Make Your Own Ladder Golf… it’s sweeping the nation!

Photo by navets

In late honor of Memorial Day and BBQ’s across the country for the remainder of the summer, Insourcer has decided to enlighten you with a game that has taken the nation by storm.   That game is:

Ladder Golf.

You might know the game under a different name like Hillbilly Golf, or Bolo Toss.  I first discovered this game almost two years ago.  There is a family that lives down the street from me that spends every summer night outside drinking and grilling (I wish I could).  One evening they were playing this odd looking game…

Gameplay

The game involves two targets that are basically like small three-rung ladders.  These ladders are placed at opposite ends of the lawn, or 30 feet apart. Each rung is worth a different number of points, and point values seem to vary based on where you live.  The goal of the game is to throw a bolo, or two golf balls attached by a string, at the opposite ladder, hoping to have one of your three bolos wrap around a rung.  When this happens, you earn points.  The game continues until one side has 21 points, and you must score exactly 21 points.

My family plays like this:

• top rung= 2 points
• middle rung= 3 points   (we feel this is the hardest rung to get)
• lower rung= 1 point  (we feel this is the easiest rung to get)

Its a fun little game because you can play as teams, or you can even modify the game if you so desire.  My mom isn’t really good at it, so we let her play off of a bounce.  If the bolo happens to bounce and wraps on a rung, then it still counts as scoring.  You can also knock the opposing team’s bolo off of the ladder and prevent them from gaining points during that round.

Make Your Own Ladder Golf

After seeing the neighbors play this game a few times, I quickly decided to ask them where they had purchased it.  To my delight, they told me that they had made it.  They had previously bought a version of it from Walmart, but it broke in just a few short weeks.  The set from Walmart had cost them $29 dollars to purchase.  My neighbor said that he was able to make two sets of ladder golf for that price using common hardware materials.

The materials needed to make this game are pretty straightforward.  A lot of people solely use PVC piping, metal piping, wood or a combination of the three.  You can build very durable sets with that amount of money.  They used old golf balls for the bolos, painting them different colors in order to breathe some new life into the game.

Here’s one list of materials for making this great game:

• 4 - ¾ inch x 10 foot PVC pipes (white plastic pipes found in the plumbing section)
• 12 - ¾ inch 90 degree elbow PVC slip on pipe fittings
• 12 - ¾ inch “T” shaped PVC slip on pipe fittings
• 8 feet of nylon rope (although it’s usually more economical to buy a 25 foot package)

For further construction of the ladder see: How to Build Your Own Ladder Golf like Game [Associated Content]

For official rules and other ideas for assembly check out: Ladder Golf [Dustin DeFoe]

OUTSOURCERS: Buy this game at a sporting goods store or Walmart, where they have a tendency to be made out of cheap parts and usually come with flimsy foam-balled bolos.

INSOURCERS: Construct your own game and have the satisfaction of knowing that you saved money, and created a much more durable item that can take a beating for many BBQs to come.

warning: making bolos out of real golf balls can be dangerous.  Golf ball bolos can break windows and will hurt if a player is hit by one.  Foams bolos are considerable safer, but often rip during frequent usage.