LAKEWOOD, N.Y. (WKBW) — Introducing Stones, a hybrid game of golf and bocce played on a course very similar to miniature golf, invented in Chautauqua County and now aiming to go nationwide.
“Stones is basically a hybrid of bocce and golf. It takes the scoring component of bocce and incorporates it into a mini-golf-like course,” said Cade Sivak, COO of the Stones Throwing Association. “You throw a ‘marker ball’ onto the course and then try to get your four stones as close to that marker as possible.”
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The game works almost the same as bocce, except that there are balls of different sizes and the game takes place on a course that has many rocks, sand bunkers, and even a water hazard to make throwing the balls more difficult.
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Not only is the game played in Chautauqua County, it was also invented here by Jason Sivak, who hails from Bemus Point.
“I just bought a piece of land in Bemus Point, there was nothing there, so we started camping there on Memorial Day. A group of friends came from Philadelphia, and we had a set of bocce balls and we mowed weird paths and patterns into the field,” Jason said. “It just kept evolving until it was our favorite game.”
The rest, as they say, is history.
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This invention dates back to 2006. Since then, Jason has built several courses, including one open to the public behind the original Sothern Tier Brewing Company location in Lakewood.
He even tried to make the game popular nationwide.
“A lot of people say they need one in their state, but we just haven’t been able to provide it yet,” Jason said.
The difference now is that Jason’s 23-year-old son Cade is ready to take control of the family’s precious creation.
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Cade has since been working to build a public golf course in his Jamestown neighborhood, but he’s not stopping there, as his next goals are to bring the course to both Pittsburgh and downtown Buffalo.
“We are still in the smallest phase. Our goal is to have nationwide courses,” said Cade.
“If we fast forward five or ten years, what do you think the Stones should look like?” I asked.
“I want to expand the team league that I started so that people can play this as a professional game,” Cade said.
“50 courts or so across the country just to get us started and host tournaments and world championships at a higher level of competition,” Jason said.
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The Lakewood course, located at 2072 Stoneman Cir, Lakewood, NY 14750, is open to anyone to play. Hours are Wednesday through Friday from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Saturday from noon to 8:00 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 6:00 p.m. The price to play all day is $10.
