Charlie Brumfield Dominated Raquetball

by Phil O
(San Jose, CA)

Charlie Brumfield dominated even after the ball was made with 30% more live bounce (to draw in TV promotion possibilities), taking away a lot of nuanced strategy from the game.

After Brumfield, the game was ceded to power players, period. Not one of those power players, in my opinion, would have had a chance against Brumfield if they had played during the period before the super live ball was introduced.

To give you some idea of the difference this made, imagine how basketball would change if you lowered the basket by 2-3 feet, or increased the live bounce of the basketball by 30%. Voila! a different game! Both in terms of strategy, and what's required to win.

In my opinion, Racquetball officials in the 70's, hungry to make racquetball a TV sensation (fail!), ruined the game. You could still play a power game with the slower ball - many did, but you could also use far more complex strategies than we see today.