Bocce ball originated in Egypt in about 5200 B.C., according to the World Bocce League. The game spread throughout Palestine and Asia Minor and in 600 B.C. Greeks picked it up. Greeks brought the game to modern Italy, where it became quite popular. Giussepi Garibaldi promoted bocce even further while he was unifying Italy. The rules for bocce ball are easy enough for even children to master.
Getting Started
You'll need a set of bocce balls, consisting of eight large balls and one small one, called the pallina or jack. You may play on short grass, packed dirt, fine gravel or even a paved surface. Choose an area that is fairly flat. Play with two, four or eight people, forming two teams. Divide the large balls equally among the players. Give all players on Team A balls of the same color or pattern and all the players of Team B another color or pattern.
Play
A person from Team A throws the pallina and rolls one ball underhanded, trying to get as close as possible to the pallina. Then it is Team B's turn to roll balls until they get one closer to the pallina than Team A's ball. If Team B gets a balls closer to the pallina, then their turn it over and play goes back to Team A. Team A rolls a ball trying to get it closer to the pallina than Team B's ball. Play continues in this way until all the balls have been rolled.
If Team B rolls all four balls and none of them are closer than Team A's ball, Team A rolls each remaining ball and tries to get all of them closer to the pallina than Team B's closest ball.
The object of the game is to get as close as possible to the pallina. Another way to do this is to roll a ball to knock an opponent's ball away from the pallina, or to move the pallina toward one of your own team's balls.
Scoring
After both teams have rolled all their balls, score the frame. A team gets one point for each ball that is closer to the pallina than the closest ball from the other team. If Team A and Team B's closest balls are the same distance from the pallina, then neither team earns any points for the frame. Continue playing until one team earns 16 points, or until you reach a predetermined score of your choice.
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