Washer Game

Construction

•	Boards are 48" L x 12" W x 2-3" high with 4" holes on 12" centers, preferably covered with plain outdoor carpet.

•	center them 12, 24, and 36" from an end.

•	when making the playing board, better to make them 4½" holes so that the carpet can wrap down into hole

•	if carpet pattern is ribbed, suggest making the ribs run lengthwise even if you have to buy a little more carpet. If crosswise, the washers tend to dig in and you don't get a good bounce.

•	After putting carpet on (use outdoor carpet adhesive), wrap to sides, staple with about ¼" staples

•	Turn over, make slits at each hole, cut into 12-16 segments. Don't slit too close to edge of the hole or you'll have the slits showing from the top of the finished boards. Dab a little glue on the mating part to the underneath surface, grab the carpet segment with pliers, pull taut, shoot in a staple or two.

•	Washers are 1" steel flat washers, 1½ " OD, 1" ID, 5/32" thick

•	Screw-in eyelet close to ground to hold 10 ft chain, so that the boards remain 10 ft apart.

Rules of Play

•	Player 1 will stand on one board and throw three washers at the other board, trying to put the washers in the holes.

•	A washer in a hole will be scored as 1 for the nearest hole, 3 for center hole, and 5 for farthest hole

•	Player 2 will stand on the same board and throw three washers trying to outscore player 1

•	A washer bouncing from the ground onto the board will not count as score, and is removed from the board

•	A washer from each player in the same hold will cancel the score of both washers

•	Both players may score if their washers are in different holes

•	The player scoring the most points throws first from the opposite board at the next turn.

•	The scoring objective is 21 points exactly. A player scoring 22 or more starts over at 1 or more depending on the amount over 21.

•	If a player scores 21 and has washers remaining, all remaining washers must be thrown and hit the top of the opposite board, or the points just made are not scored and do not count as canceling if the opponent scores in the same hole.

•	If a player scores 21 on the first washer, then misses the top of the board on the second washer, the third washer can not be used for any score or canceling.

•	If the first player scores 21, then the second player cancels with the first washer, scores 21 with the second washer, then misses the board with the third washer; then the canceling first washer counts but the scoring second washer does not count.

•	There are no ties. The first player scoring 21, after both players have thrown is the winner. If player 1 scores 21, then player 2 also scores 21, without canceling the player 1 score, then player 1 is the winner.

•	The rule concerning hitting the top of the board only applies when the score is 21.

Tournament

•	The person arranging the tournament gets an even number of participants and organizes them into teams of two using some random unbiased process like drawing playing cards. If a draw would put husband and wife on the same team, that draw is generally discarded and another made in its place.

•	When an odd number of teams is in the lineup at any tournament round, a random unbiased process is used to select a team for a "bye" (team sits out that round). A team will not get two byes in a tourney.

•	To keep elapsed time reasonable, it may be agreed/stipulated before the start of the tournament that the "two over and you're out" rule applies — a team can go over 21 once, but do it a second time and you've lost the game.

Thanks to West Side Sams for a copy of their rules from which this derived.