It has been called many things, Corn Toss, Bean Bag, Bean Toss, Soft Horseshoes, Indiana Horseshoes, but most notably it’s referred to as Cornhole. Supposedly “re”-discovered in the hills of Kentucky over a century ago, and originating from Germany. But let’s be honest, who cares, the game is fun for all ages and great at outdoor parties and is easily transferable from party to party.
How not to get skunked
Corn Toss is similar to horseshoes except you use wooden boxes called cornhole platforms and corn bags instead of horseshoes and metal stakes. Players take turns pitching their corn bags at the platform until one of them reaches the score of 21 points. Scoring is super simple, a “Corn-in-the-Hole” is worth 3-points, a “Corn-in-the-Count” (when a bag lands on the platform, but not in the hole, duh) is worth 1-point, and, naturally, a “Corn-Out-of-the-Count” is worth nothing but a few snickers and laughs from your opponents. The platforms should be set 30-feet and 21-feet apart for adults and juniors, respectively, and pitches are to be thrown from opposing platforms which are known as foul lines when tossing.
Corn Toss can played in singles or doubles. When playing singles, both competitors pitch from the same side, whereas in doubles one member from each team stands at opposite platforms. Every Corn Toss match is broken down into innings of play. An inning of play is completed once both players have pitched all four of their bags. Players should alternate tosses (it’s the nice thing to do.) The game concludes once a player, or team, reach 21-points, however, you can “skunk” your opponent if you reach 7-points before they reach 1-point. (TIP: Don’t get skunked)
Want to host a tournament?
There is an American Cornhole Association (ACA), for more information regarding the game of Corn Toss, how to host a tournament, and some sweet official ACA merchandise (My favorite is the beer-can koozie the say “I heart cornhole”).