image derived from original work created by &y

Squareball the lawn game

To start playing check out the Getting Started section to the right.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Scoring

There are 3 ways to score.

1. Capture your opponent's ball(s) in a triangle formed by your balls (+3 pts for each ball captured)
2. Knock an opponent's ball out of the square (+1 pt for each ball knocked out)
3. In the case that neither player has captured an opponent's ball in a triangle, the player with the most balls inside the square earns 1 point for each of their balls in the square MINUS 1 point for each of their opponent's balls in the square. If both players have the same number of balls in the square no points are scored by either player. (remember this is only in the case that neither player captured an opponents ball in the their triangle)

Note:
This has been updated. Years ago the original rules were somewhat different but Jake and I have simplified the rules and greatly improved our enjoyment of the game.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Tip 1

Make the biggest triangle possible. The bigger your triangle the more likely your opponent will land inside of it. If you can throw your balls in different corners as show below you can make a triangle that will cover half of the square.



The other advantage to landing your balls near the corners is that it makes it very difficult for your opponent to capture you balls inside his or her triangle.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Rule 6

If your ball does not land in the square it is out-of-bounds and out-of-play for that round.

That means you cannot use it for scoring. So don't cheat!

Rule 5

The player that won the previous round must toss first.

This means the player who scored the most points on the previous round (not their total score). In case the last round was a tie the player who went first last round continues going first.

The better looking player tosses first on the first round or whoever wins the ensuing fist fight to determine who the prettiest player really is. Alternatively, and surprisingly less bloody, a coin toss may be used to determine who should toss first on the first round. Of course you still have to decide who tosses the coin...

Rule 4

Once all six balls have been tossed, the round is over and the points for that round are tallied.

Both players add the score from the round to their total score. Once one or more of the teams achieves 15 points the game is over and the winner is determined by who has the highest score. In case of a tie, additional rounds are played until the tie is broken.

Rule 3

Each round each player alternates tossing/throwing/bowling/rolling 1 ball from the standing area into the square.

Rule 2

The game is played in rounds.

Well it's not exactly a rule but it's important information.

Rule 1

There are two players or two teams.

Objective

Trap your opponent's balls in a triangle formed by your three balls and/or generally score more points than your opponent.

The first player to reach or exceed 15 points wins the game and is declared the winner. The player that does not achieve 15 points first loses and is declared the loser.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Setup

Ok, ok. I know everybody is dying to know what is required to play this game. Here is a list of the necessary equipment. The most necessary of the necessary equipment is the balls. I recommend using Bocce balls (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bocce) because they are designed for tossing in the grass and knocking your opponent's balls out of the way.

If you do choose to buy Bocce balls remember that you need 3 balls of one color and 3 more balls of a different color. Some Bocce ball sets come with 2 balls of each color and that wouldn't be sufficient.

I have also used softballs but they aren't good for bowling (knocking into other balls). They're too light.

Under no circumstances should you use meatballs to play Squareball. That would be a criminal waste of delicious meatballs.

Items required to play:

3 - balls of one color They should all be the same color

3 - balls of another color I recommend they be a different color than the first 3 balls--it's easier to keep track of who has thrown what.

1 - grassy field (at least 10' x 25') You'll probably want more space than that especially if you have poor aim. A dirt field will also work if no grassy field is available. Under no circumstances should this game be played in a field of dreams. You'd likely get hit in the soul with a ghostly ball and be stuck playing baseball for the rest of your afterlife.

4 - 7' ropes/strings/straps You will use these to create the square that you will relentlessly throw your balls at.

1 - 13' rope/string/strap You will use this rope/string/strap to mark the throwing box.

8 - stakes To hold down the rope/string/strap to the ground.

You should arrange your rope/string/strap as shown below. If you can't figure out how to use the stakes and rope/string/strap to make the layout below you might have more fun playing Candy Land. I highly recommend it.

The Original Squareball

Squareball is the name of a lawn game invented by the brothers Jenne in the year 2005. It's official birth date is 4/15/2005, which is the date of the earliest record describing the initial concepts of the game.

Squareball will turn 5 this year. And to commemorate this momentous occasion I have decided to document this game on the web. Stay tuned for the complete rules and discussion on game play. Please feel free to comment or ask questions in the comments.

Update: It's been so many years since we created this game and we continue to enjoy this game. Several years ago we simplified some of the rules and made the game even better.

Our love of games has expanded over the years and Jake and I have even started a table-top board gaming company named Last Night Games, focused on family-friendly, strategy games. Board games have become so much more interesting than what they were years ago. If you are interested please check it out!