BY JILLY MacDOWELL | Brooklyn's Carreau Club recently quadrupled in size, so it's official: Boules games have hit the big time. This revival of “beverage sports” – often involving a ball and aiming, usually played with one hand free – just makes sense in 2022.

Whether it's bocce or lawn darts or cornhole or croquet, these games' low barrier to entry and straightforward rules are necessary for a species re-learning how to socialize.

Bocce, in particular, is a long-standing Philadelphia pastime and not at all a fad here. The best known bocce court in town is Bardascino Park at 10th & Carpenter, with a level regulation court in an especially idyllic setting. Various leagues of mostly seasoned players hold court there spring to fall, rolling softball-sized balls (green or red) so as to reside closest to a smaller target ball (white) on a long, narrow, hard-sided court (13 x 91 feet).

As crepes are to manicotti, pétanque is to bocce. There's a long-running open pétanque club in Clark Park, Sundays at 11am. The game is open to Francophiles and everyone else, and is year-round, weather permitting. "Pa-tonk" is the trending cousin to bocce; strikingly etched, weighty metal balls kerplonk toward the cochonnet (in bocce, the pallina) on a crushed gravel court.

“In bocce the ball is rolled, while in pétanque it's lobbed," explains Philadelphia Pétanque president Loi Nguyen. “It's all about the landing spot and trajectory. A dirt surface is too bouncy and inconsistent for pétanque.”  

That inconsistency is key to the unpredictable, vaguely serious play enjoyed by "South Philadelphia renegade" league Grassroots Bocce at Jefferson Square Park. GRB recently concluded its 11th fall season; play resumes in April 2023.

The official international rules of bocce state: “Whereas official bocce rules call for a smooth, prepared court with markers and sideboards, petanque can be played on many outdoor surfaces, without any setup.” So it would seem the Philly bocce punks are playing a hybrid of the two.

Dirt, leaves, twigs, roots, rocks & other park lawn debris made for a spirited afternoon of playoffs, concluding in a hard-fought final between four-time champion Bocce Bots and the understaffed, defending Speedballers. 

Bocce rules are simple – simpler than remembering the order of play given the number of times, “Is it my turn?” was heard on all courts. Do the beer cans in players' non-bowling hands have anything to do with this confusion? I misteri della bocce.

Teams are split, rolling from each end of the court. Frames alternate end to end, with one team scoring from 1 to 4 points per side. Object: get all 4 team balls closest to the pallina. First to 15 wins. Hitting other balls is permitted, and often necessary. On this turf, the biggest challenge is keeping balls in bounds.

Early rounds saw season leaders John Hay All-Stars uncharacteristically fumble. Team Deboccery played half of their frames almost exclusively in the style of pétanque, a volo ("in flight"), employing lobs of arguable efficacy. Gravitational pull may help stick the landing, but only if the ball doesn't land on a root knuckle or an acorn cap. Also, a boule of any weight may still roll unpredictably because the grass is, at best, flat-ish.

The final score was 15-13, Bocce Bots. But the hallmark of this league is community over competition. Every team gets to the playoffs. And Grassroots Bocce donates all registration funds ($20 per player) after expenses to the winner's charity of choice. Since 2012, GRB has donated over $15k, to South Philadelphia Community Fridge, Green Street Rescue, the Attic Youth Center and many others.

The Bots chose Gloria Casarez Elementary School in Kensington. “Gloria was a former GRB member and friend who died of breast cancer in 2014," explains league founder Kelly Craig. “Her team was Joanie Loves Bocce. She recently had the school renamed after her as an amazing public figure in Philadelphia history.” Social connection meets social responsibility, with a “INSERT POPULAR CRAFT BEER NAME HERE” chaser.

Now it's late fall, and the thwack of bocce balls can be heard no more on Grassroots’ lawn.

But on an unseasonably warm, rainy November Sunday in Clark Park, a group plays croquet.

Sign up for this weekend's Love Your Park cleanup, Sat, Nov 12, at 70 Philly parks including Bardascino and Clark. Spring season announcement on Grassroots’ Facebook page. More Philly bocce can be found on Major League Bocce. Any other leagues out there? Email Jilly.