Any New Ideas?

Anybody out there think of any new things related to the game of cornhole? Ways to play, rules, products or anything? Everytime I think of something new I end up finding it has already been done by someone else. I usually come across these things on the internet on other bean bag websites or forums. Check out some of these other blogs for some of my ideas:

http://beanbaginfo.blogspot.com/2009/09/leagues-with-4-player-teams.html
http://beanbaginfo.blogspot.com/2009/09/types-of-games.html

For example, I thought it would be cool to have a set that you could play on in the water. I am not talking about a set of boards for your swimming pool. Instead, it would be a set that you can bring to the beach. I later saw a set like this online, but I do not think you can actually bring it into one or two feet of water. Of course, this would require the use of different materials than wood and corn. Some kind of plastic would work for the boards, but I am not sure what the bags can be made of so they can get soaking wet. Any ideas?

One of the hardest parts of this idea is to make the boards stable while taking a beating from waves, and keeping them lightweight and portable. One way to keep them steady is to have a heavy base to connect the board to, but this makes it less portable. Also, a set of augers could dig into the ground as a base for the boards to connect to, although it would be harder to level out the boards to the correct angle.

This all seems like a lot of trouble just to play cornhole in the water, maybe I will have to wait for someone else to think of the design so I can buy a set for myself! I think it would be a big hit for those who go to the beach a lot or own waterfront property.

Feel free to post your own ideas in the comments box below.

The Backyard Barkeep

You may have seen a few different types of "score towers" as we call them in the cornhole world. I looked around at a few different products that are available out there to try to find the best. After comparing the ones I have seen and actually used in tournaments, I decided that my favorite score tower is the Backyard Barkeep. There were a few reasons why I chose this product over the rest.

First, I looked at the score-keeping aspect of each product. The Backyard Barkeep has a simple design with a scorecard and two clips to mark the score. Most score towers use this design, and I find it to be the easiest to use. Sometimes it is hard to see the score from the other end, but this holds true for just about every product.

Next, I looked at the overall quality of each score tower. The Backyard Barkeep has a very sturdy design, made entirely of metal, and is able to stand up on nearly any surface. One of the key advantages of this product is the removable metal base. Without the base, you can press the product into the ground by pushing on a small platform above the metal stake. For hard surfaces such as concrete, slide the stake onto the heavy metal base to keep it level and sturdy.

The Backyard Barkeep includes extra built-in perks like cupholders and bottle openers. Each stand has two cupholders that can hold just about anything (yes of course it holds beer, why else would such a product be invented!?!?). There are two bottle openers on each stand as well to accomodate the thirstiest of players.

After carefully analyzing product after product, I decided that this one was the best... especially for the price. Two stands without the metal bases amount to $40; add only $10 for a metal base. for more info on this product visit http://www.backyardbarkeep.com/

State vs State

Now that the game of cornhole has been catching on across the country, there are a lot of good players emerging from various states. Sooner or later players will be able to compete against other players from different states in some kind of team competition. For example, a team of players from Indiana can compete against a team from Ohio. This might help spread the game and get more people to play competitive cornhole. It would be a good way to bring in more money from organizations that can sponsor each team. Players can have team uniforms that indicate where the team is from if they wanted to.

As for actual competition, teams can compete in both singles and doubles matches. They can play a certain number of games at each event, and the team that wins the majority of the games would win the event. I guess one team would have to travel far in order to play at the other team's home court; maybe they could meet somewhere in the middle.

The game will have to continue to grow in order to get enough teams to compete, so far there are only a few states that seem to be very serious about cornhole!

Hustlin' in the New Sport

Hustling is found in many bar sports like billiards and darts, and you can be sure to find gamblers just about anywhere. Cornhole is becoming a popular new bar sport where people play for money or drinks. Players will usually put down five or ten dollars a game, or sometimes a lot more. Where money can be earned by playing a game, you are sure to come about some hustlers. If you are a good player among stankers who like to gamble, you can easily drink free for the night. If you are playing for just cold hard cash, you can probably take home enough for a tank of gas (and drink free for the night!). However if you are an average player, watch out for those that always seem to give you a close game and always beat you. They might be "sandbagging" a little just so you will play them again. Hustlers like to keep it close to make their opponents feel like they have a chance to win. Their goal is to make the other team say "man we were so close, we can take them."

Many believe this to be unethical behavior, even if the other team does not care about losing a couple bucks. Maybe a less "deceiving" way to play for money is to let the other team know you are good, and spot them a few points before taking their money, lol. There is really no fair way to hustle, but playing for cash or drinks is so much more exciting, isn't it? Most people will disagree on this, but one thing I noticed is that it makes you try a lot harder to win the game. Obviously this is because you have something to lose, but this can actually make you a better player too. Playing under pressure is one of the best ways to prepare for a tournament, and playing cash games may be one of the best ways to play under pressure.

Difference Between Bags

There are many things that can affect the way the game is played, and even performance. One of these things is the type of bags that are used in gameplay. Different players are used to using different types of bags. Whether it is the set they have at home or the ones they use at the bar, every player has a preference.

The type of bag you use affects the way you play. Players get used to the size, shape, and weight of the bags they use. These properties of bean bags reflect the way the player pitches the bag, and changes the way they throw. Of course, the type or set of boards you play on will affect the way you throw the bag as well. For the purpose of this article, I will discuss how the type of bags you play with can affect the way you pitch your game.

Every player can agree to expect each bag in a given set to feel the same, so why do some feel different than others at some tournaments? This can be one of the most aggravating things that can happen to a competitive player while at a tournament, and it seems to happen too often. Individuals that play in tournaments frequently are able to feel these differences in size, weight, and shape quite easily. These players know that lighter bags should be thrown harder or spun more to cut through the wind. Heavy bags are not affected by the wind as much. Bags that have a different feel in shape or weight usually have a corn fill and tend to break down over time, causing the difference in feel.

Bean bags can also vary in the materials used to make them. The type of cloth used can affect the shape and feel of the bag. It can also cause the bag to either slide or stick on the board when a player pitches. So what type is best? It all depends on what the players are used to, and bean bags will continue to be made differently until a very detailed set of specifications is made standard.

Play during the Winter!

So just because it is getting cold outside and the snow will start falling soon, you are just gonna give up pitching bags and wait for the Spring to bring the warmth back to your game? You can't give up that easily! I am sure you can find a place somewhere that has a set of boards you can play on while it is cold outside. If not, what is stopping you from talking to a local bar/restaurant about setting up a league, tournament, or just a set of boxes to play on?

Summer is long time away to pick up where you left off in your cornhole game. If you are a serious player, you might find yourself falling behind once those summer tournaments start to kick off. Those players in the sunny-year-round states are going to catch up quicker than you think! And they will probably start traveling to your state and beat you at your home court!

If you are an average player, this is the perfect time to practice up for the big summer tournaments. Cornhole is really a simple game of repetition and accuracy that can be mastered in no time at all. Of course, if you want to be the best you will have to play in a few tournaments where you can play the best players. The best players in the country have been playing tournaments for a few years now. As the sport becomes more competitive, players are trying to play as often as possible to maintain and improve their game. So it is time for all of us to do the same: play more, spread the game, and become part of the development of this game into a national sport. More and more great players are popping up from around the country, and in my opinion... the best are yet to come.

Fix Your Bouncy Boards

Have you built a set of boards that seem to bounce every time you hit the middle of the board? There is a way to fix this problem without taking the set apart, and it is rather easy. You can simply use a two by four as a cross-brace underneath the box. Many builders use this in the design of their boards. The board should be placed about half-way in between the hole and the bottom of the board. This design fixes the bounce-effect very well, no matter what type of boards you have. It works for three foot and four foot boards alike.

One way to prevent this from the start is to use a thicker surface board. Most people seem to use half-inch plywood in the construction of their boards. Half-inch plywood does allow the bags to bounce, but it also depends on the quality of wood and how well the set is put together. I would recommend using something a bit thicker than half-inch plywood. 3/4 inch plywood works and almost allows for no bounce at all. The ACO uses something in between (5/8" with a small cross-brace), and it seems to reduce the bounce a lot.

In my opinion, I think it is better to allow the bag to bounce a little bit. It can be a useful shot if your opponent's bag is right in front of the hole. Sometimes you can bounce right over it and make it in the hole without moving the other bag. Bouncy boards require more accuracy because there is not as much leeway for an inaccurate shot.