September 22, 1999
Bocce, the third most-played game on the planet
Carol South
Herald contributing writer
First pitch the pallina and then bowl the ball towards it. Get great position and - watch out! - the other team may try to spock you.
Welcome to the wonderful world of bocce, a combination of bowling, shuffleboard and golf that is billed on the Net as the third most played game in the world. With an unofficial motto of 'You don't have to be Italian to play_' and a host of national and international tournaments, bocce is a lawn game with a history tracing back to ancient Egyptian times.
Here in Traverse City, a small cadre of players met weekly all summer to play bocce at the new bocce court located at the Long Lake Township Hall. Most of the eight or ten regular players were novices to the game, introduced to it by veteran player Ray Povolo of Long Lake Township.
"I was weaned on a bocce ball," joked Povolo, who moved to the area four years ago. "I grew up playing this, people played it like they do bowling here. They used to have bocce ball courts at taverns up there and players would play for drinks."
A native of the Iron Mountain area in the Upper Peninsula, which, besides it's fame as a skiing and former mining town, sports a devoted population of bocce players. The city park has seven courts that are jammed with league and individual play all summer long, spiced up with periodic tournaments.
Povolo began playing on those courts at 15 and has not looked back since. He and his wife, Betty, have played in tournaments in Grand Rapids, taking first place about ten years ago. They have built formal bocce courts in the backyards of various homes they have lived in over the years, with this court in Long Lake being the third.
Rules of the game and the size of bocce courts vary, reflecting the sport's laid-back tradition. Basically, two teams of two-to-four players each pitch the bocce balls at the pallina, a small, light-colored ball pitched on the court to begin the game. After all balls are thrown from both teams, the team whose ball is closest to the pallina can count all their balls closest to the pallina, up to four, as points. The winning team makes either 11 or 15 or 21 points first, depending on how they decide to play.
The Long Lake Township bocce court is 12-feet wide by 75-feet long with a packed sand base. The boards lining the court, especially the corner boards, provide ricochet strategies, as players plot to spock, or hit, the opposing teams' balls away from the pallina.
"I had never heard of it before, but it beats sitting in front of the TV," said Arline Stowe of Long Lake Township. "I think Ray is the more professional player here because of his experience."
The Long Lakers have been meeting since last spring, when a grant from the Grand Traverse County Commission on Aging and Long Lake Township allowed them to offer a variety of activities. They now offer an exercise class, a walking club, strength training and a monthly luncheon with guest speakers.
"We wanted to bring in more activities to seniors in this area," said Candace Rottman, program coordinator for the Long Lakers group. "The luncheons feature speakers on topics of interest for seniors."
For more information on the Long Lakers group and their activities, contact Rottman at 943-8450.