Hello,
Anyone here have an opinion on the most difficult shot/throw in Petanque?

I realize this is a scenario based question but I'd like to hear opinions nontheless!

kind regards,
Eric - in Frozen Alaska

As Ray Auger wrote in Coaching: Practising shooting and pointing

Shooting:
12. (snip) place 3 boules in a triangle and aim to hit all 3 with 1 shot! Again, pretty difficult but not impossible. A “party trick” reputedly done by some of the “old timers” is to “shoot a boule behind a tree” – a boule is placed behind a tree and a 2nd target boule is placed at an angle to the side of the tree. If the 2nd boule is hit at the right angle, the boule hidden behind the tree can be hit!
___________

Another one goes like so: The score is 9 to X, you have the last boule, three of your team's boules are about two or three feet in front of the jack and one of the opponent's boule is one foot to two feet behind the jack.

You shoot the opponent's boule that is behind the jack, your shooting boule comes back and brings the jack to where your other three boules are... four points plus nine = 13.

This shot was done by Marceau Marcy (Narcy?)

Pointing:

Pointing to the jack to advance it to some of your boules is not too easily done either.

Guy

As Ray Auger wrote in Coaching: Practising shooting and pointing

Shooting:
12. (snip) place 3 boules in a triangle and aim to hit all 3 with 1 shot! Again, pretty difficult but not impossible. A “party trick” reputedly done by some of the “old timers” is to “shoot a boule behind a tree” – a boule is placed behind a tree and a 2nd target boule is placed at an angle to the side of the tree. If the 2nd boule is hit at the right angle, the boule hidden behind the tree can be hit!
___________

Another one goes like so: The score is 9 to X, you have the last boule, three of your team's boules are about two or three feet in front of the jack and one of the opponent's boule is one foot to two feet behind the jack.

You shoot the opponent's boule that is behind the jack, your shooting boule comes back and brings the jack to where your other three boules are... four points plus nine = 13.

This shot was done by Marceau Marcy (Narcy?)

Pointing:

Pointing to the jack to advance it to some of your boules is not too easily done either.

Guy

I personally find the lob point with anti-clockwise spin very hard (i.e. swerving from left to right) - guess I need more practice!

2008/4/15th
Great replies. Thanks folks! All were great posts; I especially liked the 'behind the tree' trick. It's almost like trick-billiards, though with superior (in my opinion) equipment, that being the boules and jackball! I've never been fond of smoke filled billiard rooms but to each his own.