U.S. SQUASH Open/Adult Sanctioned Tournament Director Guidelines
Last revision: 8/17/12
Tournament Entry and Timeline
Regular entry fees for Adult sanctioned tournaments are determined by the Tournament Director unless otherwise specified. Urban
Entry Fees
Squash U.S. SQUASH Members are eligible for a discount on tournament entry fees (note that TDs are not charged sanctioning fees
for Urban Squash U.S. SQUASH Member participation).
Entry Notification
Tournament registration is suggested to close 1.5 weeks on the Wednesday before the start of the event. Entrants List and Cut List is
Timelines
recommended to be made public within 48 hours after the entry close date.
Tournament
U.S. SQUASH offers an online system for all tournament registration and management for which there is a $10 additional nonRegistration
refundable processing charge per entrant.
Tournament
More detailed tournament information must be provided on the U.S. SQUASH tournament information page. Fields will include
Information
additional event information, directions, parking, meal information, and contact information.
Division & Player Start Division Start Times recommended for release online at least 7 days before the start of an event. Player Start Times recommended
Times
for release online at least 48 hours before the start of the event.
As players enter the tournament, the Entrants List will show the number of players entered in each division. Tournament directors
Entrants List
may show the Entrants List during the registration period.
Players may participate in multiple divisions, however, players must be prepared to play all matches at their scheduled times and
Number of Divisions
accommodations do not need to be made by the Tournament Director.
Player Management
Players Per Division
Cut List
Wait List
Withdraw Deadline
A minimum of three players is required to be sanctioned. Tournament Directors may combine divisions to reach this number.
Tournament Directors may restrict the size of their draws per division if communicated in advance.
After the entry deadline: Entry into the tournament is not guaranteed. If there is space in a division, a player MAY be slotted in. Late
applicants will also be placed behind any player who were orginally placed on the Waitlist when the Cut List was released. After
Player Start Times are released: Players on the Waitlist may only take the position of a withdrawing player in the event that the waitlisted player would be seeded at or below the position of the withdrawing player to keep the integrity of the seeding for the draw.
The suggested Withdraw Deadline is at 5:00pm in the time zone of the tournament on the Friday one week before the start of the
tournament.
Tournament Seeding
Seeding Methodology
Seeding Discretion
Seeding should be based on a player's U.S. SQUASH Player Rating. All seedings use the rankings calculation from the Tuesday Night
Rankings Calculation 1.5 weeks prior to event start date.
Tournament Directors reserve the right to modify the seeding for a tournament to maintain the integrity of the draw.
Draw Types and Result Entry
Draw Visibility
Draw Type
Requirements
Result Entry
Draws must be made public at least 24 hours before the start of the event.
U.S. SQUASH will provide a list of acceptable draw types based on the number of players per division E.G. 9-16 Player: Full Feed-In
Consolation with a Classic Plate and one or two Plates or Consolation Round Robin with a Classic Plate. (a full list will be available on
the Tournament Director's website)
Tournament Directors must enter results in draw formats only as the tournament is occurring. All results must be entered before
11:59pm in the time zone of the tournament on the last day of the event.
Tournament Scheduling
Number of Matches
Required
Scheduling
A minimum of 2 matches must be provided for each player in a sanctioned tournament.
Three hours between the start of each match time per player is recommended, however, it is not required.
Refund Policy
Refunds
Unless specified otherwise, no refunds will be provided to players eligible for the tournament after the Entry Deadline. If a
tournament or individual draw is canceled, the affected players are entitled to a refund of their entry fee less a processing fee.
Players who are on the Waitlist who do not gain entry into the main draw of the tournament will automatically receive a refund less a
proessing fee.
Additional Sanctioned Tournament Policies
Required Eyewear
Official Ball
U.S. SQUASH Protective Eyewear Policy which requires ASTM-F803 approved protective eyewear to be worn by all players on court at
all times. Tournament Directors have an obligation to enforce this policy with no exceptions.
The Dunlop Revelation Pro (double yellow dot) is the required and only official sanctioned ball that may be used for softball singles.
Tournament softball play may be on International Courts (21') and Converted Racquet Ball Courts (20'). Regulations include use of
Regulation and Noncourts with non-sealed floors or sealed floors, however, sealed floors and 20' courts must be disclosed on the tournament
Regulation Courts
information page in advance of the entry deadline.
Page 1 of 2
U.S. SQUASH Open/Adult Sanctioned Tournament Director Guidelines
Last revision: 8/17/12
Players must play in all scheduled matches for a given tournament. If a player does not arrive on time for their scheduled match, the
Tournament Director reserves the right to default that player after 15 minutes of the scheduled match time. Players who default a
match in a tournament also default any subsequent scheduled matches. Players may be permitted to continue in the tournament at
Match Default Policy
the discretion of the Tournament Director. In making these decisions, the Tournament Director will take into consideration the level
of communication with the player, court availability, and any other relevant specific factors. In no case is the Tournament Director
obligated to make special accommodations for players.
Mandatory Refereeing The Tournament Director may determine whether the winner (recommended), the loser, or both the winner and loser will referee
Policy
next match.
Unless otherwise specified, matches will be best 3 out of 5 games with PAR scoring to 11. PAR 15 and Hi-Ho scoring are also
Scoring
permitted for sanctioned Open/Adult tournaments.
Non-Marking Shoes Competitors must wear non-marking shoes and appropriate squash attire for the facility in which they are participating (note some
facilities have an on court "all white" clothing policy).
and Attire
Code of Conduct
Round Robin Tie
All rules and regulations from the U.S. SQUASH Code of Conduct apply for sanctioned events.
In the event of a 2 person (or more) tie where the overall match records of the players are equal; the Tournament Director is to use
the following criteria to break the tie: 1. The overall number of “games won” by each player is to be tallied, the player with the most
amount of “games won” is the winner. If there is still a tie between any of the players please continue. 2. The overall number of
“games lost” by each player is to be tallied, the player with the least amount of “games lost” is the winner. If there is still a tie
between any of the players please continue. 3. The percentage of points won by each player is to be tallied using the following
formula. The total # of points won is divided by the total # of points played. The player with the highest percentage is the winner. If
the tie is still not broken please continue. 4. In the event that the tie is still not broken the players “head to head” record will be used
to declare the winner.
Fees and Penalties
Player Sanctioning Fee
Non-Member Fee
Late Tournament
Registration
Cancellation Fee
Late Payment Fee
A $3 per player fee will be charged to support current Adult Programs.
A $15 non-member fee will be charged for every participant who is not a current U.S. SQUASH Member in the tournament.
Tournaments submitting sanctioning applications for a tournament start date less than 60 days of the event start may incur a $100
late sanctioning fee.
Sanctioned tournaments cancelled within 21 days of the start of the tournament may incur a $150 fee. The reason for this fee is to
hold Tournament Directors accountable for developing a realistic tournament schedule, not to penalize Tournament Director’s
whose tournaments do not get a sufficient number of participants. If the latter is determined to be the case, the fee will likely not be
applied. The billed Amount Due for a completed tournament is payable upon receipt.
For every week payment is outstanding past six (6) weeks following the tournament date, a $25 late fee per week will be imposed.
Payment of all dues and late fees must be made prior to future sanctioning.
Tournament Schedule
Tournaments are not guaranteed to receive sanctioning on the same date or the same status for each season. Tournament Directors
must apply for, and are expected to be flexible with event dates. U.S. SQUASH will monitor and control the scheduling of
Selecting Dates
tournaments regionally and nationally to benefit the members. Some tournaments may be asked to shift dates from those
requested in an application, and U.S. SQUASH reserves the right to shift dates for tournaments already sanctioned to provide
Tournament Directors with the best promotional opportunities.
Several times throughout the year, Tournament Directors will be asked to submit sanctioning requests for the upcoming season.
Tournament Directors are responsible for submitting sanctioning requests during these periods. U.S. SQUASH and Regional
Sanctioning Requests
Coordinators will use these requests to help create a national calendar that does not conflict with the national championship
calendar and maintains the integrity of the ranking system.
Page 2 of 2