Bocce Ball Rules – How to play the game
There are basic rules for the game of bocce ball. These rules are easy to understand and should get you started in no time. Below, we discuss the essential rules of the game for rookies –
1. The Players
Two to eight people can play bocce ball, so this game is ideal for large or small groups. The size of the team will determine how many bocce a player gets. If a team has just one player, he/she gets all four balls and will bowl them. For teams with two or four players, they’ll have to divide the balls amongst themselves equally.
2. Deciding what team goes first
You’ll have to decide what team goes first to start the game, and you can do this with a coin toss. Whoever wins the coin toss gets to choose their preferred pattern or color balls. They can also decide to toss first.
The team that wins the first toss is allowed to toss the pallino, and they can do this at any distance. They must ensure that the pallino goes past the centerline but stays within the court’s boundaries. Should a team fail at this, the next team gets to toss until one group gets it correctly.
3. Bowling
With the pallino in place, the first bowl will be done by the starting team. A player on that team throws the first ball intending to get very near to the pallino as much as they can. Next, the opposing team gets their turn and does the same thing, this time trying to land nearer to the pallino than their opponents.
Should the first team toss their bocce ball and it goes outside the boundaries of the court, a second player from the same group has to toss. They must take turns to put the ball in play. Where they fail to do this, the turn falls to the opposing team who’ll then get to toss.
The game continues once the pallino and first bocce ball are placed correctly.
4. Throwing the bocce ball
Going from rookie to pro in the game of bocce ball starts from improving your throwing technique. You might have to try out different strategies and techniques to decide which helps you perform best. This can be tricky for many people because there are different ways to deliver the bocce ball.
Some players use the bowling style to bowl the ball near the ground, but others may prefer the underhand throw.
To use the underhand technique, you have to cup the ball from under with your palm, then perform a high lob. Some players also prefer cupping the ball from the top before lobbing it.
5. In Play
If you avoid violating the foul line while ensuring that your ball stays within the boundaries of the court, the ball will be “in play.” keep in mind that the foul line is that line which you are not permitted to cross when attempting to toss your ball.
6. Gameplay
A new rotation of playing turns begins once the first bocce ball and pallino take their place on the court.
Any team that can get closest to the pallino with their bocce ball gets the ‘in’ ball while the ‘out’ balls go to the opponents.
The next rotation will start with the team that has the out balls. The opposing team must try to get their ball closer to the pallino and will keep doing so until all their balls are exhausted. And they must do this while staying within bounds.
The rotation of turns will continue until the bocce balls are exhausted by all the teams. This signals the end of the “frame” with the points going to the winning team. “Frames” simply refer to game rounds.
7. Scoring
You also need to know how to score frames to determine what team wins the game. As mentioned earlier, a frame ends when every team has played all their bocce balls, and the group with the “in” ball or the ball closer to the pallino is awarded the winning points for that frame.
There are game rules where bocce balls that touch the pallino get two points.
All bocce balls of the winning team that are closer to the pallino than those of their opponents will get one point each. Should arguments arise about which balls are closer, you can take measurements from the center of the pallino to the edge of the bocce ball.
8. Fouls and Out of Bounds
There is a foul line on every bocce ball court that players are not allowed to cross before they release the ball. A player will receive a warning when they create a foul by crossing the line the first time. If this happens a second time, it signals the end of the current frame. The opposing team will receive the points for the frame, but this can be waived if the team wants the round completed and overlooks the penalty.
Players must ensure that their balls stay within the boundaries of the court when they toss. Any ball that makes its way outside the boundaries isn’t allowed back into play until the frame is concluded.
Should a ball strike the pallino and knock it out of bounds, this signals the end of the frame with no team receiving any points for that round.
9.Measurements
Once all the bocce balls are exhausted, the teams have to determine which ball got closest to the pallino. Most times, it’s easy to see the closest ball, but you might have to use a tape measure to get a more accurate result.
As mentioned earlier, the team that has the closest bocce ball wins the frame points, and the opposing teams receive no points.
Should teams find that their balls are equidistant to get the pallino, the frame ends with no points awarded to either of the teams. That’s why you need a tape measure to determine whether one ball is closer by a few centimeters or not.
10.Ending the game
When one frame comes to its conclusion, the teams will begin a new frame at the other end of the court. The points for every frame must be tallied at the end, and the teams should continue to play until one team amasses 12 points. But it is okay to come up with an entirely different target point before the game starts. You can go with target points of 15 or even 20 points.
