Can Bocce Be Played on Grass? Best Surface to Play Bocce

Are wondering if Bocce can be played on grass? Can it be played on a concrete surface or wooden deck?

it doesn’t matter what concerns you have, you’re in the right place to learn the best surface to play Bocce.

Let’s quickly answer the question on the best surface to enjoy your Bocce.

Bocce can be played on grass. A smooth and level grass is an ideal surface to play Bocce ball in the backyard. You can enjoy Bocce with friends and family on a 1-inch landscaping grass level without any bumps, mulch, potholes, and any form of rigid on the ground level. 

You can take advantage of the field in your backyard to play Bocce. What matters is the level of the playing area.

That’s while in this article, I want to show you how you can prepare your grass field to play Bocce.

How to Make Your Grass Suitable For Playing Bocce

Playing bocce ball on grass requires you to do some preparation that’ll make the area ready for you to play.

A proper landscaping of your grass is essential. One of the ways to landscape the area is to check if there are bumps.

Level the area if there are bumps. Use a shovel to level the area. Place the shovel under the lawn to break down the higher side of the lawns.

You can as well mulch the area that is a bit lower to be of the same level with the higher side.

Trim off the overgrown grass in that area. Make the trimmed grass to be the same all-through. 

You can either use a mower or manual mow to trim the grass so that it can all be the same level that’s suitable for a bocce.

Check the area if there are clotheslines, planters, and wendy houses. Remove them to make the place suitable as a bocce court.

These obstacles (bumps and pothole) will make playing bocce ball harder. Bumps or tall grass will not allow the bocce ball to move smoothly.

Grass is a nice place to enjoy playing bocce ball with your friends, especially when the area isn’t sloppy. Remove everything that will make it harder to play bocce ball. 

Ensure the area you want to play bocce ball is not on the hill but on the flat or level ground that will make the movement of the ball easier.

People think that grass can either push a bocce ball or delay it. But it’s not true, a level trim grass doesn’t delay the scoring or the movement of the ball. 

So long the area is level grass, you can comfortably play bocce there. 

What is The Size of Bocce Grass Court?

For you to enjoy bocce ball with your friends, you need smooth flat surface grass. 

After ensuring the area is smooth, then you need a sizable area. The normal regulation-size of bocce court is 13 ft (2.5 – 4 m) wide by 90 ft (27.5 m) long. 

Likewise, the grass court shouldn’t be anything less than this regulation-size; 13 feet wide by 90 feet length.

You may not have this size of grass court in your backyard but you can utilise whatever size you have.

For social play with your friends though, the grass court in your backyard can be  whatever size you need for the court.

The regulation-size grass court should have a raised barrier around the outside rectangle of the court. 

But for social play of bocce ball in your backyard, a rectangular barrier may not be necessary if you don’t have a means of putting a barrier around it. 

If you have the means then go ahead to guide the environment so that the bocce ball doesn’t go outside the grass court.

Now you have a smooth grass court with a rectangular barrier around the grass court (rectangular barrier is not necessary for social play with your friend if you don’t have the means of fence it around) then, the next thing is two foul lines.

The foul lines are what regulate the movement of the player. Place the foul lines on each size of the grass court. 

The foul lines are used to mark where players can’t step when they throw. The regulation measurement of where the foul lines should be is 10 feet from each end of the grass court.

The foul lines are 10 feet distance from the end of the grass court. If the court ends here, then measure 10 feet out from the court and mark the place to be foul lines.

Then draw a centerline at the center of the court. This centerline is what demarcates the court into two. One team is on each side.

You can either use chalk, or paint to draw the center line. This is how you mark the size of the court.

What Number of Players Can Play Bocce Ball

The minimum number of players required to play bocce ball is 2 persons to 8 persons. Though, the number of persons usually depends on the size of the court. 

The regulation number of players of bocce ball is 8 persons but for social play with your friends, you can choose to be 2 on each side.

The higher the number of players, the smaller the number of bocce balls each player gets. 

If the number of players is 4 on each team, then the number of bocce balls will be divided evenly.

What determines the number of bocce balls required to play the game is by the team size. 

The number of bocce ball requires to play bocce based on the team’s numbers is shown below;

Number of Players	Number of Bocce Ball
One (1) player per team	Four (4) balls per player
Two (2) players per team	Two (2) balls per player
Four (4) players per team	One (2) ball per player

Rember, for social play or training with your friends, you can be two players on each team with four bocce balls per player.

The Terms Used in Bocce Balls

Bocce ball has the big size and the small size alike. These sizes of balls are used differently to play the game.

Here are what the different size of the ball represent the terms;

• Pallino – The small size of the ball is called “Pallino” this is also known “Boccino” this is the ball that you can use to roll the larger balls. But in boules and lawn bowls it is known as a jack.

• Bocce Balls – The big size or the larger bocce balls are in different colors and different patterns to show whose balls are.

The size of bocce ball is depending on the skill level and the age. But the regulation-size ball has a diameter size of 4.2 inches.

The usual colors of the big balls are red, blue, and green. Though there are other colors as well. 

Then, another requirement after the balls is measuring tape. This may not be necessary anyway if you have a close call court. 

You can use your feet to measure the distance of the balls.  Feet measurement is more accurate and fairer than any other measurement out there.

Rules That Guide Bocce Ball Game

Immediately after you set up the court then, the team divides into two groups. 

Each bocce consists of a series of rounds called “frames,” after which points are awarded. 

Game play rules are as follows:

The first player from the team to toss the pallino will set a target for the frame. Once the player tosses the pallino it has to fall behind the centerline.

The same player will bowl the bocce ball after throwing the pallino. All you need do is to cup the ball from the bottom and toss it underhand. The aim is to ensure bocce is close to the pallino.

Then, the player from the opposing will throw one bocce ball. The ideal is to defeat their opponent by making the pallino close to the bocce ball.

Once that happens, the ball is termed inside, if it doesn’t then throwing continues until their balls, one ball is inside.

Any team that doesn’t have a ball close to the pallino will always be the one to throw. Frames will end once all the balls have been thrown.

You can hit your opponent’s bocce ball or you hit the pallino during your turns. This is another easy way to get closer or you change the target.

How to Score/Count scores:

At every frame, only one team scores while one point is given for each bocce ball that’s closer to the pallino. Use a pallino distance marker to determine which balls are closer. 

The players have the right to set points for the game before it starts for social plays. For regulation games, 12 points is what brings the game to an end.

Safety is another aspect of the rules players need to consider.

Therefore, it recommended that players stay outside the playing area when balls are being tossed. 

Conclusion 

You can play bocce ball on grass so long the environment is flat or level without any bumps or potholes.

Bocce is a fun game to light up your backyard, especially when you have friends and family members around.

You don’t need the regulation-size court before you can play bocce ball. Use what you have and keep improving on your playing skills. This is what truly counts.