Petanque tip, mark the jack!

Marking the jack and boule. Tip from 2010 rules have enforced the marking!

Just touched previously on the benefits in marking boule are many fold. It is difficult to always mark the boule and many players just agree to play as if they were marked. Now it would seen silly to lose a game after all that practise just because you have not marked the boule or jack. The boule can be a lot of trouble to mark, as there will be 11 in the head, and the jack and boule move. Why mark the jack then? Well there are so many reasons why you would do this we will cover it next month but here is one that will blow your mind.

You are 10 all in a game and have had a nightmare end. You have two boule left. The opposition have five. Things are looking bleak, but never mind, you decide to shoot the jack to keep in the game. You will have one boule left so the end will be dead. Open piste but strung out as guidelines. The jack needs to cross a dead boule line and you will still be in the game. The opposition threw the jack this end and it has not moved. The jack thrower marked the jack then returned to the circle to throw his boule. He did it every end and seemed pointless. Your player steadies himself in the circle and shoots the jack. Bang right on top of it and the tiny piece of wood screams off the piste. The player at the back of the piste jumps up to cheer his player as the jack hits him firmly in the ribs as he has no chance of getting out of the way. The jack drops to the ground. Next to three of your boule that had stopped at the back of the head but were still live. As the hit player is still in the area of play the opposition calmly walk over to the jack and put it back on it’s mark. This was just one of three options they had due to the marked jack. 1. Leave it where it fell. What next to your three boule? 2.Put it back next to their holding boule. 3.Put it on a line from where it fell to where it was marked. Ouch! So that is why he took his time to mark it every end.