In the point-a-rally, or PAR, scoring system, both the server and the receiver can score points on every rally. Opponents typically play a game in which the first player to win eleven points wins the game.
The issue is to determine which scoring system is better, and is preferred by players, given that United States Squash has just announced a major endorsement of the PAR scoring system for squash.
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On December 10, 2008, US Squash announced that all U.S. Championships, both junior and adult, beginning with the U.S. Junior Open held December 20-23, 2008, will use PAR 11 scoring.
They also announced that whenever one plays a US Squash-sanctioned tournament, and there is no indication on the entry form or tournament information sheet about the scoring system, effective immediately, players should assume the scoring will be the primary system, PAR 11.
What's at Stake?
What's at stake for US squash is the potential for creating a
schism as large as the gulf between hardball and softball squash.
Changing the scoring system is a sweeping change, and the decision was made in response to the World Squash Federation vote during its Annual General Meeting held in Manchester, England mid-October, 2008, to change the official rules of the game to make “point-a-rally" (or "PAR") scoring to 11 points the primary scoring system of the softball singles game.
While the WSF action is not officially effective until April 1, 2009, impacting all future World Championships for adults, juniors, amateurs and professionals, many regional and national governing bodies acted in advance of the WSF vote, or have since acted to change to the system currently used by the professionals. It's clear that US Squash wants to be forward-looking, and align its squash with that of the rest of the world.