Petanque coaching four metres of fun. It is all about thinking

So far we have looked at landing areas and using different shots to miss potential bad landing areas. We have practised throwing the jack to length. All the practice sessions so far have been to hone your skill and place your boule and jack exactly where you want it. You can still do this and lose games and wonder why. Well here we start to look at tactics as a guide to which shot to practice and give some backup to those long practice sessions. This tip combines practice with tactics for the first time in this section.

All the practice tips have been to help you get your boule exactly where you want it. Many players want to get as close to the jack as possible but is "The closer the better?"

If you are looking for a coaching tip that make this game easy then you need to look somewhere else. Petanque coaching is about opening your mind to options. Making choices and playing the shot that is right for the team. All we are doing is opening up the thought process and discussion. Talk, discuss and practice the shots you want to play. What follows are some examples this week of how to open your game.