About Bocce Balls
Get some friends together and bocce!
Whether you are a beginning bocce player, a weekend enthusiast, or a seasoned tournament player, you have several options to consider when buying bocce balls.
Getting started
Before you start your bocce game, you'll need to purchase the basic equipment, including bocce balls, a pallina, and an optional measuring device.
A set of bocce balls consists of eight balls, four of one color and four of another. Bocce balls can be made of brass, compressed wood, or various kinds of hard plastic. Each ball has a distinctive color or stripe pattern to help players identify their particular ball.
The small ball in a set of bocce balls is called a "pallina." It is the first ball thrown in a match and is used to determine scoring.
Normally, a measuring device is reserved for serious players or tournament play and is rarely used in backyard bocce since most distances in recreational games can be judged with the naked eye. But there are times when a measuring device is needed to settle measurement disputes.
Different strokes for different folks
Bocce balls are differentiated by their size, their price, and their suitability for play by different age groups. Because bocce is a game enjoyed by young and old, every member of your family may want to join in the fun. It is important to buy bocce balls light enough so that the youngest members of your family can throw them comfortably.
80mm bocce balls are ideal for young children between the ages of three and seven because they are lightweight and easy to throw or roll. Older children, depending on their strength and athletic ability, may find 90mm or 100mm bocce balls more comfortable.
If your goal is family fun, 100mm or 107mm bocce balls are a good choice. These sizes roll easily in areas of mixed terrain, such as backyard grass or beach sand and won't be so heavy that they discourage recreational players.
Serious tournament players most often opt for bocce balls in 107mm or 110mm sizes that have been endorsed by the International Bocce Association. These larger, heavier bocce balls are best suited for play on regulation bocce courts.
Remember, you aren't required to spend a lot of money to enjoy bocce. There are bocce ball sets for any budget. To enjoy a game of bocce all you need is a group of friends and a set of bocce balls.
How to Play Bocce Ball
Find a flat, level playing surface (packed dirt, gravel or grass are ideal). A regulation bocce court is 76 feet long and 10 feet wide.
Divide players into two teams of one, two or four players each. Each team gets four balls, divided equally among the players Have a player from the starting team stand behind the foul line (which is 10 feet from the throwing end of the court) and throw the small ball, or "pallina," toward the opposite end of the playing surface. Let the player then throw one of the larger balls, or "boccia," trying to get it as close to the pallina as possible without touching it. Have players from the opposing team take turns throwing their balls until one of the balls stops closer to the pallina than the starting player's ball. If they fail to do so, the starting team tries to outdo its first attempt. Let the starting players take their second turn if the opposing team gets closer to the pallina than the starting team without using all of their balls Continue in this fashion until all eight balls have been thrown. The team with the closest ball gets one point for each of its balls that are closer to the pallina than the other team's closest ball. Keep in mind that if the two teams' closest balls are an equal distance from the pallina, no points are awarded. End the frame after all eight balls have been thrown and appropriate points have been awarded. The scoring team begins the next frame. If no team previously scored, the team that threw the pallina last begins the next frame. Play as many frames as needed until one team has a total score of 16 points. puzzle games Iwin.com offers the largest selection of free game downloads. Play from popular categories such as hidden object games, time management games and match 3 games.