LOCAL RULES
LOCAL RULES
Veterans Gardens use Colleoni Italian surfaces, the creators of the finest surfaces in the world.
Veterans Gardens use Colleoni Italian surfaces, the creators of the finest surfaces in the world.
Local Rules
These are the Rules for all leagues at Palisades Bocce Club.
We celebrate the great tradition of bocce as a sport played by ladies and gentleman, enjoyed with a dignity and respect deserving of this great game.
LEAGUE PLAY + STRUCTURE
- Top teams make the playoffs for the bucket-list absolute thrill of lifetime of kissing “The Bocce Cup.”
- League standings are determined by won/loss matches. In the event of a tie in the standings, we tally head-to-head matchups. If it is style tied, it goes to a one-frame ‘playoff’ match!
GAMES + MATCHES
- Games are either ‘one game to ten,’ or ‘2 out of 3 games.’ If it’s ‘2 out of 3 games,’ the first and second game are to 6, the tie-breaker third game is to 5. If you win the first two games, the match is over. Time to celebrate.
TEAMS
- Each team must have at least 6 players on their roster (but the more, the merrier).
- A team must field 4 players for a match – yet, a team can play as many as 8 in a given game, and any number in a given match.
- Players on a team can substitute for other players on a team at any point in a new frame. In the same game, players may not play from one side of the court, and then play on the other side of the court.
- If a team only has 4 players for a match, 2 players play on each end of the court. 6 or more players on a team for a match is the ‘preferred’ number of players. If three players are on one end of the court, one of the three players can roll twice. A player can never roll more than two balls in a frame.
- It is up to the team to decide who it chooses to play in a match, and the amount of balls any player rolls (maximum 2 per frame).
CAPTAINS
- Each team has a Captain. The Captain is the primary contact with the heads of the league.
- A Captain’s responsibility is to share all league information with their players.
- Each week, the Captain is responsible to make sure that their team has at least 4 players that will be playing.
GUESTS AND SUBSTITUTES
- A team can have substitute players for a match, but substitute players can’t already play on another team in the team’s league.
- During Wildcard, Playoff or Championship matches, teams cannot have substitutes from the other Palisades Bocce Club leagues.
- A player can only be a substitute two times, for any team, during a given season.
- During the playoffs, you must have two players from your team present for a match.
- Regarding substitutes, teams cannot intentionally ‘stack’ their lineup with top-level bocce players.
FORFEITS
- Matches start promptly at the designated times.
- In 2-out-of-3 matches, if a team doesn’t have at least 4 players 10 minutes after the start time, they forfeit Game 1 of the match. A team forfeits Game 2 (and the match) 20 minutes after the start time. In 1-Game-to-10, after 10 minutes, a team is awarded 5 points. After 20 minutes, the match is forfeited.
- Rules apply for all matches unless a game starts late. Start time is determined by an Official.
TIMING
- If a match isn’t finished at 50 minutes of play, once they complete the existing frame, it’s a 2-frame ‘sudden death.’ Team with the highest score wins the game (if it’s a tie at that point, one frame decides the winner of the game.) When ‘overtime’ is declared, if a team is in its second game and requires a third game, the third game is decided in one frame.
- In Wildcard, Playoff and Championship matches, there is no ‘overtime’ — and all games are played out.
MEASUREMENTS
- Palisades Bocce Club measures with Laser measuring devices.
- Once specific balls are measured, or a team concedes a given measurement — you can’t ‘remeasure’ the same balls in question.
WINNING TEAM
- Winning team receives one of the highest honors in all of sports; getting their picture and name inscribed on the League’s “Bocce Cup.”
- What more do you want in life than that?
Please contact Commissioner Jimmy Dunne with your fantastic ideas.