Beer Pong, Drinking Game Rules

Category: Pong & Cup Games · Players: 2v2 (or 1v1) · You’ll need: Ping pong balls; 12–20 cups; table; beer

The definitive party game: throw ping pong balls into the other team's cups until none are left.

Setup: Two teams of two stand at opposite ends of a long table (8 feet is standard). Each team racks 10 cups in a triangle (4-3-2-1, point facing the opponents) at their end, each cup filled about a quarter with beer. Two ping pong balls and a cup of water for rinsing.

How to play:

1. Teams alternate turns; on your turn, each teammate throws one ball at the opposing cups. Keep your elbow behind the table edge when releasing.
2. Sink a cup: a defender drinks it and removes it from the table.
3. Both teammates sink cups in the same turn: balls come back, shoot again.
4. Bounce shots: a ball bounced off the table into a cup counts as 2 cups (defender's choice of the second), but defenders may legally swat any ball once it touches the table.
5. Re-racks: each team may twice per game ask for their remaining cups to be re-formed into a tight shape (triangle, diamond, line) at the start of their opponent's turn.

Winning: Eliminate all opposing cups. The losing team gets redemption, each losing player shoots until they miss; clear every remaining cup and the game goes to a 3-cup overtime. Losers drink whatever cups remain.

Beer Pong, Variations

• Death cup: If a ball lands in a cup a defender is still holding/drinking, the game instantly ends, sinking team wins.
• Island: Once per game, call “island” on an isolated cup (no touching neighbors); sinking it counts 2 cups, missing into any other cup counts nothing.
• Heating up / on fire: Sink two in a row and announce “heating up”; sink a third and you're “on fire”, shoot until you miss.
• Behind the back: A ball that rolls back to the shooter earns a bonus behind-the-back shot.
• Six-cup: Racks of 6 with one re-rack, the faster, tournament-friendly format.

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