If you are lucky enough to have a backyard, that is, some open space just outside the back door, there are a great number of games you can set up to play with your friends. Maybe you have the old-fashioned idea that a backyard is only the place for hanging wet clothes on Monday morning. This need not be so. The best part about backyard recreation is that it can be set up at little or no cost. Many of the games outlined on the next pages, for example, can be constructed with materials found at hand. Furthermore, the fact that some of these activities can be carried on in a very small space makes them practical for even the tiniest backyard.

Backyard Shuffleboard. If you have a smooth driveway, you can mark off a shuffleboard court of your own.

Handball

The only equipment needed to set a handball game into motion is a soft ball about the size of a tennis ball (a tennis ball will do) and a smooth wall against which to bounce it. (The side of a garage or rear wall of the house will do.) If the ground is smooth, the playing will be easier. The dimensions for the court are as follows: wall space, four fifths as high as it is wide; court, two and a half times as long as the wall is high. A service line should divide the court midway between the wall and the back line. Tennis rules hold for handball. Your hand is used as a racquet.

Quoits And Horseshoes

The game of quoits consists of pitching objects (called quoits) such as horseshoes, rope rings, and round metal disks from one stake to the other, placed at convenient pitching distances apart. The game is scored by allowing a point for the quoit closest to the stake. If each player pitches two quoits, and both of the quoits of one player are closer than either of those of his opponent, he scores two points. Quoits is a simple game to set up, and a great deal of fun.

Croquet

Croquet is a quiet game that can be played on a lawn or any relatively flat place. A croquet set may be purchased for a few dollars, or you can make one in the school craft shop. Directions for the game arc usually included in a purchased set. This is a good game for mixed groups to play.

Paddle Tennis

Very few backyards are large enough to permit a full-sized tennis court. Paddle tennis, however, can be played on a court one fourth the size of a regular tennis court. The racquet can be made from wood. A sponge rubber ball is used generally, but a tennis ball will do if the sponge ball is not available. The rules are similar to tennis.

Backyard Golf

There are several golf games that can be played in a small backyard. Everyone knows what a miniature golf course is, and with comparatively little trouble such a course with many different hazards can be built. Tin cans are good for the holes, while old stovepipes and such things make good hazards.

Ping-Pong is quite possible in your own backyard. The complete outfit, except the ball, can be made at home.

Some golf enthusiasts have built themselves a putting court in the backyard. A level spot with smooth grass is ideal for this purpose. A sunken tin can does for the hole. If grass is not to be had, then bare ground can be smoothed off by using old crank case oil over a thin layer of sand. This surface is good for putting practice.

Clock Golf

Another game that adds to putting skill is clock golf. A circle from twenty to twenty-four feet in diameter is laid out. This is divided into twelve equal parts, each part being plainly marked on the ground. A hole about four inches in diameter and four inches deep is sunk somewhere between the center of the circle and the edge. An old tin can is good for the hole. The game consists in having each player start at a given place on the circle and drive a putt into the hole from each of the twelve positions around the edge. Because the hole is not in the center of the circle, no two of the drives will be the same distance. The player who moves around the clock with the fewest strokes wins.

Other Games

There are many other backyard games to interest young and old alike. Volley ball, darts and target, and badminton are a few of the many that are available. It is quite evident that the backyard can be made into a place of interest with very little expense. If you have the proper backyard playing facilities, your friends will enjoy coming over to spend an afternoon or early evening with you. A backyard party with refreshments out of doors is a unique way to entertain, too, by the way. Some people use a yard or garden all summer for tea and supper parties.

Metal plate, numerals may be purchased, but you can make, your own numerals by Simply scraping with a pointed stick.