Court Preparation

• The stakes should be planted 40 feet from one another on a flat surface. Optimally, the stakes will be planted in clay or another soft material so that the horseshoes will land softly in the pit area. A total of four horseshoes are used in the game, or two per player or team.
  
  

Number of Players

• Horseshoes can be played in singles, with both players migrating from stake to stake as the game is played, or in pairs, with each team member playing from opposite sides of the court. Teams can play in a tournament format if they desire by setting up tournament brackets based on the number of teams.
  
  

Length of Game

• Official tournaments are often played by the number of innings (with an inning being the toss of four horseshoes) or the total number of tosses (usually 50 per player). Twenty innings is a common game length for official tournaments. Games played recreationally usually end after a certain number of points is scored by one team, usually 21, with a requirement that the team must win by at least two points.
  
  

Scoring

• In official tournaments ringers count as three points and the closest shoe to the stake gets one point as long as it is within six inches. Two shoes from a single team within six inches of the stake that are both closer than the opposing team's shoes earns two points. You can score more than three points if you get two ringers for six points or a ringer and another closest to the stake for four points. If both teams each get a ringer those cancel each other out and no points are scored for the ringers. The rules are generally more lax in recreational games, as the closest to the stake (no matter the distance) earns a point while ringers are often counted as five points and leaners (meaning the shoe came to rest leaning against the stake) are worth three points.