Hooligan

Hooligan is played with five dice and a throwing cup. Any number of players may take part.

Hooligan is a point-scoring game; the winner is the player making the highest total score.

Preliminaries
Aside from a preliminary round to determine the order of play, a score sheet must be prepared. This sheet should have a column divided into seven sections marked 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and H (hooligan), against which the score of each player can be recorded.

The game
The game consists of seven rounds, each player throwing in turn. A turn (frame) consists of three throws.

After his first throw, each player declares which of the numbers on the score sheet (including H) he is shooting for (i.e., his point number). He must shoot for H on his final throw, if he has not previously done so.

Hooligan is a straight, either 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and counts 20 points.

If he wishes, a player need not declare a point number after his first throw. In this case he picks up all five dice, shoots again, and then declares his point number; but this counts as his second throw; so, he has only one throw left in this frame.

If he declares his point number after his first throw, he puts aside all dice bearing that number, then throws a second time with the remaining dice. Once more, any dice bearing the point number are put aside. He then makes his third and final throw with the remaining dice.

Score sheet

Scoring His score is determined by multiplying the point numbers he has made by the point number itself. For example, if he were throwing for 4s, and made three of them, his score would be 12. If a player throws the maximum of five point numbers in his first or second throw, he counts this score, and plays the remaining throw(s) of the frame with five dice, setting aside any dice bearing the point number after the first throw, if two throws are involved. The point numbers made on these throws are added to the five made on the first throw. A player has only one turn to shoot for each point number. He must choose a different point number for each frame.

Sometimes games of Hooligan are operated by a banker. Players play against the bank, and must pay to enter the game. The odds and rules of such games vary from place to place.

From 'The Official World Encyclopedia of Sports and Games'
© Diagram Visual Information Ltd 1979