Bocce: Nine Balls and a Lawn

There is a game that has been played in our family since as long as I can remember. It is a game that my mother plated with her parents. In fact it has been played for thousands of years. The game is known as Bocce, but is more commonly referred to as Lawn Bowling. The game dates back to Ancient Rome and was brought into the United States in the early 1900's when there was a mass influx of Italian immigrants. Now it is played around the world by every culture.

The rules of the game are fairly simple (at least how we play it). There are two teams of two. Each person gets two of the larger Bocce Balls with colors matching their teammate's. 

There is then a small ball called a "Jack" that someone throws at any distance (in professional play there is an actual court so the distance is limited). The goal is simple; try to get your balls closer to the small ball than the other team. 

Our distance measuring is highly accurate.

You get points for every ball that is closer than the balls of the other team (so theoretically up to four points per round). The point limit can be made up but traditionally varies from 7-13 points per game. The fun part is trying to knock away the opposing team's balls.

Thanks for reading.