Tetherball is a
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
n game for two opposing players. The equipment consists of a 10 ft (3.2 m), stationary metal pole, from which is hung a
ballA ball is a round object with various uses. It is usually spherical but can be ovoid. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch, marbles and juggling...
from a rope, or tether. The two players stand on opposite sides of the pole. Each player tries to hit the ball one way; one clockwise, and one counterclockwise. The game ends when one player manages to wind the ball all the way around the pole so that it is stopped by the rope.
Rules vary from region to region and even from one court to another, and there is no definitive set of rules that everyone follows.
The game begins when one player serves the ball, usually by holding it in one hand and hitting it with the other.
Tetherball is a
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
n game for two opposing players. The equipment consists of a 10 ft (3.2 m), stationary metal pole, from which is hung a
ballA ball is a round object with various uses. It is usually spherical but can be ovoid. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch, marbles and juggling...
from a rope, or tether. The two players stand on opposite sides of the pole. Each player tries to hit the ball one way; one clockwise, and one counterclockwise. The game ends when one player manages to wind the ball all the way around the pole so that it is stopped by the rope.
Rules
Rules vary from region to region and even from one court to another, and there is no definitive set of rules that everyone follows.
The game begins when one player serves the ball, usually by holding it in one hand and hitting it with the other. The opposing player then attempts to return the serve by hitting it in the opposite direction. The object is to hit the ball in such a way that one's opponent will be unable to alter the ball's direction; this gives the server an advantage since the server has more control over the ball from the beginning. It is generally acceptable to hit the ball with either the fist or the open hand.
A player can commit a violation by stepping onto his opponent's half of the pole, by catching and throwing ("carrying") the ball, by striking the rope instead of the ball, or by hitting the ball twice before it has either circled the pole or been returned by the opponent (or, in some variants, struck the pole). Generally, after a violation occurs, the game pauses and the ball is returned to the position it was in before the violation; the number of wraps around the pole is re-created (or a penalty-wrap is awarded to the player who did not commit the foul). The player who did not commit the violation then serves the ball. If, however, the violation appears to be intentional, it may result in loss of game.
The game ends when one player hits the ball around the pole in their own direction as far as it will go, so that the ball hits the pole. In addition, the ball must strike the pole with the final wrap above a line marked on the pole. A five-foot high mark is satisfactory, though a lower mark might be used for younger players. A match can consist of one, three, five, or more games.
Equipment
Tetherball requires only a stationary pole, a rope, and a ball. Originally a
volleyball Volleyball is an Olympic team sport in which two teams of 6 players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules...
was used, but today many sporting goods manufacturers make tetherballs specifically out of a
butylIn organic chemistry, butyl is a four-carbon alkyl substituent with chemical formula -C4H9 . It is derived from either of the two isomers of the alkane called butane....
inside and a
rubberNatural rubber is an elastomer that was originally derived from a milky colloidal suspension, or latex, found in the sap of some plants. The purified form of natural rubber is the chemical polyisoprene, which can also be produced synthetically...
cover. The ball is roughly the size and weight of a volleyball, but is somewhat firmer. Tetherballs usually have a bar recessed in the top that the rope is tied to. Some simply have loops that protrude out, but this is less common as striking the loop with the hand can be painful
The pole must be 10 feet (3 m) high and completely stationary, meaning that it must either be weighed down (often by a
concreteConcrete is a construction material composed of cement as well as other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water, and chemical admixtures...
-filled
tireA tire is a ring-shaped covering that fits around a wheel to protect it and enable better vehicle performance by providing a flexible cushion that absorbs shock while keeping the wheel in close contact with the ground...
), or, in more serious tetherball courts, embedded in the ground. The rope is generally slender
nylonNylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides and first produced on February 28, 1935 by Wallace Carothers at DuPont...
, and is long enough that the ball hangs 2 ft (0.6 m) above the ground.
Tetherball is played on many surfaces:
sandSand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.As the term is used by geologists, sand particles range in diameter from 0.0625 to 2 millimeters. An individual particle in this range size is termed a sand grain...
,
gravelGravel is rock that is of a specific particle size range. Specifically, it is any loose rock that is larger than two millimeters in its smallest dimension and no more than . The next smaller size class in geology is sand, which is > in size. The next larger size is cobble, which is >. Gravel can...
,
lawnA lawn is an area of recreational or amenity land planted with grass, and sometimes clover and other plants, which are maintained at a low, even height....
,
asphaltAsphalt is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits sometimes termed asphaltum...
, or others. Since it requires only a small area to play in, it can also be played indoors.
Swingball=
A similar game called Swingball (also called totem tennis) uses a smaller, softer ball that the players strike with
racquetA racquet is a sports implement consisting of a handled frame with an open hoop across which a network of cord is stretched tightly. It is used for striking a ball in such games as squash, tennis, racquetball, and badminton...
s. It is more popular in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, in all of which tetherball (both as described above and as a name) is virtually unknown.
Swingball has a shorter pole (usually some 1.5 metres in height), is portable and the ball flies around the pole at a constant distance from the pole (usually also about 1.5 metres) on a
helicalA helix is a special kind of space curve, i.e. a smooth curve in three-space. As a mental image of a helix one may take the spring...
screw; the game ends when the ball reaches the top or bottom of the screw. Generally the ball used for these games is either a
tennisTennis is a sport played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a strung racquet to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court....
or a softer, sponge-rubber ball. The racquets are usually the size of tennis racquets but constructed of hard plastic. The game is played informally, usually with the pole being driven into a lawn or other grassy area, or as a holiday game on a flat stretch of sandy beach.
Organizations
Tetherball is an informal sport, and has not seen any organization beyond contests within schools,
summer campSummer camp is a supervised program for children and/or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
s, or towns. Professional tetherball does not exist.
External links
Tetherball was invented by Emmitt Angell of New Jersey. He published it in his book of games.