Get Out The Bean Bags, Lets Play Cornhole

There is a old game that is becoming popular in the Midwest called cornhole. Cornhole is sometimes referred to as soft horseshoes, Corn Toss, or Indiana Horseshoes. Instead of the traditional metal horseshoes, the players use bean bags that are filled with feed corn.

In order to play the game, in addition to the bean bags, you will need a playing board. For the official game the playing board should be made of 1/2 inch plywood. It measures twenty-four inches by 48 inches and is slanted at approximately a thirty-degree angle. A six inch hole is centered on the board nine inches from the upper end. The bean bag is tossed approximately thirty feet.

The bean bags that are used in this game are six inches square. They are sewn together and filled with two cups of corn.
For each inning, each player will toss 4 bean bags. The inning is not complete until all the bags have been thrown. The game may be played as either singles or doubles.

Scoring is as follows. A bean bag that lands in the hole or is knocked into the hole by another player scores three points. A bag that lands on the board is scored at one point and bean bags that do not land on the board are scored at no points. Bags cannot hit the ground before landing on the board in order for their score to be counted.

In order to win the game a team or individual must reach twenty-one points. The entire inning must be played out however, so there is always a chance for the other team to come from behind and out score the first team's twenty-one points.

The game of Cornhole is being played in bars and taverns as well as in officially sanctioned tournaments. Some cities even have courts set up in city parks for the players of the game.

Some players say that the game was started in Germany during the 14th century and was re-discovered in Kentucky over a hundred years ago.

The game has gained its popularity beginning in the Cincinnati area but is becoming more popular around the country. Tournaments are often set up as fund raisers for local causes. Prizes may become quite large.

Some of the bars have courts that are used year round. In the summer they are open air and in the winter, shutters are closed and the area is heated so that players do not have to give up their beloved game.

There are folding Cornhole playing boards that allow the game to be played almost anywhere. Since there are no points like darts and no metal objects like horseshoes, the game can be played by almost anyone and inside or outside. For some families, it is a lawn or driveway game. Others will take the board on vacation. It is a great game to take to the campground.

If you cannot find a Cornhole game to purchase commercially, the instructions for the playing board as well as the bean bags can easily be found online.

Bean bags have many uses. As a child we all remember having a beanbag that we played with. It was an all time past time. I remember getting a bean bag and sitting playing with it, tossing it up in the air when no one else could play or hitting it with my knee seeing how high I could get it.

The uses for bean bags are endless. I remember tossing them back and forth in class playing hot potato, handing them off until the music stops and the one left holding the bean bag is out. I remember playing Hopscotch with all of my friends, we would draw a Hopscotch board on the ground with chalk then toss the bean bag and that is where we would have to hop to.