Pétanque Rules
- Players
- 2 to 6 (1v1, 2v2, or 3v3)
- Ages
- 8+
- Setup time
- 1 min
- Space
- About 13 to 50 ft of flat ground
What you need
- Six steel boules total for singles; twelve for doubles or triples. Singles and doubles use three per player; triples use two per player.
- 1 cochonnet (the small wooden target ball, also called the jack or piglet)
- A patch of flat gravel, dirt, or short grass
- Optional: a circle to throw from (a hoop, chalk ring, or scratched line about 14 to 20 inches across)
- Optional: a tape measure for close calls
Set it up
You throw from inside a small circle about 14 to 20 inches across, with both feet on the ground inside it until your boule lands. The cochonnet is tossed out to between roughly 20 and 33 feet (6 to 10 m) from the circle. There is no fixed court size for casual play, just pick a flat lane of gravel, dirt, or hard ground. A regulation competition pitch is about 13 ft wide by 50 ft long, but the backyard does not need lines.
Scoring
- Only one side scores per end, the side with the boule closest to the cochonnet.
- That side earns 1 point for every boule that is closer to the cochonnet than the opponent's nearest boule.
- Singles has three boules per side and can score at most 3 in an end. Doubles and triples have six per side and can score at most 6.
- Games are played to 13 points. There is no win-by-two requirement, 13 ends it.
- If the closest opposing boules remain tied after every boule has been played, the whole end scores 0-0. Start the next end; do not discard the tied pair and count farther boules.
How to play
- Choose the format and circle. Make two sides: singles uses three boules per player, doubles uses three each, and triples uses two each. Use a throwing circle and choose the opening side before play.
- Throw the cochonnet. A player from the first side stands in the circle with both feet on the ground and tosses the small cochonnet out to a spot roughly 20 to 33 feet away (about 6 to 10 m). It needs to land clear of obstacles and at least a foot and a half (about 50 cm) from any boundary.
- Throw the first boule. The same side throws the first boule from inside the circle, feet together and flat, trying to land it as close to the cochonnet as possible. Your feet cannot leave the circle until the boule lands.
- The losing side throws. Now the side that is NOT closest to the cochonnet throws. They keep throwing until they get a boule closer than the other side, or run out of boules trying. Then the other side throws, and so on, always the side that is losing the point.
- Point or shoot. You can lob a boule gently to sit near the cochonnet (pointing) or fire one flat and hard to blast an opponent's boule out of the way (shooting). Knocking the cochonnet to a new spot is fair game and a real tactic.
- Finish the end and score. Once every boule is thrown, measure and award points to the closest side. Then a player from the side that just scored draws a new circle around where the cochonnet ended up and throws it out to start the next end.
- Race to 13. Keep playing ends and adding up scores. The first side to reach 13 points wins the game.