Kan Jam

(Photo courtesy of Kanjam)

This game is a combination of beanbag toss and horseshoes played with a Frisbee by teams of two. Teammates stand at opposite ends of the field and take turns throwing the Frisbee toward the basket-shaped goal. But unlike most other throwing games, both teammates can be involved in every toss.

One point is awarded when a teammate redirects the disc to hit the goal before falling to the ground, resulting in a "dinger." A deuce is when the thrower hits the side of the goal from 50 feet away without a teammate's help. Three points are awarded for alley-oops, when the disc is tipped or dunked into the goal. Should the thrower manage to get the disc into the goal unaided, it's an instant win!

Straitjacket Softball

<a href="http://web.mac.com/trussotti/Aesthletics/Straitjacket.html" target="_blank">Institute of Aesthletics</a>

(Photo courtesy of Institute of Aesthletics)

When has softball ever been an exhausting, high-energy sport? When the bases have legs.

Standing in for each white square cushion that would otherwise make up the inanimate First, Second and Third bases, is a member of the opposing team clad in a thick sweater with arms tucked straitjacket-style inside the sleeves.

As long as the bases stay within their large circle boundary, they can be as evasive as they please­—dodging the runner before he's safe, flailing about like a bull while the runner tries desperately to hang on, and even shagging the runner off, putting him at risk of being tagged out.

Even if you have the muscle, torque and bravado to smack a homer or what could have been a grand slam, dreams fade once you get on base, if luck would have you get that far.

Rollors

(Photo courtesy of Rollors)

Combine the methods of bocce ball and horseshoes and you get Rollors, a marvelous game of skill and chance. To play Rollors, opponents take turns bowling their three discs, which are numbered from one to six on each side, toward the pyramidal goal. Only the player whose rollor comes closest to the goal scores that round.

If a rollor lands face up, the number showing equals the number of points awarded. Rollors that stop upright score a point value equal to the sum of the numbers on each side while rollors that lean against the goal score points twice the number showing.

MegaSoccer

<a href="http://web.mac.com/trussotti/Aesthletics/MegaSoccer.html" target="_blank">Institute of Aesthletics</a>

(Photo courtesy of Institute of Aesthletics)

MegaSoccer is exactly how it sounds—absolute mayhem. Up to fifty people on each team go head to head in this soccer tussle where no whistles bring order or penalty. Eleven balls of various sizes are in play from the start and zip around the field as if they were pinballs in an arcade game with too many human bumpers.

If you've ever tried to kick a tennis ball straight, you'll understand why scoring a goal with one is worth six points, while larger balls yield fewer points. Once a ball is scored, it remains in the goal and can't be played again. Points are tallied after all the balls are scored and the best of three games is the victor.

To add to the pandemonium, MegaSoccer can be played on any type of terrain, even a field with a cluster of trees in the middle.

Spikeball

(Photo courtesy of Spikeball)

Spikeball is a combination of volleyball, trashtalk and foursquares without boundaries.

Spikeball is safest when played on sandy soft terrain because full-layout airborne poses are common.

Two teams of two players take a defensive stance around a taut hula hoop-size net which stands at ankle level. One player serves the ball into the net making it ricochet up at the opponents who have up to three hits between them to return the ball to the net. The volley continues as teammates palm, backhand, chest and belly-flop after the ball, until one team fails to return it. Only the serving team can score and the first to 21 wins.

The trick on returns and serves is to vary your tactics—"bring the hurt" with a full throttle spike that sends the ball and the opponent careening toward the sky. Or pull a deceptive move—barely tapping the ball at a super acute angle towards the net, making it spin low and fast to the ground.

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[link href='https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/sports/a6048/10-fun-wild-backyard-games/' link_updater_label='internal']5 More Wild Games >>>

Rootball

(Photo courtesy of Rootball)

Rootball is like horseshoes played with a doughnut-hole disc, or root, and a ball. Once players pick sides, they throw the root then the ball in any underhand motion from behind their stake, aiming to get as close to the other stake as possible. Some prefer a horseshoe-style toss and others throw the root like a Frisbee.

Throw a dinger (root strikes stake) for 1 point, a leaner (root leans on stake) for 2, a ringer (root rings around the stake) for 3 points, or a big head (root balances on stake) for 4 points. The ball toss allows you to score more points each round in a wide variety of ways. The first player to 12 wins.

HoopGardens

<a href="http://web.mac.com/trussotti/Aesthletics/HoopGardens.html" target="_blank">Institute of Aesthletics</a>

(Photo courtesy of Institute of Aesthletics)

HoopGardens is a spin-off of basketball with three hoops, two balls and three teams engaged in a simultaneous rivalry. Each team defends one of the baskets, which are situated in a large triangle, and uses small windows of opportunity to attack the other two baskets. Deciding when to make a fast break and when to defend is tough, but hinges on keen peripheral vision and good impulsive instinct.

Because of the game's unique configuration and the presence of two balls, teams quickly adapt to the innumerable offensive and defensive tactics possible. Tom Russotti, the game's inventor, says that many players developed their own strategies for this new game, making its inception a very collaborative process. Some find ways to monopolize both basketballs, and others use the court wisely to optimize scoring potential. "Making new games gives people the freedom to invent on their own," says Russotti.

Ladder Golf

(Photo courtesy of LadderGolf)

Let's face it: human beings find it amusing to throw things at other things. Like cornhole (aka, the beanbag toss) and other tossing games, the goal of ladder golf is to sling an object at its target. The objects, in this case, are called "bolas," two golf balls attached by a nylon strand, and are swung like a pendulum at a ladder with three rungs. A player must toss all of his bolas before the next player takes a turn.

The top rung is worth three points, the middle rung two points, and the bottom rung one point. If a player wraps all three bolas on the same rung or one bola on each rung during one round, he scores a bonus point. The first to rack up 21 points wins.

Belligerence and heckling are strongly encouraged; however, the tried and true defensive strategy against a golfer who's in the zone is simply to try to knock his or her bolas off the ladder.

You can even adapt your own ladder designs using PVC pipe. This sequential hurdle arrangement poses a challenge to depth perception and lob mechanics.

Baseboloball

(Photo courtesy of Steve King)

This is a remarkably inventive variation of ladder golf, specifically tailored to the baseball enthusiast. After a do-or-die coin flip, player one is determined and makes alternating tosses with player two at the diamond until all bolos have been thrown, thus completing the first inning. Scores are tallied after each inning and the first person to 9 points wins.

A bolo dangling from the tan diamond area scores one point while bolos hung from the green outfield areas score two. Should a player rack a bolo on home plate, he completely cancels his opponent's score for that inning.

Crazy Croquet

(Photo courtesy of depotdevoid/Instructables)

This mashup of croquet and miniature golf calls for creativity in course design. Household items and recycled scraps can be used to construct plateaus, ramps, gullies, tunnels, half pipes, bridges, sand traps, and even water hazards if you're ambitious. Then, wickets are strategically placed within or around these obstacles at the whim of the designer, who also predetermines the course route.

The first player to successfully complete the course by driving their ball through each of the wickets in the designated order is the winner.

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