the light and Squash Canada is also now promoting Squash 57 as a life sport that is easy to learn, fun to play and a great way to get some exercise. The exact attributes that are driving pickle ball’s success. I’ve played and promoted squash my entire life and am sorry to see the adult game wither. The rise of pickle ball and perhaps padel will only accelerate that trend.

Having downgraded squash, LifeTime aims to build 600-700 pickleball courts across USA By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor As Covid regulations are being relaxed in many parts of the world, it’s time to assess the future of squash and the impact of lockdown. While padel and pickleball continue t...

05/12/2022

Sport England invests to help people get more active. Partnering with England Squash to break down barriers to healthy activity, make the sport available to groups that are typically less active and as a result increase participation. It doesn’t mention it, but the vehicle is in every photo….Squash 57!

Project aims to make the sport inclusive and available to groups that are typically less active By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor England Squash is among a group of more than 120 organisations working in partnership with Sport England to level up access to sport and physical activity across the...

04/12/2022

I see Harrow Sports has a section on Squash 57 equipment, offering a couple racquets along with other equipment so I'm adding them to my resource list.

04/08/2022

This is what we need, more squash tournaments that are just plain fun. Unfortunately my memories of most tournaments are that they are a lot of work. Rewarding but work. Bring the fun back with Squash 57.

Ladies Squash 57 finals at Westville Country Club last Friday. Many pictures to follow......

03/04/2022

Who remembers the first time they picked up a squash racquet? For me it was in college on a single dusty old court in the rafters of the gymnasium probably in 1978. A few classmates who played before in prep school got me going along with some similarly self-taught tennis players. A sport that took me through 45 years of playing in NYC, Philadelphia, back to NYC and now NJ. Still playing and now that I'm playing Squash 57, looking to hopefully make it to 50 years and then maybe 60 years! How's that for a lifetime sport.

Daily coverage, results and feature stories from the sport of squash in the US and around the globe.

02/28/2022

Love this story. 60+ years old, played a little squash in his 30s, took up Squash 57 recently and just played his first ever tournament and planning for more. This is what a lifetime sport is about.

Mike, who has not played any racket sports for over 30 years has entered a UKRB event (2022) and shares his experience.Squash57, easy to start ...

02/26/2022

This video gives you all the basics you need to know to start playing Squash57. Get on court, you are going to love it!

02/26/2022

If you are the Tallahassee, Florida area this weekend, stop by the FSU rec center for this tournament which features a Squash 57 division!

Racquetball Tournament in Tallahassee, FL USA. Dates: 2/25/2022 - 2/27/2022.

02/21/2022

It occurs to me that the demographics of pickle ball are pretty much the opposite of squash. It’s largely older adults, very few juniors and the core group of players is over 65. And the sport is booming, attracting a pro tour, regularly on TV, and now talking about the Olympics. Organizers say its incredible growth is because it offers an easy way to get exercise and have fun. Sound familiar? Squash 57 has many of the same elements and potential to attract a large new group of players to our courts and I'd love to see our squash, racquetball and tennis communities embrace that potential. If you are a pro or club owner where the courts are dormant Monday - Friday until junior programming starts after school, maybe this is just the thing.

With 4.8 million people now playing, pickleball is ready for the big time.

02/17/2022

One of the advantages of Squash 57 is that with the shorter racquets, you can play doubles on a standard 21' court. This gives a more social alternative with a little less movement required than singles. Note that in SQ57 doubles, you play in sequence like table tennis rather than zone play like tennis. Here's a collection of videos from the recent 2021 British National mixed and other divisions so you can see how it's played.

Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

02/08/2022

Lots of great options out there and since squash and racquetball are two of Julian's favorites, I'll suggest Squash 57 to him. MUCH easier on the hammies and you can play until you're 90.

This site is mainly about my growing obsession with pickleball… with some squash thrown in. In asking myself WHY I enjoy pickleball so much (because I always enjoyed all racket sports!), I be…

01/24/2022

This is exactly what we love about Squash 57, the opportunity for all ages and and abilities to continue to play and get exercise in an enjoyable way. Remember Squash 57 is frequently called Racketball in the UK.

TERRY Wassall, of Bradford, breathed a huge sigh of relief when he got back to his favourite sport – Racketball, only six weeks after having a hip…

11/25/2021

Fun and easy to learn => fast growth. Exactly. We just need the squash and US racquetball communities to get on board with Squash 57.

Move over pickleball, here comes padel. The sport of padel, which is a cross between tennis and squash, was created in 1969 in Mexico and has made a huge impact on the international sports community. Now it’s making its way to Miami and South Florida.

10/23/2021

A lot of racquet purists look down on it, but pickle ball is taking over racquet sports with 4-6 million players and a sport that is now attracting professional players, prize money, equipment and clothing manufacturers, cable TV programming and more. Basically it’s fun and easy to play and a great way to get some exercise. It can accommodate a broad range of players from the youngest to the oldest with no racquet sport experience required.

There is no reason Squash57 can’t be the indoor equivalent because it offers the same ease of play, it’s fun and a great way to stay active and get some exercise. And, rather than cannibalize squash, it will save it by keeping adults playing and bringing in new players to make better use of our courts.

The addictive tennis-Ping-Pong hybrid might be the last thing red and blue Americans can agree on. “I literally want every person in the world to play this game,” says one convert.

10/23/2021

Former world #1 Nick Matthew playing in the finals of the recent British Open Squash57 championship. Great to see world ranked players out competing in Squash57. If it's good enough for Nick and Sarah, it's good enough for me.

It's the BLUEBELL WOOD BRITISH RACKETBALL OPEN and NICK MATTHEW (ex PSA #1) is playing TIM VAIL (x10 England National Champion) in the final.

10/23/2021

Current world #7 player SJ Perry winning the finals of the new British Open Squash57 championship.

It's the BLUEBELL WOOD BRITISH RACKETBALL OPEN and SARAH-JANE PERRY (PSA #7) is playing FIONA MOVERLY (PSA #33) in the Womens Open Final.

10/21/2021

They just completed the Bluebell Wood Squash 57 British Open Championship which is a premier event on the S57 tournament schedule and it didn’t disappoint. With squash champions SJ Perry and Nick Matthew in the mix along with 150 competitors from 66 clubs, great sponsors and prize money, it looked like a first class event. The tournament report is here and we’re hoping to get some video of key matches. Congrats to the organizers and looking forward to building that level of participation in the USA and other countries.

The Bluebell Wood British Racketball Open was new to the UK-Racketball 2021 calendar, and it certainly didn’t disappoint! The tournament saw some 150 entrants representing 66 clubs from England,...