Different Ladder Ball Variations

Meet Or Exceed 21 To Win

• The game of ladder ball is played until one team or player scores 21 points, according to the ladderball.org website. The first player or team to score 21 or higher at the end of a round of play wins. If both teams or players exceed 21, the higher team wins, with the game continuing in the case of a tie.

Scoring 21 Exactly To Win

• One scoring variation of ladder ball requires the winning player or team to score 21 points exactly to win. If either player or team exceeds the score of 21 on his team, he does not win, instead he loses points. The number of points scored during the current round is subtracted from his score before the round started. This version requires a player to be precise in which rung he tosses his bolo onto as he gets close to 21 points, instead of just trying to get as many points as possible.

The Snakepit

• When playing ladder ball, sometimes a player will try to bounce her bolo off the ground onto one of the rungs. The ground can be referred to as the snakepit. One variation of the game doubles the points of any bolos that hit the ground and then land on a rung of the ladder. Another scoring method is to eliminate this strategy by ruling any bolo that hits the ground before a rung "out of play" and removing it from the rung so it scores zero points.

Scoring Adjustments

• A player can agree with his opponents to adjust the scoring of the rungs before the game begins. In some variations players agree to make the middle rung the highest scoring rung and worth three points as they feel it is the hardest to land on. This is because the top rung will catch any bolo coming in from above, and the bottom rung will catch those that try to bounce the bolo off the ground. Other players make the bottom rung worth the most points, while ruling that any bolos hitting the ground before that rung are out of play. Another scoring adjustment some players make is adding a five-point bonus for anyone who wraps a bolo he tosses around the side support poles of the ladder.

Distance Adjustments

• The standard distance that players stand from the ladder when throwing a bolo toward it is 15 feet, according to the ladderball.org website. This can be adjusted to increase the difficulty by standing farther away or decrease difficulty by standing closer. This can allow children to compete with adults by letting them throw from a closer location. To add a twist to the game, create two throwing lines, one 15 feet from the ladder and the other 30 feet away. Anyone throwing a bolo from the 30-foot line scores twice the standard scoring for any points he scores on his turn.