The IRT is the governing body of the men's professional racquetball. Structured as a partnership with the best players and tournaments in the world, the IRT is responsible for:

• Ranking the world's players based on performance
• Administration of the tournament calendar
• Officiating & Rules
• Promotion of the professional sport

THE STRUCTURE OF MEN'S PROFESSIONAL RACQUETBALL

WHERE TO GET STARTED
The best possible way to start a professional career is to first gain ranking points.

ENTERING TOURNAMENTS
Players gain acceptance into the main draw of the above tournaments in the following ways:

1. Direct entry through the IRT by phone, e-mail or fax. This accounts for the majority of entries.
2. Entry through Tournament Director of the event intended.
   

ENTRY DEADLINES
Entries for IRT events must be received by the Monday 6pm central before the start of the main draw competition.

Grand Slam qualifying entries must be received by the marked entry deadline before the start of the main draw competition.

CONTACT:

IRT RANKINGS
The IRT Ranking's Race is an annual points race to determine the year-end standings. The IRT Ranking is an objective, merit-based, mathematical method of ranking men's professional racquetball players. It is the basis for the acceptance of entries for all professional racquetball tournaments worldwide. Ranking points are awarded to players based on tournament category and prize money level. Players participating in these tournaments receive points based on the matches played and the round reached.

Point system is as follows:

*The rankings are based on a rolling 12-month of tournaments. This is used to determine rank and seeding of players.

*Each game won in a match that is lost is worth 5 points.

*Each event will be treated as a beginning in the round of 32 unless the draw is over 2 rounds of qualifying. If this occurs, the points will be based upon a draw of 64.

*3 extra points are awarded for each qualifying match won.

*New rankings are calculated after each event. First, points earned at the events that have dropped off the rolling 12- month calendar are deducted. Next, the player’s lowest scores will be dropped. The number of scores to be dropped is based on the number of events that have occurred during the most recent 12 – month period.

*As the season progresses and the oldest tournaments are being dropped, the lowest scores are recalculated based on the new set of scores from the most recent 12 – month period.

*A determined number of events will be allowed to be dropped based on the number of events played during an IRT season. Dropped events will be based upon lowest point totals.

IRT PLAYER SERVICES
The IRT offers a broad range of services to aspiring racquetball professionals, including:

• Entries to IRT tournaments
• Schedule and information on IRT Tournaments
• Advice from IRT Player's regarding men's professional racquetball

Players who attain an IRT membership are entitled to:

• Participating in IRT Sanctioned Events
• Tournament entry services by phone/fax or e-mail
• Voting rights if minimum number of events are played 

IRT WEBSITE

irt-tour.com - The official site of men's professional racquetball. Features the latest news, results, standings, IRT Tournament calendars and link to other racquetball sites.

www.choicehotelsusopen.com is the officail site for the Choice Hotels US OPEN held in November

www.irt-pronationals.com is the official site for the Motorola Pro National Championships held in April 

Guidelines to Hosting an IRT Event

Men’s Professional Racquetball

Getting Started

• Contact the commissioner Dave Negrete to clear dates email: negretz@comcast.net

Phone 630-430-1478

• A contract will be sent out covering all policies and requirements.

• Contract must be returned with required deposit to confirm date.

• You are on your way!

Sponsors

• Contact members in the club that have their own businesses.

• Contact local business in the area. Car dealers, restaurants, printers, builders and beverage distributors are usually good sources of revenue.

• Use trade outs when needed.

• Sponsor ideas: sell courts; sell draw sheets, title sponsors, supporting sponsors, and patrons. See attached sponsor package examples.

• If you don’t ask you won’t receive!

Sponsor Benefits

• Exposure thru court stickers, banners, name on t-shirts, name on entry, sponsor booths and flyers at the club.

• Exposure thru the newspaper, radio and local cable TV.

• Pro-am doubles event and VIP privileges.

• Exposure thru tournament players and guests. Racquetball players are, for the most part, loyal and will patronize the sponsors.

Pre- Tournament Info

• Pro Entry fees are $80 including IRT dues. All pro entry revenue is retained by the IRT.

• All IRT sanctioned events use the PRO PENN HD ball.

• The USAR sanctions IRT events. All players must be current USAR members. No exceptions.

• Host club should except entries for the pro division and then passed on to the IRT.

• IRT will take entries for both the amateur and pro divisions. IRT will contact the event director on Sunday and Monday to exchange entries. Deadline for pro entries is Monday at 6pm central.

• The commissioner will assist wherever possible to help the event director.

• The open draw should be done last and the commissioner will assist with seeding if needed.

• Pro start times will be sent to TD on Wednesday by 6PM

Pre –Tournament Info 2

Ticket Sales

• All ticket sales go to the event. The IRT may require a few tickets for guests and potential sponsors.

• All pro players receive free entry into the pro matches to watch. At no time will a pro player take a seat of a ticket-bearing patron.

• Ticket prices vary from event to event. Some events include admission to all matches for tournament players and charge a higher entry fee, $50-$60. Some events charge for tickets in the range of $50-$75 for a full event package and some charge for each match $5-$20.Try to make the entry a little less then the full package price to encourage people to play the event. Never turn away ticket money.

• Some events have pre assigned seating and print tickets and some have first come first seated. When possible, have someone collecting tickets or checking them that will not let people in for free. Remember, this is a great source of revenue if you are charging.

• Remember to reserve seats for sponsors and V.I.P’s.

Match Requirements

• Two chairs, towels and water available for players on main court(s).

• Great to have towel boys or girls for the main matches. Quarters, semis and finals.

• Trophy for winner is a nice touch. So is a large check made from poster board to present to the winner after the match.

• A separate area in the club for the players to relax and prepare for matches is well appreciated by the players where possible.

• Assistance with referees for first matches on Thursday.

• The IRT will require the main court forty-five minutes prior to starting time of the first pro match on the main court. This will allow time for the pro players to warm up and keep the matches on time.

• A microphone and sound system make the event more professional. The spectators can hear Player introductions and interviews following each match. Music between matches always gets the crowd excited.

• All pro players, qualifiers included, may not wear cotton t-shirts while playing. Please help remind players of this rule when they call for start times. All pro qualifiers should be prepared to play as early as 2pm on Thursday.

• Courts must be swept before each match to insure the safety of the players.

Post Event Information

• On Saturday, the IRT commissioner and tournament director will reconcile any monies owed. The IRT does not have a merchant number to process credit cards. If local players pay the club with credit card, a check must be issued to the IRT before completion of the event for all players that paid the club.

• Finalists will be available after the finals to take pictures with the sponsors and spectators.

• Contract for next season should be signed with deposit to place the event on the next season’s schedule.

• List of sponsors with addresses given to the IRT so we can send thank you letters out from the IRT.

Media Relations

• Every city is different when it comes to the media. Releases should be sent out on a daily basis 6 to 8 weeks in advance, in some cases to receive attention. Local papers and cable stations seem to be more interested than the majors in most cities. A sample release is included with this package. The IRT will assist with sending out the press releases.

• Tying in with a charity or using a player with special interest can help gain exposure.

• Check with local colleges and high schools for classes and students that can use the event as hands on school project.

• Find out who in your racquetball community has ties to the local media.

Special Functions

• Check with local schools and try and set up field trips to bring the kids to watch the Friday matches. A few events are very successful with this and help build a junior program at the club. The IRT will supply a pro to host a clinic for the kids.

• Autograph sessions can be offered after each match. A table will be needed so players can sit and sign.

• Some events host pre-tourney dinners for players and sponsors. Also, pre-tourney golf for players and sponsors has also been done.

• Feel free to contact the commissioner for any questions or ideas.

• All special functions must be arranged with the IRT before being posted.

IRT Sponsors

• The IRT has sponsors that support the tour financially. They hold “official status” rights at each event. The IRT requires each event to respect the commitment of these companies by not allowing competing companies to display product or sponsor the event without consent from the IRT commissioner. The event contract lists the IRT tour sponsors and there respective status.

• Each of these companies is allowed to display their product or services with a booth at each event with no charge. The IRT may ask for help with tables for each company when needed.

• Each of these companies will have a court decal displayed on the main viewing court for the length of the event.

• Each company should be allowed to hang banners in high traffic areas in the club.

IRT Requirements

• Prize money minimums for 2006-07 full ranking events (Tier One) are $15,000.00.

• Grand Slam events will require $20K or more. The top 10 will be required to attend barring unforeseen circumstances. All players will receive bonus points for Grand Slam Events.

• Lower tiered events will award points to all participating players

• Tier Two events require 10k to 15k,Tier Three events require 5kto 10k and Tier Four is 1k to 5k. A sanction fee is required for IRT points to be rewarded and to allow top ranked players to participate. Select professionals based upon ranking may require appearance fees.

• International events will require $25,000.00 minimum.

• The IRT requires two complimentary hotel rooms for the IRT staff per IRT contract.

• The IRT requires a deposit and signed contract to be added to the schedule. The signed contract is required for insurance purposes with the USAR.

• The USAR sanctions all events and every player MUST be a current USAR member.

• A table is required for the IRT for check-in and product display near main exhibition court

Additional Services

• Each event will be posted on the IRT web site www.irt-tour.com. Each day of the event, the site will be updated where possible. All information about the event will be posted on the site. Hotel, entry blanks, sponsors and any other information provided to the IRT will be posted.

• All major sponsors and club may have their websites linked to the IRT website.

• Draw sheets and score cards will be provided at no charge to each event.

• IRT will assist with sending out press releases to all local media.