Handicapping Adds Zest to Games Playedby People of Different Ages, Abilities

It’s usually not much fun when two people of unequal ability play a skill game--a parent and child, children of different ages or two adults with different levels of experience. This is especially true for the player who is on the short end.

Participants of unequal capability can put zest into a game by creatively altering its rules. Flexibility is the key: Anything goes, as long as both players agree.

By following the suggestions below, parents who play games with their children can avoid intentionally making “mistakes”--a ploy that youngsters usually see through.

For a discussion of the philosophy behind satisfying game-playing, see Bernard De Koven’s “The Well-Played Game” (Anchor Books/Doubleday, 1978).

Checkers and Chess

--First, play a test game. The winner counts how many of his or her pieces are left on the board, then starts the second game with that many fewer pieces. (If, in checkers, the winner ends up with five pieces on the board, next time he starts with only seven instead of the regular 12). Repeat the procedure in subsequent games, making adjustments on the basis of the previous game.

--At the start of the game, give the weaker player several free moves. In checkers, give him more kings to begin with; or agree that if he gets a certain number of kings, he wins.

--If a child knows strategy, try this: If he or she can tell the adult a good move to make, the adult is not allowed to make that move.

--Eliminate the competition altogether. Talk over each move, seeking the best ones.

Other Board Games

--In board games like Sorry!, send the less-adept player’s piece back only 10 spaces instead of all the way home. Or how about switching sides halfway through?

--When playing Monopoly, the weaker player can receive $400 instead of $200 when landing on Go. If one player goes bankrupt, continue to play anyway, perhaps for a predetermined time.

--In racing board games like Candyland, set a timer for five minutes. Take turns drawing cards, and either player can take the move depending on who it helps the most (or hurts the least). The game is “won” if both players cross the finish line before the timer goes off.

--When playing Scrabble or similar word games, look up words before placing them on the board. This also emphasizes learning.

Bowling

--Two people bowl each frame together and share the score. The weaker player rolls the first ball, and the better bowler tries to clean up.

--In a modification of a commonly used system of handicapping in bowling, each player subtracts his score in a test game from 200. He then takes 80% of that figure and adds it to his score in the next game. The less-abled player will start with more free points than his opponent.

--Each bowler can compete against himself, with the winner being the player who improves his or her score the most from one game to the next.

Card Games

--Play a game of solitaire together, alternating turns playing the cards. If the game “comes out,” you’re both winners.

--When an adult and child play poker, the younger player is permitted to exchange either four or all five cards, while the adult must exchange no more than one or two cards. You might allow the child several opportunities to exchange cards, until he or she is satisfied with the hand.

Ping-Pong and Tennis

--In Ping-Pong, require the better player to accumulate more points in order to win. For example, the less experienced player need make only 14 points to win, while the other player has to reach the standard 21. Or the better player plays with the “wrong” hand (the left hand for a right-hander) for the number of points by which he or she won a test game. Or draw a box on the floor with chalk and confine the better player to it.

--In tennis, require the

stronger player to hit all balls into the white-outlined box used for serving. Or make it a rule that the better player has to let the ball bounce on his or her side before returning it--that is, no running to the net. Or don’t keep score and try to volley as long as possible; for more challenge, keep count or use a stopwatch, and try to beat your record of the previous game.

Team Sports

--Relax rigid rules and let anyone participate. Substitution is allowed at any time. Consider dispensing with scoring altogether. When playing volleyball, for example, the teams play for an agreed-upon time. Try unlimited hits on each side.

--When playing basketball with teams composed of players of unequal abilities, try using rules that don’t allow adults or experienced players to handle the basketball in either key (the marked area beneath and in front of the net). The stronger players get two points for a basket, while the younger or weaker players get four points for a basket, three points for a miss that hits the rim and two points for a miss that hits the backboard.

Charades

--Always allow a child to choose the category, whether he is guessing or acting out a charade. Also, adults might limit themselves to references that have taken place within the child’s lifetime.

--To help the younger player or players who are guessing, whisper a hint or two.

--Spoken charades is a variation that is easier and thus popular with younger children. Instead of just miming a syllable, a child may actually say the syllable as he or she acts it out; speaking is permitted as long as the player does not say the entire word being demonstrated.

Pool

--When playing eight-ball, you can use a technique similar to checkers handicapping. Play a test game and at its end, count how many balls the less experienced player has left. Then in the next game, remove this many balls from the group that the weaker player must sink.

--Another variation is to require the more able player to bank every other ball.

--Other interesting possibilities include having the better player switch hands (righties play with the left hand) or even wear a patch over one eye to decrease depth perception.

--Play cooperatively. Instead of each player shooting until he or she misses, the players alternate turns whether or not they miss. The better player must always try to set up the best shot possible for the weaker partner. The game is over when the last ball is sunk.

Flying Disks

--This is an adaptation of the game played with a Frisbee or a similar flying disk. Before starting, each player states which hand he or she will use to throw and which to catch (the same hand may be used for both). Players stand 15 to 20 yards apart and take turns throwing, with the catcher calling all points. (This and other flying-disk variations are from Tom Schneider’s “Everybody’s a Winner,” published by Little, Brown.)

--If the catcher cannot possibly reach the disk at any time during its flight, the catcher takes a point. If he could have caught it if he had made an all-out effort, the catcher gives a point to the thrower. Two points are awarded to the thrower if the catcher touches the disk but drops it. Two points must also go to the thrower if the catcher uses the wrong hand or catches it against the body. If the disk tilts more than 45 degrees from the horizontal while in the air, the catcher can call “Forty-five!” and take a point without attempting to catch it.

--Play to 11 or 21 points, switching sides when one player reaches six or 11 points. This will equalize any advantage created by terrain, wind, etc.

Mind and Word Games

--When playing thinking games such as 21 Questions with a child, allow the younger player to ask more questions, the adult fewer. In addition, when the child has asked 21 questions and still has not guessed the correct word, you might give him or her two free hints.

--The diving-board word/sketch game is a more genteel version of the old Hangman. The rules of guessing the words are the same as in the earlier version, but here the stick figure is drawn on a diving board over a pool. A number of wrong guesses will gradually result in the entire figure being drawn on the board; one more wrong guess causes the board to be erased, causing an unwelcomed “dunking” for the loser. To make it easier for a child, try filling in a couple of letters in the word that is to be guessed. Or you could allow two wrong guesses without penalty. Or let the child draw a stick figure with more parts, such as fingers.