Rating: 8+

Bocce is an Italian lawn game that is becoming very popular in the United States. Four or more people can play. If four play, they play individually. Otherwise, the players are divided into teams of four. Create a playing field with clearly marked lines. Each team uses four bocce balls. The balls have distinctive colors and patterns so that each player can identify his ball. The rules of the game are as follows:

1. Toss a coin to decide which team will go first. The winner tosses the pallino (the smallest ball) to put it into play. The pallino must pass the mid-field line and stay in bounds. If the pallino is not tossed properly by the first team, the second team tosses the pallino to put it into play.

2. The team that tosses the pallino properly then tosses their first bocce ball as close to the pallino ball as possible. The first team then steps aside and lets the second team toss their first bocce ball. Whenever a team gets their bocce ball closer to the pallino ball than the other team did, they step aside and let the other team toss their bocce ball. If a team does not toss their bocce ball closer to the pallino, then the other team continues to toss their remaining bocce balls until they get a ball closer or they have tossed all of the balls. This continues until both teams have tossed all their bocce balls.

Playing Bocce

3. A player can use his bocce ball to knock his opponent's bocce ball away from the pallino. All balls must stay in bounds at all times. If a bocce ball goes out of bounds it is removed from the game. Play will resume from the opposite end of the court, with the team that originally tossed the pallino tossing it again.

4. Only one team scores in a frame. One point is given for each bocce ball that is closer to the pallino than is the closest ball from the opposing team.

5. All balls must be tossed from behind the foul line. Balls may be tossed, rolled, or bounced underhanded.6. If a player rolls the wrong color ball, simply replace it with the correct color ball when it comes to rest. If a player rolls out of turn, the other team has the option to replace any moved balls to their original position or leave all balls as they are.

7. The team that reaches the agreed-upon number of points for that game wins.