Halex Classic Series Bocce Set (100mm Liquid Filled Balls)

Garbage.
I returned them.
If you want these to keep some kids busy, fine. Otherwise spend the money to get real bocce balls. These are made from a soft plastic so they don't knock each other around like they should, they just sort of bump. They are water filled and vary from 100% full to half full. So they don't weigh the same or behave the same. That makes it impossible to be consistent.
Completely worthless junk unless, like I said, you need to keep some kids busy. In that case they are very inexpensive fun crap. But don't leave them where they could freeze. I'm sure the ones that are 100% full would crack open if they froze.

Decent bocce set, flashy colors, filled with water so they work well in beach sand. If the balls glowed in the dark then this would be the ultimate universal bocce set. Be careful not to hit rocks with the balls if you have a rocky yard....i am afraid the balls might start to leak; although no problems yet.

We have two boys -- ages 5 and 4 -- so we were looking for a fun, family-friendly outdoor game to help us fill the summer days. We purchased this bocce set because:

* Four people can play
* The balls are light and small enough to fit young hands
* We can play the game everywhere - lawns, beaches, parks
* The game comes with its own carrying case
* The game is very affordable - we picked up ours for less than $20!

This is a lot of fun, easy to learn and play, and is very durable!

This bocce set is awesome. My five your old niece enjoyed this just as much as everyone if not more. Since their bright and colorful she had fun assigning a color to everyone and selected teams. Definitely fun for entire family from 5 - 70 in my own experience .

Please see below for an explanation of the game, if you are unfamiliar with it. A description of this set, if you do not know the game, might not make much sense.

Desription of this set:

The jack is of hard plastic and is solid, and measures 40 millimeters (roughly 1.5 inches). The larger (100 millimeters or roughly 4 inches) balls for throwing are hard plastic spheres, in four colors (red, yellow, blue, green) with a groove design on the outside, to improve grippability. The throwing balls are filled with water. This might make them sound less durable, but I have hit some hard things, like granite boulders and cement curbs, pretty hard with nary a leak, after years of use. The set comes with an open plastic carrying net, that resembles the plastic rings that hold a six-pack of beverage cans together, only it is double, folds up around the balls, and snaps.

Description of the game:

Bocce Ball is also known as Italian lawn bowling, and is related to European games called "bowls" and "petanque". The basic equipment is:

Eight balls, of at least two colors
One smaller ball, or jack (or pallino or boccino), of a different color
Two or more people to play (two, four and eight are the best numbers)

That's it, equipment-wise.

The game is played by:

1. One person (we usually take turns) throws out the jack. If it is closed-court bocce (see below), there are areas considered fair-game to put the jack. In open bocce, anything goes.

2. Everyone takes turns trying to throw the larger balls as close as possible to the jack or target ball.

3. Once everyone has thrown, the score for that round is calculated.

There are different scoring methods, but the one that I learned is:

The person, or team, that ended up with the ball closest to the jack, wins that round. The winning person or team earns one point for each of his/her/their balls that is closer to the jack than any non-winning ball. For example, if you and I are playing a two-person game, and you end up with all four of your balls closer to the jack than my closest one, you get four points. But, if you win, but only one of your balls is closer than my closest one, you would get one point. The game ends when someone reaches a pre-decided score, with fifteen and twenty-one the two numbers I have seen most often used.

There are different variations on the game. "Closed court bocce" is played on a closed court of prescribed dimensions, with foul lines and target areas. Serious (i.e., semi-professional) bocce players play on closed courts, and can be just as intense as the participants in any sport.

I play "Open bocce", which is played on whatever surface everyone agrees upon. This usually means a piece of lawn or a field but it can mean an empty parking lot, too. I have played it several times in an urban park that has concrete walkways and ramps, intermingled with raised areas of lawn. The different elevations made for very fun game-playing.

My experience: This game is easy to learn and easy to play. I am a quadriplegic, but have some arm-strength, and I am a fair bocce player. The game moves very quickly, with everyone involved on an ongoing basis. It is best to have some measuring device handy, to settle disputes over scoring.

An interesting variant: If you take nine pingpong balls, one left white and the others of at least two different colors (marker or paint will do, if you cannot find colored pingpong balls), you have indoor bocce ball!