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Petanque Performance Academy
85 members • Free
12 contributions to Petanque Performance Academy
Jun 7 •
Short
Help required Ive developed a bad habit of coming up short with my first point What do you guys suggest I do to make sure im up to the jack?
2 likes • Jun 8
“Throw your second boule first.” I read an article about basketball free throw percentages (you normally get two throws). The second-shot percentage is consistently higher than the first, amateurs and pros alike. The authors concluded that you access a different memory area on the second throw, and the brain-body connection is stronger. I find it true for me in pétanque… I can throw a clunker and then get right on with the next boule. So, now I stand in the circle and really try hard to visualize the (fictitious) shot I just missed… in your case you’ll see that imaginary first boule way in front of the jack and you’ll literally be able to feel how you let it go too early or too flat or whatever. Now you’ve made those adjustments and your actual throw is true. I don’t have hard data, but I feel like this is helping me.
Jun 1 •
Food
What's your favo snack on a game day . Do you think that diet has an effect on your play behavior?
2 likes • Jun 4
I’ve been adding electrolyte powder to my water bottle lately. Even when it’s not a hot sweaty day, but especially when it is, I think it’s been helpful staying focused. I mix it weaker than the package recommends.
May 3 •
Giving away the game
Today I flubbed a point that didn’t look all that difficult. But… it was the game winner, in the finals, against a team we were not favored to beat. My partner and I had started a great end, and the opponents unexpectedly missed a couple, and suddenly we were holding 4 with only me to play. Wow! Make this throw and go home undefeated! In my excitement I managed to knock the opponent’s ball up, giving them 1 point on that end, and they eventually beat us. As I play more tournaments and my skills improve, I find myself in higher stakes situations more often. Semis and finals against quality competition are less uncommon. Sometimes now I’m in the shooting role or milieu, meaning that something might already be wrong when I step up to play. And when I mess up in those roles, the consequences can seem much worse because you do something that is actively terrible… instead of maybe going a bit short and failing to get the point, now I’m the guy who gives away the game by shooting the wrong ball or pushing the jack to the opponents. I didn’t completely fall apart after today’s f***-up, we did win the next two ends before they put us away. My partner was extremely gracious about it. And thanks to the rest of the team, we won the overall on points differential. But it’s not the first time I’ve failed on an important ball… and it seems hard to train under those mental conditions. I could certainly use your tips and tricks on performing as well on the game-winner as I would in a practice session.
1 like • May 4
@Kevin ORourke ouch! Yes, it can be cruel, but I think it’s cruel less often to players who manage the pressure better than I. I have yet to read The Inner Game of Tennis that you recommended a few months ago, but it feels like my next set of improvements will be less about “keep your arm straight” and more about “stay calm under pressure”. Or even “play better under pressure”.
1 like • May 6
@Rick Bergmann good thoughts. I think I was mostly excited to beat those guys. I knew the risks and tried to play "normally" but obviously the ball went awry. More practice, more consistency needed I guess, so that the amount of variation in my throws goes down overall, and therefore also goes down under pressure.
Apr 10 •
Weekend Tournaments!
Tournaments all weekend. Saturday a 6people team tournament with a single, double and triple in each round. Kinda special thing to play. Sunday the Mixed triple District Championship. And this is my first outdoor competition of the year. Hope i can bring some Gold medals to the community 😎. Have a nice weekend everyone!!!
0 likes • Apr 11
Good luck! I’d be interested to know more details of the format for your 6-person team tournament… how do the rounds work, how does elimination happen, etc? And if you enjoyed yourself. My local association is trying to come up with a 6-person format that doesn’t drag on forever.
Apr 5 •
A very exciting end of Pétanque with my favourite Southern France player Ricky Bes
https://youtu.be/X7eGQABlDl8?is=UwPfD6pFwsoqcYIm
0 likes • Apr 6
We don’t see that kind of aggressive play very often here in NZ!
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Active 8h ago
Joined Jan 19, 2026
New Zealand