The 2019 League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Preseason Kick-Off Tournament is less than 24 hours away, so let’s dive into what to watch for and some intriguing story lines of the tournament.
CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE
The Preseason Kick-Off Tournament will feature five past champions who’ve combined for seven titles. Humberto Klein (2017 Preseason Kick-Off Champion), Ryan Harvey (2016 Postseason Champion), Scott Garavalia (2017 Postseason Champion), Brent Barker (2018 Preseason Kick-Off Champion and Postseason Champion), and Jeff Valantas (2018 Preseason Kick-Off Champion and Postseason Champion).
Odds are excellent that one of these guys will drink from The Cup at the end of the tournament.
WHAT ABOUT THE NEW GUYS?
The 2019 Preseason Kick-Off will feature four players who are making their LEG debut, and two more players (Pierson and Paul G.) who are playing in only their second LEG tournament.
The following players are making their LEG debut:
- Mike Turley
- Kyle Dillard
- Jeff Vack
- Brian Parr
With one-third of the field having little experience, and no track record for the remaining 12 players to evaluate their skills, this should create a lot of balance and unpredictability.
DARK HORSES
LEG has never had this much parity, and there are several players who are capable of hoisting their first Cup.
Marco Bonanni hasn’t found much tournament success in his career, but he has been a beast during the regular season, including 2018 when he finished the season with an 11.0 KPM and averaged an amazing 0.75 cornholes per round (good for third in the league). Marco runs hot and cold, but when he’s hot, nobody in the league can rival his game.
Coach Mike had a sluggish 2018 season, but he’s been an intimidating presence in 2016 and 2017, and so far his 2019 season is off to a great start. Last week he posted a 9.7 KPM and shot 58%, but more importantly, his patented back-handed taint tickler looked dangerous again. If Coach lets the groove get in, his opponents are in for a very long and frustrated day.
Adam Rymill is one of the most improved players in the league, steadily climbing the Power Rankings year-over-year. Last year he finished 7th in the Power Rankings (out of 23 players) with a 10.9 KPM on 55% shooting and averaged 3.5 gross points per round. Adam was also the league leader in footsnags with 43 for the year, adding another dangerous weapon for his opponents to consider. For the new guys – footsnags are when you control an errant toss on your foot (like a hacky sack) without letting it hit the ground. The person who threw the bag has to drink half their beer before play resumes. Adam is the best in the league at this strategy.
THE FAVORITES
It’s easy to pick JV or Barker, both of whom partnered together in last year’s Preseason Kick-Off and Postseason tournaments and won both titles.
No doubt these guys will be in the hunt again, especially considering Barker has won two titles, finished runner-up twice and his worst tournament finish was a semifinal appearance (2017 Preseason Kick-Off, as Stockton Malone).
Scott Garavalia is likely to contend for the title considering he has a championship and a runner-up finish in his only two tournament appearances. He also has great family tradition to honor, since his brother JG is a League of Extraordinary Gentlemen legend (two LEG championships and an MVP award).
Andrew Galczyk (known as “Galz”) was the 2018 LEG Rookie of the Year, finishing second in the Power Rankings with a 12.0 KPM and averaged a league-best 0.78 cornholes per round while adding 58% accuracy. Galz finished runner-up in the 2018 Singles Tournament and gave Nick Winkler (another LEG legend) all he wanted in the championship match. He also partnered with Bushie to make a run to the semifinals of the 2018 Postseason Tournament.
PREDICTION
The 2019 Preseason Kick-Off has all the ingredients to be the best tournament in history. We have a strong group of unknown players who will likely be X-factors in the outcome of the tournament, and five past champions who undoubtedly will stand in the ring and take everyone’s best shot.
A preview is worthless without a prediction, and my prediction history has been pretty good (last year I picked Barker to breakthrough and win the Preseason Kick-Off).
Galz burst onto the scene in 2018 and has been arguably the best individual player in the league since his arrival. He almost won the Singles Tournament and carried a Coors Light-loaded Bushie to the semifinals in the Postseason. This feels like Galz’s moment – Bell’s Two Hearted from The Cup! Cobra Kai!