The short answer
Quick picks
Ranked on published specs, not on play we have not done. Tap any row to jump to the full write-up further down this page.
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No photo Triumph Bottle Battle Two 1-inch aluminum telescoping, locking poles with 5-inch bottle platforms, two non-breakable 175-gram bottles, a 165-gram disc, a built-in slide scoring system and a carry bag, published for 20, 30 or 40 foot courts. | Best polish horseshoes set | 7.7/10 | |
| 2 | No photo GoSports Tipsy Toss Game Set Two target poles, two bottles, one flying disc and a carry case — the Polish horseshoes format of knocking a bottle off the opponent's pole with a thrown disc. | Best budget disc-and-bottle set | 6.2/10 |
Polish horseshoes is a campus and tailgate game that grew up with no rulebook and no manufacturer — people drove two poles into the ground, balanced a bottle on each, and threw a frisbee at them. The game is simple: knock the bottle off the other pole. What makes it good is the defense, because the player on the other end is trying to catch whatever falls.
Ready-made sets have now replaced the broom handles and the glass, and they are safer and better for it. The question is how much each one tells you before you buy.
Published specs
Two sets, very different amounts of detail
| Triumph Bottle Battle | GoSports Tipsy Toss | |
|---|---|---|
| Poles | 2 x 1 in aluminum, telescoping, locking | 2 targets, not specified |
| Bottle platforms | 5 in diameter | Not published |
| Bottles | 2, non-breakable, 175 g | 2, not specified |
| Disc | 1, 165 g | 1, not specified |
| Published court | 20, 30 or 40 ft by skill | Not published |
| Scoring | Built-in slide scoring | Not published |
| Setup | Under one minute | Not published |
| Carry | Heavy-duty carry bag | Carrying case |
This is not a close comparison on information. Triumph publishes the pole material and diameter, the platform size, the bottle weight, the disc weight, three court lengths and a scoring system. GoSports publishes the contents of the box. If you want to know what you are getting, Bottle Battle is the one that tells you.
The court lengths are the most useful figure on either listing. With no governing body, the distance between poles is whatever your group decides — and Triumph publishing 20, 30 and 40 feet as a skill ladder is the closest thing this game has to a standard.
Criteria
How we picked
- Verified purchasable at the maker. Both showed add-to-cart when we checked.
- Non-breakable bottles. Non-negotiable, for the reason above.
- Poles that stand without digging. Both are freestanding sets rather than something you drive into the lawn.
We have not played with either. Every figure is the maker's own, and the blanks on the Tipsy Toss card are genuinely blank — how we pick.
Honest steer
Who should buy it
Polish horseshoes is an adult party game first. It is played with a drink in the non-throwing hand, it rewards a good catch more than a good throw, and it runs happily for hours at a tailgate. It suits:
- Tailgates — freestanding poles, a carry bag, under a minute to set up.
- Bachelor and bachelorette parties — the game's natural habitat.
- Adults who already play Kan Jam and want the other disc game.
It suits young children badly: the catch is the game, and a disc and a falling bottle coming at a small child is not fun for anyone. For a disc game with a governing rule set and a softer target, see Kan Jam, and for the two head to head, Kan Jam vs Polish horseshoes.
The picks in full
Every pick, with its published specs
Best polish horseshoes set
Triumph Bottle Battle
Triumph
Our spec score
7.7/10
- Spec completeness
- 7/10
- Footprint clarity
- 8/10
- Durability
- 7/10
- Pack-down
- 8/10
Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.
Two 1-inch aluminum telescoping, locking poles with 5-inch bottle platforms, two non-breakable 175-gram bottles, a 165-gram disc, a built-in slide scoring system and a carry bag, published for 20, 30 or 40 foot courts.
Skip this if
Skip this if pole height matters to your setup. Triumph publishes telescoping, locking poles but no height range, so you cannot check them against the version of the game your group already plays.
What works
- Publishes three court lengths — 20, 30 and 40 ft — so the game scales to skill
- Non-breakable bottles instead of glass
- Built-in slide scoring removes the argument
- Aluminum telescoping poles that lock
What does not
- No published pole height range
- The disc material is not identified
- No published player count
Published specifications
- Poles
- Two, 1 in diameter aluminum, telescoping and locking
- Bottle platforms
- 5 in diameter
- Bottles
- 2, non-breakable, 175 g
- Disc
- 1, 165 g
- Court
- Playable on 20, 30 and 40 ft areas depending on skill
- Scoring
- Built-in slide scoring system
- Setup
- Less than one minute
- Carry
- Heavy-duty carry bag
- Pole height
- —
- Disc material
- —
- Players
- —
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Source: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Manufacturer listing: Triumph published specification (Escalade Sports)
Best budget disc-and-bottle set
GoSports Tipsy Toss Game Set
GoSports
Our spec score
6.2/10
- Spec completeness
- 2/10
- Footprint clarity
- 2/10
- Durability
- 5/10
- Pack-down
- 9/10
Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.
Two target poles, two bottles, one flying disc and a carry case — the Polish horseshoes format of knocking a bottle off the opponent's pole with a thrown disc.
Skip this if
Skip this if you need the numbers first. GoSports publishes the contents and nothing else: no pole height, no disc weight, no throwing distance and no scoring system.
What works
- A complete set with a case — nothing to improvise
- Disc-and-bottle is the game's real format, not a variant
- Compact enough for a car trunk
- In stock at the maker when we checked
What does not
- No published pole height, disc specification or distance at all
- No published scoring system — you bring the house rules
- Nothing published on how the poles anchor
Published specifications
- Included
- 2 targets, 2 bottles, 1 flying disc, carrying case
- Format
- Flying disc, bottle drop
- Pole height
- —
- Pole material
- —
- Disc weight
- —
- Throwing distance
- —
- Scoring
- —
- Set weight
- —
Source: GoSports product listing
Source: GoSports product listing
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Manufacturer listing: GoSports product listing
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
What is Polish horseshoes?
How far apart are Polish horseshoes poles?
Do you need real bottles for Polish horseshoes?
Is Polish horseshoes the same as Beersbee or Frisbeer?
Why you can check our work
We have not played these. Every figure above is copied from a manufacturer's published listing or a governing body's published rules, and named so you can verify it. Where a maker publishes nothing, the field is blank rather than filled in. How we pick explains the whole method, including what would change a recommendation.
Read next
Related pages
Picks
Toss & target games
Cornhole, Kan Jam, ladder toss and horseshoes — long narrow courts that fit a strip of yard.
Comparison
Kan Jam vs Polish horseshoes
Deflect into a can, or knock a bottle off a pole — the two disc games, with their published courts.
Picks
Kan Jam
Goals 50 feet apart, exactly four players, exactly 21 to win — and the deflection rule that makes it work.
Picks
Best tailgate games
Games that survive asphalt, wind and a trunk — with the published set weights that decide it.
Picks
Yard games for a bachelor or bachelorette party
A group that came to talk, not to play — what gets used at a rented house anyway.
Picks
Best yard games for adults
Five games with a real skill ceiling and a governing body behind the specification.
Sources
Every figure on this page is copied from one of these sources. If you find one that is wrong or out of date, tell us and we will fix it.