Ireland – Rings
Equipment
6 rings,
1 Ring Board,
Beers!
1. Beginning the game
Players must stand an agreed distance from the Ring Board, marked by a line set out on the ground, called the ‘oche’. A distance of c.160cm and height of c.140cm is recommended for children under 9 years. For adults and children over 9 years a distance of c.180 cm and a height of c.160cm should provide a good challenge. For advanced players wishing to comply with World Ring Board Academy, rules the ‘oche’ must be 259cm horizontally from the face of the Ring Board and the number 13 hook should by 178 cm vertically from the floor.
2. Throwing
Take turns to throw the six rings and total your score of any rings hanging on the Ring Board hooks (values from 1 to 13). Rings can be thrown over or under hand for young beginners but only under hand for older or advanced players.
3. Scoring
A score is only counted if the ring is hanging down from the hook.
4. Ending the game
According to the rules of the World Ring Board Academy, games are played to a pre-agreed total and then ended by hooking the 1, e.g. 100 + the 1. Once the player gets within thirteen of the total, they are assigned a nomination number. The player’s next scoring ring must land on their nomination number and if a ring lands on any other number the player’s turn is finished immediately (this is called hanging up), e.g. if a player reaches 91, the nomination number becomes 9 and the player must now hook the 9. As for the final 1, it is played in a similar way to the nomination number. If a player lands on any number other then 1, the score doesn’t count and their turn is up.
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