Interpretation

In a perfect world, all decisions and outcomes would be clear-cut. It is, however, a fact of life that this is not always the case when it comes to petanque. Unfortunately, despite constant efforts and amendments by the International Congress, the official FIPJP rules still seem to be open to interpretation (or misinterpretation) by those not educated in the precise meanings of certain articles.

Interpretation of the rules and their application is one of the “greyer” areas (from the point of view of a player) with which the umpire must contend. Some basic clarification of some of the rules follows:

Article 2: Boules

1. The weight and brand/trade mark must always be legible on all boules.

2. Do not hesitate to enforce restrictions on the use of boules with regards to weight, markings etc.

3. Specialised equipment is available for the detection of irregular boules.

4. Be very severe for claims that are made by a team late during a game. More often than not, it is the team that is losing the game that will resort to such tactics as a means of unsettling their opponents.

The boules must be made of metal - this includes approved alloys such as stainless steel and brass.

The trade mark or the name of the manufacturer and the weight must be engraved on the boule and must always be legible. If boules are found to be worn, resulting in the trade mark and/or weight being no longer legible, the offending boule is no longer valid for use in an official competition or tournament. In such a case, the player must immediately replace the boule or the complete set.

Engraving of name or initials on the boule is permissable (must be applied by the manufacturer). This does not constitute the tampering referred to in Article 2a(4).

Weighting is sometimes acheived by drilling and injecting a substance such as mercury into the centre of the boule. This can usually be detected by the presence of a small plug which is difficult to disguise. However, be aware that some boules such as the Integrale AC 118 (brass alloy) do in fact have a visible plug. These particular boules are manufactured in one piece and plugged after balancing.

Occasionally, boules are re-heated in order to alter their properties. Although this type of tampering can be difficult to detect without specialised metalurgical testing, there may be the tell-tale signs of discolouration of the boule.

Note: It is not a requirement for a player to use identical boule during a match. It is quite acceptable to use boules of varying size and weight, providing each boule conforms to the FIPJP criteria, but once the match has commenced, the boules may not be replaced except in the case of loss or breakage.

Approved Jacks

Jacks are made of wood, or of synthetic material which carry the makers mark and have secured confirmation by the FIPJP that they comply exactly with the relevant specification. (Note that 'carrying the maker’s mark' refers only to the synthetic jack.) The wooden jack may be natural, or painted in any colour.

Article 5: Marked ground

Piste Dimensions (National and International Competitions

Articles 6 - 7

In Article 6, the ‘2 metres between circles’ refers to play on open terrain. On marked terrains, there is no such restriction - circles in adjoining pistes may be drawn right up to (but not touching) the dividing line with no minimum distance required between. The same applies to the Jack.

1. Circle at 1m Minimum from all obstacles or dead ball line.

2. Circle at 2m Minimum from another circle on open ground (no marked pistes).

3. Jack at 1m from all obstacles or dead ball line.

On a marked terrain, the throw of the Jack must be within the boundary of the designated piste.

The team that throws the Jack must wipe out all throwing circles near one in use. At the completion of the end, it is acceptable to erase the circle just played from, thus restoring the ground to its original condition so as not to hinder play in the next end. Deliberate ‘over-grading’ or flattening of the ground is not permitted.

Article 7.4: The Circle

In this article, the wording reads:

At the following end, the jack is thrown from a circle drawn around the point where it finished at the previous end, except in the following cases:

1. The circle would be less than 1 m from an obstacle or the boundary of the playing area.

2. The throwing of the jack could not be made to all regulation distances.

The wording sometimes causes confusion. '1 metre from the boundary of the playing area' is often taken to mean from the boundary of the piste. This is incorrect. If laid out as per the regulations, the entire 'playing area' is marked by a line known as the 'dead ball line'. This line should be laid at a minimum of 1 metre (maximum of 4 metres) outside of the marked pistes. If correctly marked out, the circle may be drawn right up to (but inside of) the boundary of the piste.

In the first case the player will draw the circle in the nearest valid position from the obstacle or the boundary. In the second case, the player may step back, in line with the previous end’s line of play, until he or she is able to throw the jack any valid distance up to the maximum distance allowed, and not beyond .........

The second case is often misinterpreted as meaning that all valid distances must be able to be reached. If you read on, it states that the player may step back. It does not say that the player must step back.

All valid distances for Seniors are 6 to 10 metres.

Article 21: Time allowed to play

Many teams employ a variety of time wasting tactics in order to unsettle their opposition. Article 21 clearly states:

Once the jack is thrown, each player has the maximum duration of one minute to play his or her boule. This short period starts from the moment when the previous boule or jack stops or, if a point has to be measured, from the moment the outcome has been decided.

Article 9: Dead Jack

1. Jack out of play (over dead ball line)

A ‘puddle of water’ is considered as dead ground if the Jack floats freely. Note that the whole puddle is considered to be dead ground – not just the part where the jack floats.

Article 19: Dead Boules

Any boule is dead from the moment it passes into an out-of-bounds area. A boule straddling the boundary is valid. It only becomes dead after having completely crossed the boundary of the authorised terrain or dead ball line, that is to say, when it is placed entirely beyond this boundary when viewed from directly above.

If the boule subsequently comes back into the playing area, either because of the slope of the ground or by having rebounded from an object, moving or stationary, it is immediately taken out of the game and anything that it has moved after re-entering the playing area is put back in place. Any dead boule must immediately be removed from the game; by default it is considered to be live the moment another boule is played by the opposing team.

Note: The bold text (above) is the 2002 amendment to this article and is designed to protect the player in the circle from distractions if, on shooting and missing with the first boule, a boule goes out of play and re-enters the piste.

Originally, this boule would have been removed immediately, becoming ‘live’ the moment another boule was played. Now, the player is permitted to play on without distractions as the playing if his/her next boule will not render the first as valid.

Articles 10 & 11: Removal of obstacles

Article 10 states:

It is strictly forbidden for any player to remove, move or crush any obstacle whatever, found on the playing area. However, the player about to throw the jack is allowed to test a landing point by tapping it no more than 3 times with one of his or her boules. Furthermore, the player who is about to play or one of his partners may fill in the hole made by the last boule thrown.

Note: Any marks made by the testing of the ground should also be removed before the throwing of the jack. Additionally, Article 6 (with regards to erasing the throwing circle and restoration of the area within the circle) should be observed at all times.

Sometimes, the organisers may decide to grade the ground prior to commencement of the competition or tournament and occasionally before the finals (though many more seasoned players prefer the ground to be left in its natural state.

Many players believe that sticks, twigs, rocks, holes etc may be removed or flattened prior to the throwing of the jack. It is true that this was once the case, but for many years now, the players have been required to play the ground as they find it.

The October 2002 amendments to the International Rules have allowed the umpires with more options for a much wider and fairer imposition of penalties for infringements made under this article, starting with a warning through to possible disqualification of both teams.

As an umpire, it is your duty to ensure that this article is no less observed than any other article in the rule book.

Article 11:

If during an end the Jack is covered by a tree leaf or a piece of paper: Mark the position of the jack (if possible) and remove the object.

Articles 8 & 20: Played jack & pointed boule stopped

There is often confusion amongst players as to what to do when a boule or jack gets stopped. If the thrown jack is stopped by the Umpire, a player, a spectator, an animal or any moving object, it is not valid and must be thrown again without being included in the three throws to which the player or the team is entitled.

Any boule played that is stopped by a spectator or the Umpire will remain where it comes to rest. Any boule played that is stopped by a player to whose team it belongs is dead. Any boule pointed that is stopped by an opponent can, according to the wishes of the player, be replayed or left where it comes to rest.

Note that for the purposes of these rules, a player in another game is deemed to be a spectator.