Kan Jam Drinking Game

Slam the frisbee through the slot - or drink to the deflection.

Also known as: KanJam Drinking Rules

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Players 4 (2v2)

You need2 kan jam cans, frisbee, drinks

DrinkBeer

Intensity

Time20-40 min

Kan Jam is the best backyard disc game ever boxed, and it converts into a drinking game almost without modification. Two teams of two stand at opposite cans - Tall plastic bins with a slot cut in the front - And take turns throwing a frisbee at the far can while a teammate stationed there deflects it home. Points for hits, big points for slam dunks into the can, instant victory for threading the slot. The drinking rules attach a sip to every mistake and a toast to every highlight.

The genius of Kan Jam as a party game is the deflector: every single throw is a two-person play, so nobody stands around waiting to care. Your partner's terrible throw is your diving redemption arc; your perfect line drive is nothing until they slap it in. Add the drink triggers below and every rally has stakes for all four players - Plus whoever's watching from the lawn chairs with a spare beverage and opinions.

What you need & setup

Place the two cans facing each other, 50 feet apart - Pace off about 17 big steps, or shorten it for casual crowds and small yards.
Split into two teams of two; partners stand at opposite cans, so each team has a thrower and a deflector on every possession.
Everyone keeps a drink at their can - Never in their throwing or deflecting hand during play.
Agree on the drink triggers before the first throw (the standard set is in the rules below).
Flip the disc to decide who throws first; play to exactly 21 points.

How to play Kan Jam

Throw at the far can

On your team's turn, one partner throws the disc from behind their own can toward the far can, where the other partner waits as deflector. Aim for a flat, level flight at chest height on the can - Deflectors can work with anything close, but a disc in the dirt helps nobody. Both partners throw once per turn, swapping roles between throws.

Deflect it home

The deflector may slap, tip or redirect the incoming disc with one hand to help it strike or enter the can - But can never catch it, hold it, or carry it in. Think volleyball set, not baseball catch. Great deflectors read the flight early, move their feet, and sacrifice their dignity on the lawn. This is where games are won and highlight reels are born.

Score the standard ways

Three scoring plays: a dinger (1 point) when the deflector redirects the disc to hit the can; a deuce (2 points) when the thrower hits the can directly with no assist; and a bucket (3 points) when the deflector slaps the disc down inside the can. Points only count when the group agrees the play was clean - Deflections must be hits, not catches.

Chase the instant win

If a thrown disc flies through the front slot of the can - No deflection, pure throw - The game ends immediately, regardless of score. It's Kan Jam's hole-in-one: rare, outrageous, and the reason every thrower occasionally ignores the safe play to fire at a slot the size of an envelope. Standard drinking rule: the losing team finishes their drinks on a slot shot.

Drink on the triggers

The drinking layer is simple: a throw that misses everything - No touch from the deflector, no can contact - Costs the thrower a sip. A bucket against you costs both defenders a sip; a deuce, one sip each. When either team reaches exactly 21, the losers drink a final toast to the winners. Keep every trigger at sip scale; it's a long afternoon and a lot of throws.

Finish on exactly 21

You must land on 21 exactly - Score points that would carry you past 21 and the excess doesn't count; house-rule tables instead reset you to 15 as punishment for sloppy math. Playing the endgame means choosing throws by their point value: at 20, a dinger wins and a deuce is worthless. Win by the slot at any time, though. The slot forgives all arithmetic.

The rules

Two teams of two; partners stand at opposite cans, 50 feet apart, and alternate as thrower and deflector.
Each team throws twice per turn (once per partner), then possession switches.
Deflectors may redirect the disc with one hand but never catch, hold, double-hit or carry it.
Dinger - Deflected disc hits the can: 1 point.
Deuce - Thrown disc hits the can with no deflection: 2 points.
Bucket - Deflected disc lands inside the can: 3 points.
Instant win - A clean throw through the front slot ends the game on the spot.
Games are played to exactly 21; points beyond 21 don't count (or reset you to 15, house rule).
Drink triggers: total miss = thrower sips; deuce against you = each defender sips; bucket against you = each defender sips twice; slot shot = losing team finishes their drinks.
Throwers must release from behind their own can's line; foot faults void the throw and cost a sip.
Drinks stay on the ground during live play - A disc into someone's full cup is one sip for the owner and a mandatory cleanup timeout.

Variations & house rules

Full Count Kan Jam

Add a trigger for every outcome: dingers and deuces you score let you assign a sip to any opponent, buckets assign two, and a turn with zero points costs both teammates a sip. It roughly doubles the drinking pace of the standard set, so run it with light beers, shaded seating and a two-game maximum before reverting to standard triggers.

Battle for the Slot

Every game must end on a slot shot: reach 21 and you don't win - You unlock 'match point,' where your team gets two throws per turn at the slot while the other team plays normal scoring to catch up. It turns the instant win into a climax instead of a fluke, and produces the most unhinged celebrations in backyard sports. Losing team still finishes their drinks.

Around the Yard

Kan Jam croquet: set the cans at a new distance and angle each game - 30 feet across a slope, 60 feet between trees, a delicate 20-footer around the grill. Each 'hole' is one game to 11 with standard triggers. Keep team scores across the course; the losing team on each hole carries the cooler to the next one. Best played as the spine of an entire barbecue.

Indoor Kanpocalypse

Rainy-day version: cans 15-20 feet apart, a foam or soft mini disc, and buckets worth 2 instead of 3 (short-range slap-ins are too easy). All triggers drop to single sips and slot shots score 5 points rather than ending the game, because indoors the slot becomes genuinely hittable. Move the lamps first. You will not move the lamps first, but we said it.

Pro tips

Throw flat with a firm wrist snap and aim chest-high on the can - Deflectors can rescue level flights, but nobody rescues a roller.

Deflect with a stiff, open palm and push the disc downward into the can; wristy slaps send buckets sailing over the top.

Communicate before each throw - A called 'high left' turns a wild throw into a routine dinger.

Play the wind like a golfer: throw into it with extra spin and never trust a tailwind at full distance.

Keep drinks well behind the cans, and sip on the walk between turns rather than mid-rally.

At 19 or 20 points, tell your deflector the exact play you need - Endgame Kan Jam is chess with a frisbee.

Where Kan Jam fits on the shelf

Kan Jam is one of the gentler picks on the shelf - 16th of 17 challenge games by intensity, rated 2 out of 5.
It is one of the few games here that genuinely works with just 2 players, and it stays fun up to 4.
A typical session runs 20-40 min - a solid middle act for the evening.
Browse the full outdoor & challenge games shelf to compare all 17 games side by side.

A little history

Kan Jam's origins trace to Buffalo, New York, where a garbage-can disc game - Often dated to the 1980s and credited to Charles Sciandra and friends - Was refined and commercialized as KanJam in the 2000s, complete with molded cans and the signature slot. The drinking rules are a natural fan addition with no single author; disc games and backyard beverages have been converging since long before anyone trademarked anything.

Drink responsibly: Kan Jam's drinking load is light by design - Keep it that way with sips, not chugs, and water in the rotation on hot afternoons, since sun plus beer dehydrates faster than either alone. Clear the deflector's diving lane of chairs, glass and dogs, throw around spectators rather than through them, and arrange sober rides home before the first toss. See our safety guide for pacing tips and alcohol-free versions.

Kan Jam FAQ

How far apart are the cans in Kan Jam?

Official distance is 50 feet from can to can - Roughly 17 long paces. For a drinking-game crowd, nobody is obligated to play regulation: 35-40 feet keeps rallies alive for casual throwers, and shrinking the gap is far better than watching discs die in the grass all afternoon. Whatever you choose, keep both directions equal and mark the throwing lines with the cans themselves.

What are a dinger, a deuce and a bucket?

The three scoring plays. A dinger (1 point) is a deflected disc hitting the can - Teamwork points. A deuce (2 points) is the thrower hitting the can unassisted - Pure accuracy. A bucket (3 points) is the deflector slapping the disc down inside the can - The highlight play. Then there's the slot: a clean throw through the can's front opening, which skips the scoreboard and wins instantly.

What can't the deflector do?

Catch it, hold it, cradle it, double-hit it, or carry it into the can - A deflection is one clean redirect with one hand. Deflectors also can't reach inside the can's mouth or move the can. The disc can be tipped anywhere in flight, including inches above the rim, which is why the position rewards fast feet and total shamelessness about diving in front of spectators.

Why do you have to hit exactly 21?

It's Kan Jam's signature endgame tension. Overshooting means your points don't count (or, on stricter lawns, resets you to 15), so a team at 20 must engineer a 1-point dinger and a team at 19 needs exactly a deuce or two dingers. It stops a hot team from steamrolling to a boring finish and forces real shot selection - With the slot's instant win always lurking as the override.

How much drinking is actually in the Kan Jam drinking game?

With the standard triggers, it's one of the lighter games on this site - A sip for missed throws, a sip or two when the other team scores big, and a finish-your-drink only on the rare slot shot. Games to 21 take twenty to forty minutes, so the pace stays gentle by design. Groups who want more action should add the Full Count variation rather than upgrading sips to chugs.

Kan Jam Drinking Game

What you need & setup