Bocce is not just a game. For some, it’s a lifestyle, a community, and more. Patrick Gersmeyer joins Andy Zimmerman at the Chicago Bocce Club to unpack how a casual pastime became a competitive obsession, a social circle, and a surprisingly powerful blueprint for how to live and work.

Patrick shares how he went from subbing in early league nights to captaining a championship team, playing multiple days a week, traveling for tournaments, getting drafted near the end of the Chicago Bocce League inaugural draft, and eventually becoming a weekly starter and settling into long court. Along the way, the conversation gets into why bocce is more of a real sport than outsiders think, and why the mindset it demands - precision, repetition, composure, and practice - shows up everywhere else in life.

You will discover:

• How Patrick joined the American Bocce Company community
• Why being drafted into a semi-pro bocce league felt like a once-in-a-lifetime moment
• How bocce has become a place where lifelong friendships are made
• The rule, courtesy, and leadership changes that transformed the culture of the game

Andy and Patrick also dig into the bigger lessons of the game. In a competitive environment, kindness is still the edge. When the rule book is clear and the refs make the calls, ego has less room to run the show, and that shift carries straight into relationships, work, and everyday life.

There is also plenty for music lovers here. Patrick breaks down the albums and bands that have been the soundtrack of his life, from Jane's Addiction to Bobby Brown, Janet Jackson, 311, and Incubus.

If you like conversations that start with bocce and end up revealing how people grow up, make friends, and become better versions of themselves, this episode is for you. If you love sports, Chicago culture, music talk, and friendly banter, give it a listen.

Hosted by Andy Zimmerman of Chicago Bocce Club, American Bocce Co, and the Bucktown Billy Goats of the Chicago Bocce League

Produced by Daniel Morrow of Music in the Hall

Recorded at Chicago Bocce Club in July 2026

Bocce gets a lot more interesting when you stop chasing perfection and start mastering the mental game. Chicago Bocce Club regular Scott Witte joins Andy Zimmerman for a wide-ranging conversation about how the sport, music, and everyday life all reward the same thing: process over ego. Scott opens up about how fast bocce became more than a hobby after moving to Chicago from Cincinnati, why the Chicago bocce community hooked him almost immediately, and how his first league win and ABC Open experience changed the way he saw his place in the sport. If you’ve ever been too hard on yourself in competition, this one might hit close to home. You’ll discover:

• Why bocce is as much a battle against yourself as it is against your opponent
• The difference between chasing impossible goals and getting ready for the right moment 
• How a supportive community can accelerate growth
• The bocce principle of “aggressive early, conservative late” and why it matters 

Scott also shares how 25 years of guitar shaped the way he practices, learns, and thinks about improvement. From playing lead in cover bands to getting hooked on solo improvisation, he explains why repetition and focused practice translate surprisingly well to bocce. Andy and Scott trade stories about live music, favorite shows, and the artists that still surprise them, including Atmosphere, The Last Dinner Party, Goose, and Hieroglyphics. 

But the conversation goes beyond sports and music. Scott and Andy dig into some life lessons: be nice, control what you can control, and accept the result once the ball leaves your hand. It’s a candid reminder that growth happens when you stop obsessing over luck, stop spiraling about mistakes, and start committing to the process.

Hosted by Andy Zimmerman of Chicago Bocce Club, American Bocce Co, and the Bucktown Billy Goats of the Chicago Bocce League

Produced by Daniel Morrow of Music in the Hall

Recorded at Chicago Bocce Club in July 2026

This pilot episode of Bocce Music Life is about competition, community, and what happens when you stop performing your life for everyone else. Host Andy Zimmerman of the Chicago Bocce Club is joined by guest Andy Zimmerman who brings the perspective of someone who found bocce late and then got genuinely hooked. He talks about discovering the game in 2023, falling for the physics and strategy, and why the Chicago Bocce Club feels like a rare third space for people who want both structure and belonging. He is a jazz saxophonist who stepped away from music for the past two years. The conversation opens up into identity, midlife pivots, and what it means to choose a life that feels like your own. You'll discover:

• Why bocce can feel like chess with athleticism and community built in
• How a backyard court and a first tournament can change the direction of a life
• What it looks like to leave professional music behind without abandoning your identity
• How the club is becoming a place where strangers quickly become a team

Essential listening if you’ve ever wondered whether your life needs a full reinvention, or just the right game, the right people, and a little more room to breathe.

Hosted by Andy Zimmerman of Chicago Bocce Club, American Bocce Co, and the Bucktown Billy Goats of the Chicago Bocce League

Produced by Daniel Morrow of Music in the Hall

Recorded at Chicago Bocce Club in July 2026