Muckers (game)

Muckers

A pole with muckers around it; during a game of Muckers
Nicknames	Ring Toss Circle Horseshoes
First played	As Quoits
Characteristics
Team members	1 or 2
Equipment	2 Poles 2 Muckers
Presence
Olympic	Non-olympic

Muckers, also known as ring toss (not to be confused with the ring toss carnival game) or circle horseshoes, is an outdoor game, commonly played at summer camps, in which players take turns throwing circular rings at a stick, standing about one foot high. It is a spin-off of Quoits and the popular horseshoes.

Muckers games are played with rings (known in Muckers as "muckers") and poles.

Muckers are typically 5 inches in diameter and are made of rubbery material. Muckers games are played with two sets of two muckers. Sets are differentiated by color.

Muckers games are played with two poles. Sticks are usually wooden and they both stand about one foot high from the ground.

Sticks are erected at ten to twenty feet from each other.

Courts can be on grass or sand.

Muckers games can be played with either two teams of two people or just two people. Games are made up of rounds. A round is completed when both throwers on one side both throw two muckers. The throwers can throw the mucker from anywhere behind the pole. If a thrower's foot is in front of the pole, the opposing player(s) can call a foot fault, thereby revoking the thrower's throw. The thrower who scored in the preceding round, he (or his teammate) throws first in the next round. If neither thrower scored, the order in which the teams threw in the preceding round stays the same in the next round. There is no limit to the number of rounds in a game of muckers.

Games are up to 21 points or 11 points.

Scoring Methods:

In each round only one team can receive points.

Also, if two different valued scoring methods occur in the same round, the higher valued method is counted. As an example, if one team gets a leaner and the other a mucker, the team who threw the mucker is awarded the points.

When a mucker is leaning on a pole while it is lying on another mucker and it is not touching the ground. This score is valued at two points.

When a mucker is hanging on the top of the pole and is not touching the ground. This score gets an automatic win because it is so rare.

When a mucker is leaning (not just touching) on the pole. This score is valued at three points.

When a mucker lands on the pole. This score is valued at five points.

When playing with rubber muckers, if the mucker is inverted to be a non-circular shape and a mucker is scored. This score is valued at eight points.

When playing to a round of 11, if the score is 7-0 the team with seven wins, automatically. When playing to a round of 21, if the score is 9-0 or 11-1 the team with nine or eleven wins, automatically.