Joseph Sobek Papers

Joseph George Sobek was born 5 April 1918, in Greenwich, Connecticut, and was raised there. He served in the Marines and later became a police detective. Until he retired in 1985, he had spent most of his life as a tennis and squash racquets professional at the Greenwich Country Club. He died of congenital heart disease 27 March 27 1998. Sobek was the first person inducted into the Racquetball Hall of Fame.

Joe Sobek had been a squash and tennis professional for seven years before he invented Racquetball at the Greenwich, Connecticut, YMCA in 1950.

The idea of inventing a paddle racquetball game struck him when he found it difficult to get a regular competitive squash partner and was not satisfied with handball, a game he considered too strenuous and resulted in sore palms. Working at the time as a rubber manufacturer, Sobek felt that his job did not provide adequate exercise. He began looking for a game that would provide an adequate workout and as fun as squash and handball. Paddleball was ideal for him, if only he could use a racket instead of a traditional paddle. So he fashioned his ideal racquet from a badminton racquet design and a matched ball from a tennis ball, without the fuzz. At the same time, Sobek began developing the rules for his new athletic activity.

Once he had developed a plan for rules, Sobek took his draft and design to Magnan Racket Manufacturing Company in Massachusetts. The firm attempted to follow his specifications and failed in the first few attempts before they successfully created the first racquet in 1951.

The game was accepted and played in the YMCA circles initially. By the 1970s, it had spread to other facilities and its growing popularity was enhanced due to the simplicity of the game and the strong workout provided in a short period of playing time. Today is has become an Olympic sport, with two major racquetball associations—International Racquetball Association (IRA) and American Racquetball Association (ARA)—as well as numerous clubs all over the world.