The ladder is was developed at CMU and is now provided by Sameer D'Costa as a service to the University of Chicago squash community. It is intended to encourage friendly competition and aid players in finding partners at their approximate level of skill. It may also be used by the University of Chicago squash teams to determine seeding. The squash ladder is not a scientific instrument to determine players relative strengths.

Ladder Rules

• Any player may challenge any other player upto 10 spots above him or her. Challenge matches where the difference is more than 10 spots may be played at the discretion of the higher ranked player.
• If a player loses a challenge match then he or she has to wait for 1 week before challenging the same player again.
• When a higher-ranked player Alice beats a lower-ranked player Bob, standings remain unchanged.
• When an unranked or lower-ranked player Bob beats a higher-ranked player Alice, Bob will take Alice's ladder position and Alice will drop one rank.
• If you are challenged by a player, you must agree to play the challenge match WITHIN 1 week, or you will FORFEIT, UNLESS:
  • You are not required to play MORE than 2 challenge matches per week. If you already have 2 matches scheduled when you receive a challenge, you can decline the match for that week, but you MUST schedule the challenge for the following week; OR
  • You are out of town for more than 1 week for a University vacation, or for work, in which case the match must be rescheduled for when you return.
• When a player first registers, he or she will be unranked.
• A player becomes ranked upon the first win against a ranked player.
• A player that has been inactive during a whole month will be dropped by one rank on the first day of the following month. The exception to this rule is during the summer and winter breaks.
• Results should be entered as soon as possible after a match.
• Players should agree on who will enter the score. When an unranked player wins against a ranked player, the unranked player must report the score.

Rules of Play

• Ladder matches are best-of-5 games or best-of-3 if both players agree.
• Games are scored to 9 points, where only server scores a point.
• Official rules are those of the United States Squash Racquets Association.
• Matches must be played with a standard yellow double-dot ball.
• Protective eyewear is encouraged.
• Risk forms must be signed and put in the folder outside the squash courts.