How to Play Barefoot Bocce

Bocce ball is an outdoor game played with two sizes of balls. The bocce ball is a bit larger than a softball and the pallino ball is slightly smaller than a tennis ball. In barefoot bocce ball, a tennis ball is often used for the pallino ball so it's easier to spot in sand, which is the preferred playing surface of barefoot bocce.

Instructions

    • 1

      Organize teams to play barefoot bocce on the beach. Each team consists of one to four players.

    • 2

      Create a level surface for playing barefoot bocce ball by raking a large patch of sand flat and free of debris that could interfere with the movement of the balls. The size of the barefoot bocce ball field is determined by the toss of the pallino ball.

    • 3

      Ask someone from the home team to toss the pallino ball. Once the pallino ball is tossed, the same team throws a bocce ball, trying to get at close to the pallino ball as possible. This is harder with barefoot bocce as the balls tend to stop on the sand, making aiming more difficult.

    • 4

      Give the second team a chance to roll their bocce balls until they get closer to the pallino ball than the first team, or until they've thrown 4 balls, whichever happens first.

    • 5

      Let the first team toss until they're closer to the pallino ball or until they've played 4 bocce balls. Play continues to go back and forth until one team has thrown all four bocce balls.

    • 6

      Stratagize to win on a sandy surface. The bocce balls won't roll on sand after they land as they do on grass, so you need to toss the balls so they land in the right spot.

    • 7

      Award points to the team whose bocce ball is closest to the pallino ball at the end of play. If 2 balls from the first team are closer than the second team's balls, the first team has 2 points and the second team has no points.

    • 8

      Play until one team scores 16 points. The team who wins the frame tosses the pallino ball for the next frame of play.