Sports and games take good technique to develop their skill set. There are few considerations when learning how to throw a bocce ball.
- Grip
- Stance
- Type of throw
- Strategies
- Course
In this article, we will divide the important considerations of how to throw a bocce ball well.
We will dive into each of the considerations listed above along with some simple advice on how to develop your skills in this sport.
Let’s get started – how to throw a bocce ball!
What’s the Best Way to Grip a Bocce Ball?
There’s one thing that many ball sports have in common; there is a proper grip on the ball. What do we mean by proper?
In bocce ball, players have the option of gripping and holding the ball palm side up or palm side down. Typically, players will use the palm side up hold.
That is to say they hold the ball with their palm facing up (similar to an underhanded throw). Although it is an underhanded throw, it is technically a rolled ball.
You may also grip the ball palm side down. This grip is more similar to a throw, not a roll. It is not similar to baseball or football throwing though.
Professional bocce ball players are not permitted to raise the throwing arm above the shoulder in an overhanded position.
Now, whatever way you choose to grip the ball, you should spread and place your fingers around the ball grips the ball better.
Once it’s your turn, grip in your preferred grip style, and then swing your arm straight down and back. Then swing your arm forward and release the ball, rolling the ball towards the other end or dropping straight and rolling toward it.
Each season you will develop your own preferred grip styles. Some players develop both grip styles and alternate throughout the game depending on what type of strategy the player wants to create.
What’s the Best Stance for Throwing a Bocce Ball?
Your stance is almost just as important as your grip. You want to get a good stance with both feet in solid contact on the ground.
Some people want to play standing up all the way. Some people want to bend/crouch down forward like the traditional bowling stance.
With either of these stances, now you want to have a foot forward. If you’re standing up tall, you’ll want to foot forward on the throwing hand. If you’re in a crouching stance, you will want a foot opposite from your throwing hand.
You want to be about shoulder-width apart with your feet. As you throw the ball, shift most of your body weight onto your front foot.
Shifting your weight will give you the forward momentum and will propel your ball down the court towards the “pallino” ball, or the tiny white ball that you want your ball to stop by.
What Are the Different Throw Types?
Bocce ball has three specific kinds of throws players use. They are the following:
- Raffa – This is a ball placed overhand, usually because a player is attempting to knock another player’s ball away from the pallino. An added backspin on the bocce ball means that when the ball strikes the opponents, it will come to stop.
- Punto – These are gentle rolls that usually occur underhand. Players step up to the line and roll the ball softly down the court to let it rest as close to the pallino ball as possible.
- Volo – Volo throws are a variation of a raffa throw. It consists of pitching the ball up in a high arc with backspin and power. This throw would knock other balls away or move the pallino to another position.
The Raffa type throw is the more aggressive throwing type. It is meant to throw balls a little harder to play them away from where they were.
Punto throws will be used when no other balls are on the court yet.
How Do You Choose a Strategy for Your Turn?
When it’s your turn, you are going to evaluate the court, and think about what your actions are going to be. What do you want to achieve with your throw?
In general, if you are the first player to throw, you will want to go with a blocking strategy. You are going to roll your ball toward the target slight enough so that it will finish on the front side of the pallino. That means that it will block other players on their turns.
If someone else is blocking, start employing a banking strategy. When you bank a ball off the wall, you will get your ball behind that blocking ball.
You will throw your ball at an angle to hit the wall, and it will come off of the wall at an angle as well.
The last strategy some players use is bumping. You are going to bump the pallino with your ball to move it close to the balls that you already have on the court. This is a good strategy to use at the end of your game.
What Are the Different Playing Surfaces?
Not all bocce ball courts feature the same type of playing surface, so you may play on a hard surface that rolls further and faster.
You could also play on a soft surface of thick material. Most courts at least have some type of material made of:
- turf
- concrete
- rubber composite
- sand
- asphalt
- grass
- gravel
As you can see, there are a few surfaces to think about when you are playing a game of bocce. A ball will not run nearly as far on sand as it will on concrete.
It may take you a throw or two to get a good feel for the type of playing surface you are playing on. Adjustments to your throw will be needed based on how far the ball rolls. Pay attention to the surface and when necessary evaluate your throws.
Final Thoughts
The best bocce ball players know how play the sport the most effective way. The first thing to work on is finding a good grip and a good stance. You want to be comfortable when it’s your turn to throw.
After you’re feeling more comfortable, then you can start working in more strategies. Before you throw your ball, you will assess the situation on the court.
As you become more skilled, you can also start to spend time switching up your throws and making little adaptations on the playing surface.
In not time, you will be playing like the pros!