WPH Press
The WPH has proudly presented the Race 4 Eight Sunday Stats since the start of the pandemic, highlighting the Race 4 Eight’s greatest champions, longest winning streaks, greatest accomplishments, tournament directors, nicknames, obscure stats, handball’s origins and history, and so much more. This Sunday we’ll discuss and differentiate handball’s documented rules from the 17th and 18th centuries and today.
Official playing Rules from 1895 and Today’s Updates
Official Rules from 1895 found HERE
- An alley shall be 60′ long (or as near as possible) – Today: U.S. indoor courts are 40 feet long
- For alleys with clay floors, the short line will be two-thirds of the length from the front wall — for concrete floors it will be half way – Today: the short line is 20 feet from the front wall in 40×20 handball
- The service will be from anywhere inside the short line. – today: the service box, also known as the service zone, is five feet wide
- A tell board 4″ high is placed at the base of the front wall and all balls must strike above this. – Today: there is no tell board in the modern 40×20 game, meaning the game’s best players can hit the ball one-inch high on the front wall
- Games are to 15 aces; matches consist of any odd number of games. – Today: WPH Race 4 Eight scoring are games to 15
- Singles, doubles, or trebles may be played – no change
- Jerking (I assume catch and throwing) not allowed in championship matches but kicking the ball is permitted – Today: no kicking is permitted in today’s 40×20 game
- A ball crossing the lines that has been played at and missed shall count against the side that missed – Today: no change
- Balls hopping on a line shall be over that line and three shorts or long balls in serving will be a hand out. – today’s game allows for a second, but not a third serve, if the serve was short or not, but not if the serve hits the floor before the wall or hits the side wall or ceiling before the front wall
- Receivers may play short or long balls if they wish – Today: receivers do not have that option in today’s game
Info for Official Playing Rules from 1895 researched HERE
David Fink
WPH Historian