Sportcraft makes inexpensive bocce ball sets that work fine for occasional summer backyard games, picnics, and weekend get-togethers with family. If you play more than a handful of times a year or want balls that meet international regulation specs, the natural upgrade path is a tournament-grade EPCO 107mm set, which most US clubs and the United States Bocce Federation recognize as the standard for sanctioned play.
The gap matters because bocce relies on consistent weight, balance, and bounce across every ball in the set. According to Encyclopedia Britannica's entry on bocce, the game traces back to ancient Roman soldiers who rolled stones of similar size and weight, and the modern competitive game has standardized those specs at 107mm in diameter and roughly 920 grams per ball. Mass-market plastic sets feel light and bouncy by comparison, and that difference shows up the moment you try to control your roll on uneven ground.
Key Takeaways
- Sportcraft bocce sets typically run $25 to $50 and are built for occasional family-level backyard play.
- The FIB and USBF tournament standard is 107mm diameter, approximately 920 grams per ball, in molded thermoset resin.
- Mass-market plastic and composite sets feel lighter, bounce more on hard ground, and rarely hold up to year-round outdoor storage.
- Tournament-grade EPCO 107mm sets cost roughly $250 to $300 in the US, ship from US warehouses, and are recognized by US clubs.
- If you play bocce more than once a month or want regulation feel, the EPCO 107mm range is the practical next step.
What Sportcraft bocce sets are built for
Sportcraft is a long-running mass-market backyard-games brand sold at Walmart, Target, Costco, and Amazon. Their bocce sets typically include eight plastic or composite balls plus a pallino, packaged in a printed cardboard box or a basic zippered carry case, for somewhere between $25 and $50.
For a one-summer family vacation, a backyard cookout, or a kids-and-adults pickup game, that price point genuinely works. You get eight balls in two colors, a target ball, and a tote, and nobody at the family barbecue is going to argue over whether the balls hit international weight specs. According to Outside Magazine's outdoor coverage, the casual end of the lawn-game market exists because most buyers want low-commitment fun with minimal upfront cost, and Sportcraft fits that market cleanly.
The honest framing is simple. A Sportcraft set is right for what it is. It rolls, the balls come back, and you get a respectable backyard game. The question is whether what you actually want is a regulation-feeling game over many seasons.
How the FIB and USBF tournament standard differs
Two governing bodies set the spec most American players reference. The Federazione Italiana Bocce (FIB) is the Italian federation that codifies the international raffa rules and weights. In North America, the United States Bocce Federation (USBF) sanctions tournaments under those same specs and runs national qualifying events.
In practical terms, a regulation 107mm ball weighs roughly 920 grams and is molded from thermoset resin so it returns to round after impact. The pallino (the small target ball) sits at around 40mm to 60mm depending on the rule set. The Confédération Mondiale des Sports de Boules (CMSB) coordinates the international family of boules sports and recognizes 107mm raffa as one of its three core disciplines, alongside pétanque and volo.
If you want a deeper look at the size question, see our breakdown of bocce ball diameter and weight specs and the comparison of 107mm vs 110mm vs 114mm sets. Both posts walk through why the spec matters once you start playing under tournament rules.
Where Sportcraft sets fall short for regular play
Once you play weekly, three things start to show up. First, plastic and lightweight composite balls bounce off uneven backyard ground rather than tracking through the irregularities the way a heavier resin ball does. Second, mass-market balls scratch and scuff faster than tournament resin, and they look worn after a season or two of garage storage. Third, the matched-weight tolerance on a budget set is loose enough that the eight balls in your set are not all truly identical, which any competitive player will notice the moment they try to repeat a roll.
None of this makes a Sportcraft set bad. It makes the set a recreational product sold at a recreational price. According to New York Times coverage of recreational sports, the participation lift in bocce in the US has come largely from clubs and leagues that play under regulation specs, which is also the market where the limitations of mass-market sets become obvious.
The practical signal that you have outgrown a Sportcraft set is usually one of: you joined or want to join a league, you built or want a permanent backyard court, you want to host competitive frames at events, or you simply got tired of the balls feeling like beach toys. Any of those is the moment to look at tournament-grade.
4 tournament-grade alternatives worth the upgrade
All four picks below are EPCO 107mm tournament-quality balls made in the US, recognized by the USBF, and engineered to the FIB raffa spec. They cost more than a Sportcraft set ($250 to $300 versus $25 to $50), and the price reflects multi-season durability and regulation feel.
EPCO 107mm Tournament Quality Professional 8 Ball Bocce Ball Set, Black/White Balls Bag Included
Best for: players who want the most recognizable tournament colorway in a complete 8-ball set with bag.
The EPCO 107mm Black/White 8-Ball Set is the colorway you see at most US club tournaments. You get four black and four white balls, a pallino, and a heavy-duty carry bag, all at the regulation 107mm and roughly 920 grams. The resin construction returns to round after impact and the matched weights mean any ball in the set feels the same in your hand. This is the practical default for a buyer stepping up from a mass-market set for the first time.
EPCO 107mm Tournament Quality Bocce Set, Rustic Green/Blue Balls with Green/Maroon Bag
Best for: players who want a tournament-grade set with a distinctive colorway that still reads cleanly across the court.
The EPCO 107mm Rustic Green/Blue Set pairs four rustic-green and four blue balls with a green and maroon carry bag. The rustic finish gives a softer visual texture than the high-contrast Black/White, while keeping the same 107mm regulation diameter and 920-gram weight. The matched bag is sized for a full 8-ball set plus pallino and is built for carrying to a club court or league night.
EPCO 107mm Tournament Quality Professional Bocce Ball Set, Rustic Yellow/Blue Balls with Green/Maroon Bag
Best for: players who want maximum visibility under variable outdoor light without giving up tournament specs.
The EPCO 107mm Rustic Yellow/Blue Set uses rustic-yellow and blue balls that stay legible at dusk and on grassy courts where neutral colors can blur together. Like the rest of the EPCO 107mm range, it is FIB-spec resin at roughly 920 grams per ball and arrives with a coordinated carry bag. A good fit for backyard courts that see late-afternoon and evening play.
Regulation EPCO Pallino in White
Best for: replacing the lightweight target ball that comes with mass-market sets, or matching a tournament pallino to an existing EPCO 107mm set.
Sportcraft and other mass-market sets ship a plastic pallino that bounces unpredictably on hard ground. The Regulation EPCO Pallino in White is a 60mm regulation target ball in tournament resin, sized to USBF play and to match any EPCO 107mm set. It is the smallest single upgrade you can make to a recreational set, and it consistently makes the game feel more controlled even before you replace the larger balls.
How to decide if it is time to upgrade
The cleanest test is frequency. If you play bocce once or twice a summer at family events, a Sportcraft set is the practical choice and the rest of this post is academic. If you play once a month or more, or if you are part of a recurring group of players, the upgrade pays back in feel, durability, and the ability to play under regulation rules.
A second test is court surface. On grass, the difference between a 250-gram plastic ball and a 920-gram resin ball is large because the lighter ball gets deflected by every blade. On crushed-shell or clay courts, the difference is even larger because regulation balls are designed to read those surfaces correctly. If you have or are planning a permanent court, regulation-weight balls are what the surface is engineered for.
A third test is who you play with. If your group includes anyone who played in a club or league, a recreational set will feel off to them. The fix is one tournament set that lives in the host's garage and gets used for every game. See our companion guide on bocce ball size by age and skill level for matching the right size to the players in your group.
Why buy from BuyBocceBalls
We focus on bocce. Our catalog carries the full EPCO 107mm tournament range across more than two dozen colorways, plus pallinos, replacement balls, court accessories, and bags. Orders ship from US warehouses, so a tournament set ordered today usually arrives in days rather than the longer lead times common with imported European brands.
If you are choosing between colorways or between an 8-ball and a 4-ball set, our EPCO 107mm tournament collection shows every active set side by side, and our team is happy to help match a set to your court surface, lighting, and league rules.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sportcraft a good bocce set?
Sportcraft is a good bocce set for occasional family backyard play at the $25 to $50 price point. The balls are plastic or composite and lighter than the regulation 107mm tournament weight of roughly 920 grams, so if you play more than a few times a year or want league-quality feel, a tournament-grade EPCO 107mm set is the practical upgrade.
What is the difference between Sportcraft and EPCO bocce?
Sportcraft is a mass-market backyard-games brand using plastic or composite balls at recreational weights. EPCO is a US-made tournament brand that molds 107mm balls in thermoset resin to roughly 920 grams, matching the spec used by the FIB and the United States Bocce Federation. The EPCO line costs about five to ten times as much and is built for league and tournament play.
Are Sportcraft bocce balls regulation size?
Not for tournament play. Regulation 107mm raffa balls weigh approximately 920 grams in molded resin, while Sportcraft and similar mass-market sets use lighter plastic or composite construction. The diameter on some Sportcraft sets is close to 107mm, but the weight and material do not match the FIB or USBF tournament specs.
How long do tournament bocce balls last compared to Sportcraft?
Tournament-grade thermoset resin balls routinely last 10 to 20 years of regular outdoor play with reasonable storage, and they tend to develop a patina rather than visible damage. Mass-market plastic and composite balls typically scratch and warp after one to three seasons of outdoor storage, especially in climates with freeze-thaw cycles.
Where can I play bocce at a regulation level?
Most US metro areas have at least one club or league. The United States Bocce Federation lists sanctioned member clubs and tournament dates on its site, and many Italian-American community centers run weekly bocce nights on regulation 107mm sets.
