DIY Lawn Games

I love games. Board games, video games, social games, parlor games, immersive games, you name it, I seek out as many different types and styles of games as I can find.

I particularly like lawn games because they’re social, great for family gatherings, and generally pretty simple so they’re easy to learn and playable by most ages.

As summer begins, I’m listing here some favorites with options to both make your own or buy finished versions. You’ll find rules for most of these games on this Google Doc.

• Corn hole. This is the 1000 pound gorilla in lawn games. If people have played any lawn game, it’s likely this one (buy bags, instructions to build).
• Pole-ish Horseshoes. One of my favorites. Easy, collaborative game for up to 6 (build or buy).
• Kubb. Also called Viking Chess. It’s a long game so takes some commitment but fun when people are into it. Great for 4+ people. (buy or build). Rules
• Stump Tug-of-war. This modified tug of war is a lot more strategic than its brute force cousin. Two players stand on stumps and try to pull each other off. You lose by falling off your stump or letting go of the rope. Rules here. Just about any stumps or milk crates will do and this rope is easy on hands but a tad short.
• Molkky. The outdoor, lawn version of bowling! (buy or build)
• Big Yahtzee (ahem, “Yardzee”). A fun scaled up version of the original dice game. 5 dice plus chalkboard (Buy dice, bucket tumbler, laminated Yardzee rules. Or make your own dice).
• Bananagrams. This scaled up version of the original is a fun word game but not as difficult to setup outside as Scrabble. Make your own tiles with designs from here and letter counts from here.
• Horseshoes. Another favorite and ridiculously easy to setup.
• Rollors. This is a new one for me, a combo of Bocce and horseshoes. Buy here.
• Ladder Golf. This is another simple game you can do with a drink in your hand. Throw bolas to land on a variety of ladder rungs (buy or build).
• Ring Toss. This is another simple tossing game and super easy to transport. buy
• Bocce. This classic goes by many names in various cultures, Boule in France, Lawn Bowling in the U.S., Bocce in Italy. The object of the game is to toss your large balls close to the smaller target ball. Rules

Hopefully there’s something here you and your family and friends can enjoy together!