Well, folks – it’s official. ‘Tis the season for summer lawn games. The days are as long as they’re going to be all year. We’ve got warmer weather and bright, bright sunshine. Summer parties are well underway, and we are here to do what we do best: offer insightful journalism and award-winning analysis. So, let’s hit our latest edition of power rankings.
The Top 10 Summer Lawn Games
10. Volleyball – I love a good volleyball game, but you have to plan for it. Plus, you need athletes for it to be any sort of a good game. How many summer parties do you go to where athletes are hanging from the rafters? Am I too competitive? Yeah, probably. But, it’s not worth getting sweaty if I’m not going to have the glory of a challenging victory to play for.
9. Spikeball – Like volleyball, this game just requires too much athleticism from too many people for it to be a solid party game. It’s a notch better than volleyball because it’s more fun and specifically warm weather themed. I mean, you can play volleyball 12 months a year – how often do you see a group of friends playing spikeball in January?
8. Lawn Darts – It’s a little too chill if you ask me. I want some sort of athletic competition in place, but you can always spice it up by getting REAL lawn darts, not warning the party, and seeing how many feet end up with darts in ’em.
7. Horseshoes – I used to hate horseshoes. Always thought it was an old man’s game, but I’m telling you, it’s growing on me. Maybe it’s because I’m becoming an old man (I turn 33 next weekend – one foot in the grave). But, this is definitely on the Mount Rushmore of games to play with a beer in your hand.
6. Can Jam – Not too many things feel better than throwing a frisbee in the summer time. But, smacking a frisbee out of the air and into a giant can to win the game for your team is one of them. It’s new to the summer lawn games scene though, so we’ll have to see how it holds up in a few years.
5. Cornhole – Another entrant from the Mount Rushmore of games to play with a beer in your hand! Call me crazy, but when I hear cornhole, I think ‘football season’ and ‘tailgating.’ That’s why it’s not #1 on this list. I reserved the four remaining spots on this list for the true summer games.
4. Croquet – Nothing says summer time like a nice calm game of croquet on a warm evening with a summer breeze blowing. I just painted a damn nice picture, didn’t I? Maybe you’ve got a glass of lemonade, too. So relaxing. The only thing keeping this out of the top three is the minor inconvenience that comes with trying to set everything up.
3. Ladder ball – Now, we’re getting into the tough calls. I go ladder ball here at #3 because of the time it takes to set up everything, and its tendency to show up at tailgates in the fall, too. But, it has to be one of the go-to games for your lawn party.
2. Bocce – The world is your bocce court (unless you’re at a restaurant or bar or something), and that is a beautiful thing. It is the undisputed king of the summer lawn games that you can play with a beer in your hand, and if you have a beer in your hand while playing it, it’s an automatic boost. It’s a fun game of skill, relaxing, and it feels like it was just meant for those warm summer evenings.
1. Badminton – You might not know this about me, but I am quite the badminton mark. No big deal or anything, but I even took a badminton course in college. I was one of only two people in the gym that stayed after class to get in extra reps. Again, NBD – but, maybe that’s why badminton was the absolute first game I thought of when I typed the phrase ‘summer lawn games.’ Sure, it requires athleticism, but the beautiful thing about this game that volleyball and spikeball don’t have is that it’s one on one, so you can pair up with someone who is equally as athletic or unathletic as you are. It’s the quintessential summer lawn game in my book.
What do you guys think? What’s your favorite summer time game? Let us know in the comments.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Alabama Crimson Tide football, the WWE, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
Check out the SoBros Shop. Subscribe to our Patreon. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Listen on SoundCloud. Watch on YouTube.
Image courtesy of Erol Ahmed on Unsplash!
