Shuffleboard is an exciting
game that is played by people of all ages for fun,
healthy outdoor and indoor
exercise, and calls upon players to develop
hand/eye coordination plus
strategy and a competitive spirit. It
is played
mostly in the United States
and Canada, but is gaining popularity in many
other countries also.
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The court is 6 feet wide by
52 feet long with a 6 foot - 6 inch
standing area
at each end. Normal construction material for a
shuffleboard court is
re-inforced concrete, but
can be played on any reasonably flat surface by
painting lines, or using
portable courts that are available.

The game is played using 8
discs made from a hard plastic composition.
Usually the discs are
colored 4 yellow and 4 black, however it is also
common to have 4 red and 4 black discs. A cue is used to propel the
disc to the scoring area at the other end of the court. It is
approximately 6 feet long and has a fork at one end to hold against
the disc. Materials vary, but all are fitted with runners that slide on
the court surface.
The game of shuffleboard is
played by either 2 people (singles) or by 4
people
(doubles). The object of the game is to
propel discs by means of
the
cue onto a scoring diagram on the opposite end of the court. When
propelling
the discs, players may try to score, prevent their opponent from
scoring,
or both.
To begin play, the yellow
(or red) disc is always shot with the cue first.
Play alternates ~
yellow/red, then black ~ until all discs are shot. Games
may be played to 50, 75 or
100 points and match play shall be on the basis
of best 2 out of 3 games.
Scoring
Scoring diagram ~ one 10
point area; two 8 point areas; two 7 point areas;
one
10-off area.
After players have shot all of their 4 discs, score all discs on diagram.
Penalties
There are several ways to
accumulate penalty points. The
following
is
an explanation of just a few:
Disc touches front or back
line ~ 5 off
Disc touches side or middle
lines ~ 10 off
Players may not leave court
without permission ~ 10 off
Players shooting before
opponent’s disc comes to rest ~ 10 off
Players may not touch live
discs at any time ~ 10 off