BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – KPM. Kornhole Power Metric. King Puzzy Masher. Kurtis Peters Meter. It’s been called many names, but no matter your definition it has become an obsession in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

The KPM is a composite metric used to evaluate how talented the players are. It considers a player’s accuracy, cornholes per round and gross points per round, all of which are the key statistical measures of how effectively one plays the game. Wins and losses can be skewed based on partner and opponent combinations, so the KPM has become the basis for LEG Power Rankings.

The general gold standard for a “great night” is a KPM of 10 or better, which means a player would average 3.20 gross points per round, 55% accuracy and 0.58 cornholes per round.

Through the first eight weeks of the 2018 season, only different eight players have recorded a KPM of 10 or better. In week 9, Paul was hungry to become the ninth different player to reach double digits, while Brendan Bush made his rookie debut this week and wanted to prove capable of making a big splash.

Paul played very well all night long, and even pushed his KPM above 10 at various points of the evening. However, a few late stumbles in his last few games caused him to finish at 9.8 KPM on the night, with 3.2 gross points per round, 55% accuracy and 0.53 cornholes per round (just shy of the standard 0.58 needed to reach 10.0 KPM).

Brendan’s LEG introduction was a bit rough, losing his first two games 21-7 and 21-4, respectively. But Brendan showed fight you’d expect from an Alabama Crimson Tide, battling back to win six of his last eight games to finish the night at 6-4. He was also very accurate, shooting 62%, averaged 3.3 gross points per round and 0.39 cornholes per round. His low cornhole rate held him back from reaching a KPM of 10, but his 9.6 KPM was excellent, especially in his rookie debut.

These two also partnered in Game 8, playing JV and Bushie. Down 8-1 after the top of the third round, Paul and Brendan went on an amazing 20-0 run over the next two rounds to win the game 21-8. They dominated, led by Paul crushing Bushie 15-3 during that span and Brendan smothering JV, 12-4.

Brendan was also featured in the Game of the Night, partnering with Galz to battle Adam and Joe in Game 6. The head-to-head matchups were Brendan vs. Joe and Galz vs. Adam. This one proved to be a marathon, taking 13 rounds to determine a winner. Adam carried his team early on, getting the best of Galz through the first four rounds, outscoring him 18-14. On the other end, Brendan shouldered the scoring burden by outscoring Joe 14-8 through four rounds and accounted for all nine of his team’s points, leading to a 9-7 advantage.

In the top of the fifth round Galz broke things open against Adam, draining two cornholes and adding another bag on the board for 7 gross points, while Adam could only muster 2 points. Galz gave his team a 14-7 lead and turned it over to Brendan who got the best of Joe, 5-4, making the game 15-7. However, something very interesting happened in the bottom of the fifth round – despite getting outscored 5-4, Joe seemed to find a rhythm and confidence. He dunked a cornhole in true Joe fashion, scored another bag on the board, and had his other two throws narrowly miss cornholes before sliding off the board. This development was a big turning point in the game.

During rounds six through nine, Joe helped his team claw back by elevating his game and gaining 3 points, including rounds of: 3-3, 3-1, 3-2, and 4-4 against Brendan. On the other side, Adam and Galz were in a classic dogfight, with Adam getting the best of Galz, 15-13. During this key stretch, Joe and Adam went on a 6-1 run to shrink their deficit to 16-13.

In the 10^th, Adam notched another point while Galz struggled to score just one bag. Joe again drew even with Brendan, making the score 16-14. Things went wild in the 11^th round when Adam dropped three cornholes on Galz, outscoring him 9-4 and giving his team a huge momentum shift and 19-16 lead. After a slow start, Joe and Adam put together an incredible 12-2 run against two of the better players on this night.

Brendan showed great composure for a rookie. He hadn’t outscored Joe in six rounds and his team was on the verge of a devastating loss after building a big lead. Brendan put three bags on the board in the bottom of the 11^th, which added one more point for his team, making it 19-17.

Galz netted two cornholes in the 12^th en route to a 7-point round, meanwhile Adam scored three of his throws, including a cornhole, but could only score 5 points and gave up 2 to Galz. The score was now tied, 19-19 going to the bottom of the 12^th round.

For the second straight round Brendan’s composure resembled that of a league veteran. He scored two of his first three bags, while Joe missed his first three shots. Each player had one bag remaining, and Brendan had given his team a 21-19 lead to this point. Joe needed to score on his last throw to keep the game alive, and fired an airmail cornhole to swing the score in his favor, 3-2. Brendan had a chance to win the game with a cornhole on his final throw, or cancel Joe’s advantage with one point. He could do neither, missing the board and shaking his head in disgust at the opportunity he had just missed. Joe’s Italian balls were enormous on that final throw. Down 21-19 and needing points on his last throw, he turns a potential game-ending deficit into a 20-19 lead for his team. Absolutely clutch stuff from Joe in this game.

In the top of the 13^th round, things turned back over to the #2 and #5 ranked players in the league, Galz and Adam, respectively. Galz is known for rising to the occasion when his back is against the wall. Adam, a great player, hasn’t proven to be consistent in a similar position.

When Adam’s opening throw missed the board, everyone saw Galz licking his chops. Sure enough, cornhole for Galz to kick-off his round. Adam found the board on his second throw, but still faced an uphill battle when Galz also registered a point on his second bag, keeping his advantage at 4-1 through two bags.

Adam needed something big on his third toss and dropped a cornhole to even the scoring at 4-4. Galz silenced his opponent with 3 points on his third throw, claiming a 7-4 advantage. One point on his final through was not going to be enough to extend the game, so Adam played aggressively for a cornhole. He missed, and that secured a 21-20 victory for Galz and Brendan. Galz swung for the fences on his last bag, going for a 10-point round since the game was over. He missed, but was still clutch enough to close the win. It was a long, epic game. Adam, despite the loss, did outscore Galz 55-53 in gross points, while both players dropped 11 cornholes. Brendan ended up outscoring Joe, 36-32, for the game thanks largely to his hot start in the first four rounds. Joe was incredible through the last nine rounds, keeping his team in the game with 6 cornholes.

The week 9 Mushroom Stamp Moment goes to Bushie for his clutch and overpowering performance in Game 3. His team already had a commanding 16-4 lead, and Bushie ensured there would be no comeback when he dropped a 10-point round on JV, outscoring him 10-0 and winning the game. It’s Bushie’s fourth 10-point round in the last three weeks, and it helped him average 3.63 gross points per game in the Game 3 win. Congratulations to Bushie for earning the week 9 MSM.

News and Notes:

• Galz was a monster, scoring 4.2 gross points per round, hitting on 63% of his shots, sinking cornholes at 0.84 per round, and recording three 10-point rounds this week while posting a 13.0 KPM (best of the night). He finished the night 7-4 and retains the #2 spot in the Power Rankings.
• Somehow Adam went 6-6 overall, which is mystifying considering his 11.6 KPM, 66% accuracy and 3.8 gross points per round. He did lose some heartbreakers, 21-20, 21-17, 21-16 and 21-15. Adam was the most accurate player this week and had the second-highest KPM while adding 3 footsnags.
• KP tinkered with his throw, which created bouts of inconsistency, including the opening game of the night when he went head-to-head with Galz and was manhandled 28-8 in just eight rounds. Galz played well, including winning the game with a 10-2 round. However, KP averaged just 1.3 gross points per round in the game, a truly mind-numbing statistic. He rallied to shoot 60%, score 3.7 gross points per round, knocked in 0.66 cornholes per round, recorded two 10-point rounds, and posted an 11.4 KPM while going 6-3 overall.
• JV was very accurate this week, shooting 64%, which helped him to a 10.4 KPM. JV was also clutch in several moments this week, including Game 2 when he was head-to-head with Adam and blew the game open in round 4. JV and Galz held a 6-4 lead going into the bottom of the fourth round when JV turned up the heat. JV had a 7-4 advantage after three throws from each player, then Adam missed his final toss. JV’s strategy on his fourth throw was to hit a cornhole while also dragging a second bag into the hole. JV executed perfectly, pushing one bag in as his fourth throw also went in the hole. He gave a Tiger Woods-esque fist pump to celebrate his 10-point round, upping the score to 12-4. He and Galz ended the game just 1.5 rounds later, 21-4. In Game 4, JV and Brendan found themselves in a tight, 20-17, match against Adam and Paul. JV appeared to have closed the game, leading 2-0 over Adam with just one throw remaining for each player. Adam made a clutch cornhole on his final throw to take a 3-2 advantage and seemingly close the game to 20-18. Mr. Clutch (JV) didn’t allow the celebration to last long. He fired his final shot into the hole to reclaim a 5-3 lead and give his team the 21-17 win. For the second time in two games, JV had ripped Adam’s heart out.
• Paul’s quest for a 10 KPM fell short, but he still had a fantastic night. He scored his first 10-point round of the season, shots 55%, and scored 3.2 gross points per round while going 5-7 overall. He moved up in the Power Rankings from #14 to #13.
• Brendan made an impressive rookie splash with his 6-4 record, 62% accuracy and 9.6 KPM. He debuts at #9 in the Power Rankings, ahead of talented players like Justin, Coach Mike, Bushie and Paul, and just behind Preseason Kick-Off Champions, JV and Barker.
• Bushie had a solid night, including one of his more accurate performances in recent weeks (52%). Bushie wasn’t making cornholes at a high clip (only 0.38 per round), which hurt him a bit. Bushie wasn’t happy with his 2-6 record, but he ended the night with a very solid 8.5 KPM, a 10-point round (his fourth of the season) and this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment.
• Joe had his best night of the season, and maybe of his career, earning a 7.0 KPM on 40% shooting. Joe was an integral part of almost pulling an upset in the Game of the Night, and he showed up in key moments with clutch throws. Joe’s game continues to improve every time he shows up, he just needs to find a bit more consistency for his game to take the next step.