Beer Golf

Introduction:

Beer Golf is a game played with ping pong balls, plastic cups, and beer.  It is played by my friends and I as an alternative to Beer Pong, another popular drinking game that we all enjoy playing.  With Beer Golf, your entire household becomes a golf course where each “hole” is an opportunity to drink.

Necessary Equipment:

A plastic cup

Ping pong balls for all players

A permanent ink marker

Plenty of beer

Number of Players:

Two or more people*

* Update: My friend assures me that the maximum number of players is four.  Not being a golfer, I was unaware of this Pace of Play rule.

Rules:

• Use the permanent ink marker to mark everyone’s ping pong ball with a name or symbol so it can be distinguished.
• Fill the plastic cup with beer and choose a starting location for it somewhere in the house.
• Choose the starting location for players.
• Choose a par for the cup.  The par shouldn’t be too hard or too easy.  More on this later.
• Each player takes turns throwing their ball towards the plastic cup.  Both the player’s feet must be behind the resting place of their ball.  The player is allowed to lean forward.  The player is allowed to leap and take jump shots so long as they do not step over the line.  The player is not allowed to brace themselves on furniture or other objects.
• As with golf, the person who is the furthest away from the cup shoots.
• The person who wins the cup gets to decide the cup location and par for the next cup.  Players start shooting from the location of the previous cup.

Drinking Rules:

• The player with the most shots to complete the cup has to drink the beer in the cup.
• If the player who decided the cup location and par shoots above that par, they automatically lose the cup and have to drink the beer in the cup.  This prevents people from choosing ridiculous hard cup.
• Everyone who shoots below par gets to assign drinks to other players.  They can assign as many drinks as how far below par they were.  This prevents people from choosing ridiculously easy cups.
• Everyone has to have a beer in their hand at all times.  Rule breakers have to drink.  The only exception to this rule is if you are playing with the Caddy Rule.

Caddy Rule:

• If there aren’t enough balls for everyone who wants to play, you can play with the Caddy Rule.  Essentially the loser of the previous cup has to be the caddy for the winner (and is no longer an active player on the next cup).  They are required to hold the beer for the player, fill the cup with beer and place it at the chosen starting location, offer advice to the player, and compliment the player when they make a good shot.

Icosahedron

The Icosahedron

Introduction:

Icosahedron is variation of the game Scattergories by Hasbro.  It is a fast-paced heads-up style game where winning involves wit, luck, and knowing your audience.  The game is called Icosahedron because of the twenty-sided dice which is used to play it.  The idea for the game originated when my friends and I were bored on a Friday night and were looking for a new game to play without going out to buy one.  Icosahedron has since become our preferred game because it is quick, easy-to-play, and suitable for a wide variety of players.

Necessary Equipment:

A Scattegories dice (the Icosahedron).

Number of Players:

3+, it’s best played with an odd number of players

Rules:

• The game consists of two active players, who are in a one on one competition, and everyone else, who act as moderators of the competition.
• The active players alternate rolling dice with the current champion rolling first.  If there is no current champion, everyone should argue about who goes first.
• When a moderator thinks of a category, they will announce that they have a category.  This indicates that dice rolling can commence.
• As the dice is rolled, the moderator will call out their category.  The first active player to successfully call out an answer that begins with the letter facing up on the dice earns one point.
• If an answer uses two consecutive words that begin with the letter which appears face up on the dice, it is a “double” and is worth two points.
• If both players answer simultaneously, neither player gets a point.  A new category is decided and the next player rolls the dice.
• The success of an answer is subject to a vote by the moderators.  If the majority agree with the answer, it is deemed correct.  Thus it is important to know your audience.  If an answer is technically correct but obscure, it will be voted down.  It is also possible for an answer to be incorrect but be voted up.
• If the moderators are split on whether an answer is correct, the answer is correct.  This is why the game is best played with an odd number of players (so ties don’t happen).
• The first active player to earn two points wins the round and is the new current champion.
• The game restarts and the person to the left of the loser plays against the current champion.
• At any time after the dice has been rolled, one of the moderators (or active players if they cannot answer) can start counting down from five seconds.  After five seconds without a successful answer, a new category is decided and the next player rolls the dice.
• Arguing is a cardinal aspect of the game.  Healthy debate is strongly encouraged.  If you feel that an injustice has occurred, it is your duty and obligation to argue your point vigorously.  Remember, the game cannot continue until arguing stops so feel free to filibuster the game.  Icosahedron is a microcosm of the U.S. congress.

Drinking Rules:

If you plan to consume alcoholic beverages while playing this game, the additional punishment rules are simple:

• When an active player scores a point, the loser drinks.
• If an active player scores a double, the loser drinks twice.
• If a moderator calls out a category that neither player can answer, they have five seconds to answer their own category.  If they cannot, they drink.
• If the current champion makes it back to playing against the same person that they beat to become champion, they go “around the world” and everyone drinks a social.

Category Ideas:

If you need help thinking of category ideas (beyond those that you might find in the regular game of Scattergories), below are some category ideas:

– Palindromes

– Words with five syllables

– Elements of the periodic table

– Occupations

– Countries and cities

– Comic book characters

– Parts of the human body

– Weapons

– Beers

– Adjectives

Shameful Categories:

People who attempt to use the following categories should be rightly boo’ed:

– What letter am I thinking of?

– Clandestine activities (and other strangely worded categories)