Bocce (pronounced bo-chay) — a sport that combines bowling, golf and shuffleboard — has developed a loyal following in Hawai'i with top players practicing Sundays at Paki Hale near Kapi'olani Park in preparation for competitions, including a 32-player annual state tournament.

Traditional rules call for a clay playing surface, but in Hawai'i, grass is the surface of choice.

"We don't go by the rules," said Giampiero Morosi, one of several Bocce Club players competing at Paki Hale on a Sunday. "We make our own rules. We play in what we call the open field."

Simple game

A simple game, bocce is played by all ages and has about 1 million players in the United States, according to the U.S. Bocce Federation.

The sport is popular among Italian Americans and is widely debated to have originated sometime in Egypt about 5200 B.C. and made its way to Greece around 800 B.C., according to the U.S. Bocce Federation.

In the sport, a cue-ball sized pallino is rolled down an alley. Competitors then must roll a grapefruit-sized ball called a bocce as close as possible to the pallino. The bocce closest to the pallino scores one point, and games are usually played to 12 points. Competitors also can roll their bocce to try and knock away an opponent's bocce.

"It's a game everybody can play," said Fernando Rodrigues, the reigning Hawai'i state champion along with Paul Klink-Maniscalco. "Especially in Hawai'i, it's a nice place with grass. I think the game is easy and fun because you don't need a lot of skills, just some people to play with."

Strategy, skill involved

"We have to know the terrain and gravity," Morosi said. "Then there's the grass factor. It's just like playing golf. It takes a lot of skill and a lot of luck."

It also takes some self control. It's not uncommon for tempers to flare during a highly competitive game at Paki Hale, Morosi said. In close games, disputes are settled by tape measurements.

"We don't play for money, but you see how they argue," Morosi said.

Hawai'i players good

Morosi said the Hawai'i bocce players are "remarkably good" and that many competitors at Paki Hale have developed an "everything goes" style of play that co-exists with man-made course hazards such as a parking lot.

Every Sunday, competitors are treated to an Italian-style potluck. For many competitors, such as Ezio Tamburrini, the potluck is one of the best perks of playing in the Bocce Club.

"It's the best restaurant in town because the wives of some of the guys and some of us members really cook dynamite food," said Tamburrini, who founded the Bocce Club with two others about 10 years ago. "I don't know if we show up for the camaraderie, the food, the friendship, the game itself or a combination of them all. But we all look forward to coming on Sunday."

Anyone can watch bocce games at Paki Hale on Sundays, but to play with the group, people must become members of the Bocce Club.

For more information, call Tamburrini at 737-9555. The Bocce Club also works closely with the Friends of Italy Society of Hawai'i. For more information, call president Victor Geminiani, 527-8010.