Winterton Racquetball
Believing without practice is dreaming, not believing



Coach
Jim Winterton
Hall of Fame Coach Winterton coaches like no other coach out there! In any business, people are measured by their portfolio. Coach W has more national, world, and pro champions than any other coach in racquetball history in his body of work. Why is he so successful?
He teaches athletes how to self-coach. The thinking process to win is much different than hoping to win.
A good example would be “I have to keep my racquet up!” (Process and something a player can control) Instead of “I hope I win this next point!”(Outcome and something a player cannot control)
Using the latest in science and technology, Coach uses the footwork technique of pro athletes in mainstream sports and applies those principles to racquetball. Coach is always changing his approach to match each student’s needs.
No two people are alike so why should every athlete be taught the same?

Our Programs
Find the one for you
come Visit Arizona
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Two days of 3 hour sessions or one day of 6 hours
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Access to Video Collection
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Personal Practice Plan
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this is less then $84.00 per hour!
Pro Package
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Unlimited video coaching*
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Access to Video Collection
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After 3 months in Pro Package free In Person coaching if you visit Coach**
Remote Coaching
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Remote Coaching only
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Access to Video Collection
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Unlimited video coaching*
*Coach reserves the right to fast track long videos into 15-20 minutes of analysis
**up to 3 hours per day in person coaching for two days. Sorry these days do not accumulate.
Example: come to Arizona after 6 months and you will receive 6 hours of in-person coaching, not 18 hours.
Winterton Racquetball Pro Kennex Specials!
The most successful racquetball coach in history is a proud member of team Pro Kennex. Check here for deals on sponsorship or specials through the Pro Kennex Website!

Racquetball
Tip of the Day
So Good They Can’t Ignore You!
This one came across my desk. “Coach awhile back you mentioned a book titled, So Good They Can’t Ignore You” What lessons for racquetball can you draw from that book. The person who read the book plays racquetball I think and coaches it. How could you miss this blurb? “Chapter four-paraphrasing here: two mindsets-the passion mindset-quite simply says, what value does my job offer me? The craftsman mindset is “what value am I producing in my job?”. This explains the clash of many mindsets in our great sport. When people looking what they can get out of racquetball they will …
Best Coach in the World!
Recently I trained two national level players. I was amazed at how much they had improved in such a short amount of time. At one point in the session I asked them if they noticed I had not mentioned much in terms of mechanics. Then I asked them why I had not corrected them. They both sought answers that were really guesses. It never occurred to them they had improved so much I did not have to go back and correct mechanics like I did in our first lessons. Both of these athletes have left their comfort zones and embarked …
Develop a Lethal Serve
This one sounds so simple but it is true! Develop a killer serve and your game goes up at least one level. The Wintertonian glossary of terms defines a killer serve as: A serve that just gets over the short line, with about an inch to spare on either side of the court with great deception. The receiver will be unsure which side the serve is going to and thus, you will have a killer serve. The Killer serve does not have to be hit hard, and in fact a softer killer serve makes the receiver of serve have to …
Six Hours and Counting!!
I am often asked, “What in the world do you do for over six hours with an athlete on the court?” Every lesson starts the same-looking at forehand and backhand mechanics.This player is a top pro and the mechanics review sometimes finds a little flaw they had no idea had crept into their game. Most of the time at Pro level it turns into a routine drop and hit to set up and hit. (est time 45 minutes-1 hour) From there we head to serve and serve return. The little things that apply to technique can add to a poor …
Timing is Everything!
Timing is everything according to actors and comedians. The same is true of racquetball. Watching some opportunities passed up in many matches. Here is an example. The score is 11-11 and we are in a pro match or an amateur, game one. Makes no difference as this is a PP situation(pressure point). Ref calls the score and the athlete serves-that is scenario one–Ref calls the score, athlete checks the wall, takes her or his time, and after what seems an agonizingly long ten seconds, puts the ball in play; scenario 2. Which situation to you think gives the server the …
ICE Racquetball!
ICE racquetball! (In Case of Emergency) In emergency mode-you know what I mean-nothing is working and it looks like a bad loss is coming. Every body gets bad days. If you figure that you play 100 matches a year, 10 will be out of your mind great, 10 will be terrible, and 80 will be in between. Therefore, since many points and matches are played at sub-par levels, you need a “winning ugly” strategy. Here are a few. One is to go up top and play the ceiling more. One is to hit more wide angle shots, and still another …
Practice? What? Me?
It is very tough on the ego to be a very good player and then meet the coach who informs you of weaknesses you did not know you had. Even worse is the fact your support group is slapping you on the back and jumping on your bandwagon, all the while telling you how great you are! Why should you change your game? You are the Queen or King of the world! I have to keep reminding folks they are great players. I know they are great but that does not mean an athlete cannot improve! Slight little errors in …
Improving? Even if Losing?
This is what i do for a living. Each day I log on my computer and gather the videos in my uplink box. I then take the video and go over it for my athletes. I am looking for positioning, shot selection, and movement patterns. I then slow the video down to go frame by frame and unlike some of the straight line things you see out on the internet my software is pretty cool. Some time ago I held court at the USA Nationals and had a pretty good crowd look at what I do. One of the cool …
Mental Happy Place
Be yourself! It was hard for me to find my place emotionally when I competed in racquetball. I had an acquaintance who showed up at tournaments and between games would smoke cigarettes and drink beer, He was a great player and he was also a con artist. He only did those things at tournaments to bait people into thinking he never practiced. I tried that route and it sure did not work for me. I tried the “get fired up” route and that sure did not work. I was too tight and nervous. I tried the opposite way-get loose and …
TRY THE ELITE RACQUETBALL CAMP LED BY COACH WINTERTON
These camps sell out each year. Other camps have 5-8 people attending while Coach Winterton’s next Elite camp already has 40 signups! His last one-day camp had 14 in attendance! Coach Winterton’s camps experience includes top notch instruction and fun!

Racquetball
Upcoming events and News
Coach Winterton’s Athletes Excel in 2025
LPRT The Madison Trust Arizona Open Winners: Angelica Barrios, Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Women’s Open Grant Williams, St Louis, Mo, Gold Men’s open at Arizona Open …
World Team Racquetball
World Team Racquetball Report 2024 Top: Tournament Director, Mike Coulter, and Coach W, Bottom: Mixed doubles GOAT team Team Photo courtesy of Game Changer Sports: …
Athletes in Training!
A few of the top athletes Coach Winterton works with.
Elite Camp 2025
Whew!! 49 junior athletes and 11 coaches and a few chaperones! Then add 12 coaches of local high schools..put them together and we have the Scholastic Elite Camp 2024 version!
The level of play in this camp was considerably higher than last year!
Winterton
Testimonials
Kane Waselenchuk
Kane Waselenchuk, 13x World Titles, 14x US Open titles, Winningest player in Racquetball history
Michael Norelli
Michael Norelli, Age division player--(like most of us, a normal club racquetball warrior!!)
Frank Taddonio
Frank Taddonio, Masters HOF Inductee, National age division champion
My experience working with Coach Winterton has been and continues to be extremely positive. He consistently identifies the most smallest details that contribute to improving my performance on the court. Coach provides direction and analysis both in person and virtually through videos I’m making progress regardless of schedules and locations.
I highly recommend Coach Winterton if you desire to improve your game and start competing at a higher level.