Card Game or Board Game?

It is indeed true that we have been playing with a prototype game board that looks something like this. But does that make Kardball a board game?

I intentionally omitted all dependency on any type of game accessories, ensuring that you could enjoy this pastime absolutely for free, except for a single deck of cards.

One player pointed out that since the board isn't strictly necessary – its purpose is really for training more than actual game play.

Let's look to some other games for answers. Can you play checkers without a checker board?  Maybe.  Can you play "Sorry" or "Risk" without a game board?  Certainly not.

Can you play Kardball without the board?  Of course. We've even played it on the top of a trunk full of life preservers inside the natatorium at an Air Force base.  (How many other games can claim that?)

"Board games are kind of passé," Scott said.  True, and so are card games.  No help there.

We leave you with this question:  is Kardball a game?  Or a sport?