BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – Though the paint is barely dry on the Singles Tournament, players are now shifting focus to the final stretch of the 2022 LEG season. The goal, after enjoying the hangouts and beverages, is to elevate one’s game as much as possible in hopes of contending for a Postseason Tournament championship.

This week, a few players elevated to levels rarely seen at LEG. Rich, a newcomer who plays sparingly, was the gold standard this week. He fired a 24.4 KPM, which ironically dropped his season average from 25.8 to 25.1…absurd numbers when talking about a period of time, rather than one game. This week he averaged 7.5 points per round, 86% accuracy and 2.02 cornholes per round. Yes, two out of every four bags he threw went in the hole!

This next comment isn’t meant as disrespect to Rich, rather, amazement at the stat – despite the phenomenal numbers above, Rich only scored one 4-bagger this week. I find that quite shocking, given how excellent he played. However, he did have 15 rounds with 10 points!

As great as Rich played, he’s still human. He lost two games, including two of his first three.

• Game 1 – he partnered with Bushie and squared off against KP and Galz. KP outscored Rich head-to-head, 39 – 32 (including 11 vs. 7 cornholes), and averaged 7.8 points per round while helping lead Galz to a 21 – 13 victory over Rich and Bushie.
• Game 4 – Rich and Erik teamed against Brent and Nick. This time Rich won his head-to-head match-up, 27 – 24 over Brent. However, he averaged just 5.4 points per round, which was nowhere near enough to offset Nick’s domination of Erik – 43 – 23 in head-to-head points, including 13 vs. 4 cornholes, while averaging 8.6 points per round. After taking an 8 – 0 lead, Rich and Erik never scored again, giving up 21 unanswered points to lose 21 – 8. Nick scored 17 of those 21 points.

Rich rebounded just fine, winning the final five games of his night to finish 6 – 2.

Speaking of Nick, he was right on Rich’s heels all night. In Game 4 (mentioned above), his KPM was 28.5! He finished the night at 23.0 with 76% accuracy, 2.0 cornholes per round, and 7.0 points per round. Fantastic numbers, but somehow he won only two of his six games. How is that possible, you ask? Here’s how:

• Game 5 – Nick and Bushie lost to Rich and Brent, 21 – 11. Rich started the game with five consecutive 10-point rounds, yet Nick weathered that storm by averaging 8 points per round. It still yielded 10 points on the scoreboard for Rich, but not many non-pros could limit that type of damage. For the game, Nick narrowly lost the head-to-head with Rich – 69 – 65 in total points, 19 – 18 in cornholes, and 8.63 – 8.13 in points per round.
• Game 7 – Nick and Galz lost to Bushie and Rich, 21 – 14. Nobody would expect Galz to hang with Rich because, well, nobody in the league can consistently do so. Galz did his best, losing the head-to-head 54 – 42. The real story was at the other end of the boards. Nick played well, averaging 7.43 points per round. Yet Bushie neutralized Nick, playing some of the best cornhole we’ve seen from him by averaging 7.14 points per round. Bushie nearly playing Nick to a draw (52 – 50 in total points and 16 – 15 in cornholes) was the determining factor in this game.
• Game 11 – Nick and Brent battled Rich and Galz, but lost 21 – 7. Galz outscored Brent head-to-head, while Nick couldn’t hang with Rich in this one, losing 51 – 34.
• Game 12 – Nick and Galz tried to end the night with a statement victory over Brent and Rich. Nick outscored Brent, 39 – 37, but needed much more than a 5.6 points per round type of game to pull this upset. Galz got hit by the Mac Truck that is Rich, 53 – 37, and a 21 – 9 blowout was the final result.

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is how you have superb numbers like Nick did and still finish 2 – 4. Overall, Nick would love his numbers every day of the week and take his chances against anyone in the league, including Rich.

Finally, KP was the third musketeer to throw fire this week. He wasn’t quite at the level of Rich and Nick, but his 22.1 KPM, 6.9 points per round, 82% accuracy and 1.78 cornholes per round are nothing to sneeze at.

He finished with a 3 – 2 record, and never had a game with less than 6.2 points per round. Outscoring Rich in Game 1 was the highlight of his night, but he also averaged 7.2 points per round in a Game 3 win.

DON’T SLEEP ON ERIK

While we understandably highlight three guys who cleared the 22.0 KPM mark, don’t overlook the season Erik is having. Tonight he posted with a 16.9 KPM, better than guys like JV, Galz and Dan and topped by only the three flame throwers already discussed. His 76% accuracy, 5.4 points per round and 1.17 cornholes per round are indicative of top-5 talent. Though Erik finds himself at #9 in the Power Rankings, he’s ratcheting up down the stretch after a sleepy start to the season. Erik never crossed the 15.0 KPM threshold through the first nine weeks of the season (albeit, he only played in three of those nine weeks). However, in the last three weeks he has recorded KPMs of 18.2, 15.3 and 16.9, respectively. If Erik was a stock, he’d have a “buy” recommendation right now.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Game 10 earns this week’s Game of the Night, which featured Dan and JV versus Bushie and Erik. If you look-up “marathon” in the dictionary you’ll find a picture of this game. This bout lasted 11 innings, which equates to 22 rounds if counting by American Cornhole League standards.

Through four innings, Bushie and Erik held a 7 – 6 lead, with neither team scoring more than two points in a given round. Dan and JV created some separation in the fifth and sixth innings when they ham-and-egged their way to a 9 – 1 run to take a 15 – 8 lead.

Bushie and Erik combined to score five points in the seventh inning and tacked on another point in the eighth inning, climbing back in the game 15 – 14. Erik tied the game, 15 – 15, in the top of the ninth inning with an 8 – 7 advantage over JV. But Dan answered in the bottom of the ninth with three clutch points, vaulting he and JV to an 18 – 15 lead.

JV made it 19 – 15 in the top of the 10^th with a 6 – 5 round win, but he missed a final bag airmail that could have won the game (it stuck on the board hole-high for one point, instead).

Bushie and Erik took full advantage of the life JV gave them by missing that airmail. Bushie scored one in the bottom of the 10^th, it was 19 – 16. Then, in the top of the 11^th, it was JV vs. Erik, again. This is like the third or fourth week in a row where we’ve had this end of game situation. Once again, it was Erik who came up clutch to win the game, a trend that might be on the verge of being a mental obstacle for JV. Erik dropped the hammer, scoring an 8 – 0 round and lifting his team to a 21 – 19 frantic finish!

Erik finished the game with 64 total points and 16 cornholes, averaging 5.82 points per round. His partner, Bushie, finished with 40 total points and 8 cornholes, averaging 4 points per round.

Dan paced the opposition with 50 total points and 11 cornholes, averaging 5 points per round. Meanwhile, JV scored 49 total points and 13 cornholes, averaging 4.45 points per round. Worst of all, he walked away frustrated about the missed airmail to clinch the game, followed by scoring a donut, allowing Erik to close the game.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT

This might be the most unique MSM in history. In Game 2, Galz and Dan battled JV and Rich. Going into the bottom of the second inning JV and Rich had a 7 – 0 lead, in large part because of Rich’s 4-bagger in the top of the inning (he netted 5 points, beating Dan 12 – 7).

JV had thrown all of his bags and only scored two points in the top of the third inning. With one bag in his hand, Galz held a 3 – 2 advantage and had an opportunity for a hard push shot to up his lead to 8 – 2 (at worst, 8 – 4 if he dragged one of JV’s bags in the hole with him).

For the first time in history, in any aspect of his life, Galz went conservative. He safely boarded his final bag for a 4 – 2 win in the round, cutting his team’s deficit to 7 – 2.

JV asked, “What the hell was that?!?!” and the spectators booed. Galz was direct in his response, “I could’ve pushed my bags off the boards and washed the round! It’s early in the night, I’m not ready to take my clothes off,” referencing the punishment for getting bun run.

“Dude, it’s the second inning!” KP yelled back. “Nah, that was the smart play,” Galz assured.

Sure as shit, Galz was right. Rich subsequently scored round of 9, 10 and 10 points, which netted him/his team 16 points to win the game 21 – 2.

Galz wins this week’s MSM for foreshadowing a bun run, and his conservatism to avoid it!

NEWS AND NOTES

• Like Erik, JV continues to play well of late. Tonight he finished 3 – 1 with a 16.1 KPM, 5.0 points per round, 62% accuracy and 1.26 cornholes per round. Honestly, the only blemish was the way he ended the Game of the Night, and even that is so minor that it doesn’t tarnish the totality of his performance.
• Galz also posted a 16.1 KPM with 5.1 points per round, 68% accuracy and 1.18 cornholes per round. He ended with a 2 – 5 record, but probably had the most difficult strength of schedule by having Rich as his opponent four times, KP twice and Nick once.
• Bushie ended the night at 14.2 KPM, 4.5 points per round, 60% accuracy, 1.03 cornholes per round and a 2 – 3 record. Not his best effort.
• Dan finished with a 14.8 KPM, 4.7 points per round, 68% accuracy, 1.0 cornholes per round, and 1 – 2 record. The numbers aren’t great for Dan, compared to what he’s shown in the past. But the numbers are actually better than what one might’ve guessed using the eye test. The game looked hard for Dan tonight, which is something we all go through from time to time.
• Brent rounds out the group with a 3 – 2 record, 15.4 KPM, 4.9 points per round, 69% accuracy and 1.06 cornholes per round. Another guy who struggled tonight, particularly at making cornholes. It’s quite uncommon to see such a low cornhole rate from Brent.

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – The 2022 Singles Tournament field might have been the strongest in history, consisting of eight of the top-10 players in the Power Rankings, as well as promising rookie Pete (ranked #11 with a 13.9 KPM), perennial top-5 ranked Galz, who somehow slipped to #13 in this year’s Power Rankings (so far), Coach Mike, who is always dangerous, and Scott Garavalia, who has a history of championship appearances in major LEG tournaments.

Given the depth and balance in the field, we chose to seed the tournament based on a random draw rather than using the Power Rankings. No matter the seeding approach, there were going to be some ridiculous first round matches, and the random draw only confirmed that.

FIRST ROUND NAIL BITERS

Of the four first round matches, three of them were decided by five points or fewer.

#8 Galz vs. #9 JV – This match was about as even as you’d expect, with the score tied 9 – 9 after six rounds. JV used back-to-back 7-point rounds, which netted him seven points and upped his lead to 16 – 9. After each player exchanged a few points, JV had a commanding 19 – 11 lead. But Galz never relents, and while his aggressive style of play makes him prone to surrendering big rounds, it also creates his own big scoring opportunities. In the 13^th round Galz drained two cornholes with his first two bags, and landed his third bag hole-high, but well right and out of play. Still, he had a commanding 7 – 2 advantage and was primed to get back in the game. JV’s final toss started wide right and stayed there. The bag barely clipped the back edge of the board, His errant bag barely clipped the back edge of the board before caroming off, contacting Galz’s wide-right bag in the process, causing Galz’s bag to kick straight left and into the hole. Such a bad beat turned a comfortable late lead for JV into a white knuckle affair with Galz holding a 9 – 2 lead in the round, JV out of bags, and a final bag cornhole for Galz to win the game. Take a wild guess what happened next…Galz puffed his cigar, then clenched his jaw as he focused his final throw. In the hole for a 12 – 2 round and a 21 – 19 win! JV was understandably upset, squandering an excellent opportunity to advance in the Winners’ Bracket. Could this be the moment to ignite Galz, who has two runner-up finishes and a third place finish in prior Singles Tournaments?

#5 Dibble vs. #12 Barker – Barker was the biggest loser in the blind seeding draw, earning the worst seed (#12) and drawing Dibble as his first round opponent. None of that matter because Barker was lights out, throwing an 8.43 points per round and two 4-baggers while ripping through Dibble, 21 – 0, in just seven rounds. That victory caught the attention of all 11 other players, while also growing Barker’s irrational confidence.

#6 Pete vs. #11 Erik – If there was ever the perfect match to demonstrate first-time tournament jitters, this was it. Pete, a rookie who just joined LEG one month ago, is a skilled player with a promising future. But nerves are no joke, and winning a match in any LEG tournament is not easy. Pete looked fantastic while jumping out to a 16 – 4 lead, averaging 5.8 points per round and frustrating the hell out of Erik. But nerves are no joke, and winning a match in any LEG tournament is not easy, which Pete found out the hard way. His 16 – 4 lead evaporated in four rounds – Pete never scored again, and Erik averaged 7 points per round during “winning time,” stringing together 17 straight points to win, 21 – 16. That’s a vet who is used to the pressure and demands of closing a tournament match versus a first-timer.

#7 Dan vs. #10 Brent – These two exchanged one point here, two points there for much of the first half of this match. After 10 grueling rounds, Dan had 13 – 10 lead. Then this match turned chaotic with big scoring rounds. Brent manufactured a 7 – 0 scoring burst in two rounds to take a 17 – 13 lead, followed by Dan hitting a 4-bagger in the 13^th round, which netted him seven huge points and a 20 – 17 lead. Brent immediately tied the game at 20 – 20 with a 10 – 7 advantage in the 14^th round, followed by a 6 – 6 wash in the 15^th round. Brent put tons of pressure on Dan in the 16^th round by making cornholes on his first three throws. Dan hung tough, scoring 7 points after three throws. Brent’s fourth throw was a perfect blocker that covered Dan’s bag, making for a harder push shot. Down 10 – 7 in the round, Dan’s final bag had to be in the hole to keep the game alive. Since there was no way to push his own bag in without taking Brent’s blocker, Dan opted for an airmail and missed long. Brent hung on for the 21 – 20 win, in a highly entertaining match.

WINNERS’ BRACKET SECOND ROUND

#1 Scott G. vs. #8 Galz – In past tournaments, this was Galz’s prime moment to make a Cinderalla run. Galz rode the moment from his incredible 12-point round to overcome JV in the first round, by beginning this match on a 10 – 5 run. Scott quickly shook off the rust from sitting a little longer, going on a 13 – 2 run to take an 18 – 12 lead. Galz closed the gap to 18 – 17 with five big points in the 11^th round. However, Scott muddied the board in the 12^th round and Galz’s aggressive airmail attempts missed every time. Scott won the round, 6 – 2, and the game 21 – 17.

#4 KP vs. #12 Barker – Barker was salivating at this opportunity. He talks so much shit to KP, and if you asked Barker who he enjoys beating the most, his answer is almost assuredly KP. He was confident after taking Dibble behind the woodshed, 21 – 0. Barker stayed red hot, negating every big scoring round KP had. These two had rounds of:

• 9 – 8 (advantage to KP)
• 9 – 8 (Barker)
• 12 – 10 (KP)
• 8 – 8
• 10 – 8 (KP)
• 10 – 10
• 10 – 6 (Barker)

Barker was steady and patient, knowing KP’s frustration would lead to taking riskier shots. He was right. In the seven rounds highlighted above, KP averaged 9 points per round. Yet, he only managed to score five points from those rounds. Those would be the only five points he scored in the match, as Barker broke the dam with a 10 – 4 round to take an 11 – 5 lead, then tacked on four more points with a 9 – 5 advantage in the 10^th round to make it 15 – 5. His 10 – 6 scoring advantage in the 12^th round made it 19 – 5, and he wrapped it up with two points in the 13^th round, 21 – 5 was the final score. KP didn’t play that bad, averaging 6.62 points per round. But Barker scored cornholes on 54% of the bags he threw in this match and averaged 7.85 points per round, which was too much for KP to overcome. Another blowout win for Barker, as he advanced to the winners’ bracket quarterfinals to face Scott.

#3 Nick vs. #11 Erik – If there was a Game of the Night, this would be a finalist. Erik pounced early, taking a 10 – 4 lead. Nick inched back into the game with an 8 – 5 advantage in the fifth round, making it 10 – 7. From this point forward, we witnessed a different Erik. He’s been a strong player for years, which includes two runner-up finishes in the 2020 and 2021 Preseason Kick-Off Tournaments, respectively, and being voted to the All-Tournament Team in both of those tournaments. The dividends from those tournament experiences paid off in this match against LEG’s most decorated player. Usually Nick would take control of the game at this point, overwhelming his opponent. But Erik responded with three consecutive scoring rounds of +1, +2, and +3, reasserting his lead at 16 – 7. Nick rallied right back, scoring seven straight points to close the gap to 16 – 14. Erik answered with rounds of 7 – 6 (+1 point) and 10 – 7 (+3 points), making it 20 – 14. Ask Pete, closing a match is hard work, let alone doing it against the best player in the league. Nick scored three points in each of the 15^th and 16^th rounds to tie the game at 20 – 20. The audience thought **this** was the moment where Erik crumbled. He had a 20 – 14 lead, then surrendered six consecutive points in two rounds while only scoring four total points himself. Surely, he couldn’t recover. In the 16^th round, Nick threw a phenomenal first bag block in the middle of the board, about one foot short of the hole. Erik’s first throw was an absurd cut shot that tap danced around Nick’s blocker and into the hole. Nick tried the same cut shot, hoping to leave his blocker in place as an obstacle for Erik. He missed off the back of the board. Erik threw another cut shot, this one landing softer and dancing more nimbly around the block before finding the hole. Nick tried a hard push with his third throw and missed off the back again. Erik went for a third straight cut, but this one didn’t cut enough and slid off the back of the board. He was disgusted, knowing a third cornhole would’ve likely secured victory, and now Nick still had life. Erik was up 6 – 1 after three throws. Nick had no choice but to throw a hard push, hoping to collect his blocker and tie the round at 6 – 6, then pray Erik missed the board on his final shot. Nick’s push was off target, sending his final bag off the back of the board and leaving his blocker untouched. Erik secured the win! His final bag didn’t matter, but he threw the cut shot anyway…probably just to prove the one he missed with his third throw was an anomaly. He hit the final cut shot, this one more beautiful than the previous two. A 9 – 1 round for Erik and a 21 – 20 upset victory to send him into the winners’ bracket quarterfinals.

#2 Coach Mike vs. #10 Brent – Coach was a big winner by randomly drawing the #2 seed, improving him 10 seed spots compared to if we had used the Power Rankings. The downside was he earned a date with Brent in the second round, and Brent was throwing fire. He averaged 7 points per round and 50% of his throws went in the hole. Coach hung tough, averaging just under 5 points per round, which is higher than his season average. But Brent was too much, and pulled away for a 21 – 8 victory to advance against Erik in the winners’ bracket quarterfinals.

WINNERS’ BRACKET QUARTERFINALS AND SEMIFINALS

Given all the close matches we had up to this point, you’d expect similar grinds in the quarterfinals. Right? Wrong. They were snooze fests. Barker dominated Scott, 21 – 7, just as he did his previous two opponents. Scott didn’t throw bad, averaging 5.4 points per round; Barker was just better at 7 points per round.

In the other match, Erik couldn’t bottle the magic potion he used to beat Nick, as he limped through the match against Brent before losing 21 – 8. Erik had opportunities, but just couldn’t make cornholes – only 19% of his throws were cornholes in this game, which is not anywhere near good enough to beat Brent.

Two blowouts set-up a winners’ bracket semifinal match between Brent and Barker. If you’re looking for intensity, this was the place to find it. I’m not sure if nerves finally caught up with Barker, but he came back to earth a bit in the game. He started this match with rounds of 5, 2, 2, and 3 (these are total points, not net points scored), which is why he found himself in a 14 – 1 hole. A few rounds later Brent had victory in his grasp with a 19 – 5 lead. Barker earned six points after a 10 – 4 advantage, giving him some hope at 19 – 11. But Brent tacked on a point in the very next round, making it 20 – 11.

Barker showed his toughness when he hit a 4-bagger, allowing him to score seven points and close the deficit to 20 – 18. In the very next round he tied the match at 20 – 20. Brent was on tilt, searching for answers against a surging Barker.

For as well-played and intense as this match was, the ending was a disappointment. The score was tied, 20 – 20, and Barker laid the perfect first bag blocker to start round 13. That blocker became a disaster for both players, as only one out of the next seven combined bags scored points. Barker suddenly became unusually inaccurate, missing long and off the back of the board, while Brent looked like Tin Cup repeatedly throwing cut shots that didn’t cut. He did stumble into a cornhole on one of his four throws, leading to a 3 – 1 round, which was good enough for the 21 – 20 victory.

THE GAUNTLET OF 11 LOSERS

With Brent being the only player with an unblemished record, that leaves the remaining 11 players navigating the treacherous waters of the losers’ and double losers’ brackets in hopes of emerging with an opportunity to win a championship.

If you’re reading this, I appreciate you. This has been a long recap, but the game-by-game overview from the winners’ bracket felt necessary. We will take this in a different direct now, which is hopefully just as enjoyable.

The margin for error is so slim once you’ve fallen to the losers’ brackets, and the pressure ratchets up several levels. Coach Mike and Pete were unfortunate victims, unable to snag any wins before bowing out of the tournament at 0 – 3. Pete almost ignited a run, but once again could not clinch a match when he had the late lead. Pete’s elimination match against Galz mirrored the first round games each of these respective players played earlier in the day. Pete possessed a comfortable 20 – 10 lead over Galz, similar to his 16 – 4 lead over Erik in the first round. Galz’s daunting deficit against Pete felt eerily familiar to his 19 – 11 deficit against JV earlier in the day.

Just like earlier, Galz stormed back to steal a victory against long odds, beating Pete, 21 – 20. The sting of those two blown leads will hurt Pete for a while, but will also provide a strong foundation of experiences to build upon.

Galz throttled JV in the next match, 21 – 3, before being eliminated by Erik, 21 – 11. Galz finished the tournament with a respectable 3 – 3 record and T – 7 place.

JV rebounded from a disheartening loss to Galz in the winners’ bracket by beating Coach Mike, 21 – 11. His reward was a date with Nick, which is akin to playing Alabama in football the week following a loss. In other words, not the position you want to be in. Nick cruised by JV, 21 – 4, sending JV to the double losers’ bracket where, as already mentioned, he was eliminated by Galz, 21 – 3. JV finished with a 1 – 3 record, but things could have been much different had he closed his first match against Galz.

Dibble’s performance is a mystery. His 21 – 0 loss to Barker raised eyebrows, but then seemed understandable after Barker subsequently throttled KP and Scott. However, Dibble’s 21 – 0 loss to Nick in the losers’ bracket brings back all the questions. The match lasted only seven rounds, and Dibble scored total points of 4, 6, 3, 0, 1, 5 and 0 – that’s an average of 2.71 points per round. Yikes.

Dibble staved off elimination for one game, beating Coach Mike, 21 – 9. But was eliminated in his next game against KP, 21 – 4. Everyone, himself included, expected more from Dibble. It’s fair to call this tournament a disappointment for him, as he finished with a 1 – 3 record and was outscored 72 – 25 across his four games.

After losing a 21 – 20 heart-breaker in the first round against Brent, Dan went on a nice run in the losers’ bracket. He coasted to victories over Galz (21 – 9), KP (21 – 10) and Erik (21 – 8), putting himself in the thick of the championship hunt. One more victory would secure a spot in the final four. His opponent in this pivotal match??? I’m glad you asked…

Nick seemed to regain some of his championship mojo with the win over JV, but was now faced with a “prove your manhood” type of game against Scott, who fell to this losers’ bracket match after losing to Barker. The Nick vs. Scott match looked like heavyweights who dropped their hands and just took turns attempting to knock each other’s heads off. Scott started the game with a 9 – 0 round and added one more point in the second round to take a 10 – 0 lead. The players took turns nickel and diming each other until it was 13 – 11 in favor of Scott after eight rounds.

In the ninth round, Nick almost landed the knockout blow when he drained a 4-bagger and Scott managed only three points. Nick’s +9 advantage vaulted him to a 20 – 13 lead. Scott stumbled and stammered after taking a heavy shot to the chin. After regrouping in his corner, he rose to his feet and showed Nick the fight he still had within. In the very next round, Scott delivered the knockout blow – a 4-bagger of his own to win the round 12 – 2, which also won the game, 21 – 20. Credit to Scott for delivering a 4-bagger in such a crucial moment. He advanced to play Dan for a spot in the final four.

Scott continued to grind out victories, this time a 21 – 8 win over Dan, which guaranteed a top-4 finish for Scott and advanced him to face Barker in a rematch. Dan played well in this loss, but two rounds were his undoing:

• Round 2 – Dan managed just three points, while Scott knocked in eight points. +5 for Scott
• Round 7 – Dan managed just two points, while Scott knocked in seven points. +5 more for Scott

Those are killer rounds against a quality player like Scott, and Dan couldn’t recover because Scott plays such a smart game without taking high risks. Dan fell to the double losers’ bracket where he’d have to claw back to championship contention with every game also being an elimination match.

With KP beating Dibble and Nick losing to Scott, the double losers’ bracket now pitted KP against Nick, with the loser finishing T – 7 with Galz. KP jumped out to a 15 – 0 lead, which shocked everyone in attendance, including KP. But Nick chipped away, going on a 14 – 0 run to tighten the game at 15 – 14.

KP was clearly rattled. In a match taking place simultaneously, JV had flipped a bag behind his back out of frustration and it landed on the board, displacing bags that were near the hole from tosses in the middle of a round KP and Nick were playing. JV could have tried that 100 more times and not repeated it. Yet, he “successfully” executed that unintentional shot in the midst of KP’s focus already fading into the abyss. The players repositioned the bags as best they could, and Nick went on to earn one point in the round, tying the game at 15 – 15. Somehow KP found his groove again and closed the game with a 6 – 0 run to eliminate Nick, 21 – 15.

Next up was another elimination match, this time between KP and Erik. This match wasn’t close, as Erik couldn’t find his rhythm. KP won, 21 – 10, eliminating Erik, who finished in sixth place with a 3 – 3 record. That’s a solid run for Erik, however, it’s also a bit disappointing considering he started 2 – 0 with wins over Pete and Nick.

KP’s win earned him a rematch with Dan, who fell to the double losers’ bracket after losing to Scott. At this point, KP was picking up steam and locking in his focus. He avenged the earlier loss to Dan with a

21 – 11 victory in this elimination match.

Dan finished with an excellent tournament, particularly given it was the first of his career. He landed in fifth place and had a 3 – 3 record.

Meanwhile, KP guaranteed himself a spot in the final four with Brent, Barker and Scott after winning his fourth consecutive elimination match.

FINAL FOUR

The final four was set, with Brent holding the enviable position of no losses, while Barker and Scott faced off in the losers’ bracket since each player had one loss on their resume. KP sat in the double losers’ bracket awaiting results from the games above him while hanging on to his tournament life, unable to afford any more losses given he already had two.

The rematch between Barker and Scott was much more competitive than the 21 – 7 drubbing earlier in the winners’ bracket. Both players started a little slow, which might’ve been from sitting on the sidelines too long while the double losers’ bracket unfolded. By the fourth round, both guys found their stroke and things heated up. Through 10 rounds the score was tied 10 – 10, an indicator that we were in for a marathon. Barker created separation with a 5-point round, taking a 15 – 10 lead, but Scott chipped away over the next few rounds and cut the deficit to 15 – 13.

Barker upped his lead to 16 – 13 after winning the 14^th round, 7 – 6. Scott had a great scoring opportunity in the 15^th round, but didn’t hit a push shot hard enough and had to settle for an 8 – 8 wash. In the 16^th round, the flood gates opened – Barker posted an 8-point round, but even his two “missed” bags were around the hole, making it almost impossible for Scott to create a scoring advantage. Scott had to attempt shots with higher degrees of difficulty and couldn’t execute them, which caused him to lose the round, 8 – 3, and ultimately the game 21 – 13.

From round 4 – round 15, Scott averaged 7 points per round. He had rounds with 8, 10, 6, 6, and 8 points where he either did not score at all (the round washed) or he gave up points. Barker puts so much pressure on his opponent – he’s so consistent, rarely misses the board and most bags are always near the hole and in play, if not in the hole. He doesn’t make many mistakes, which means he rarely gives up big scoring rounds, even when his opponent throws an 8, 10 or 12. All the sudden, his opponent will get impatient or have one bad round, then he pounces on that opportunity. It’s exactly how he closed Scott out in this game.

Barker advanced to avenge his only loss, facing Brent. Meanwhile, Scott dropped to the double losers’ bracket against KP in an elimination match.

Brent jumped on Barker right away, hitting him with a 10 – 3 round to take an early 7 – 1 lead after Barker started the game with an 8 – 7 round to take a 1 – 0 advantage. Barker washed the third round, 10 – 10 to negate a potential big scoring round for Brent. After that, the route was on. Barker ripped off 20 straight points over four rounds: 9 – 5 (+4), 12 – 5 (+7), 8 – 2 (+6), and 6 – 2 (+4) and cake-walked to victory, 21 – 7.

This was a huge win for Barker, handing Brent his first loss, and resulted in immediately running it back with the winner advancing to the championship match and the loser falling to the double losers’ bracket to play the winner of Scott vs. KP.

With a berth to the championship on the line, Barker continued to ride the momentum from his blowout win. He began the game on an 8 – 0 run, extending his scoring streak to 28 – 0 when including the prior game.

But Brent is too good of a player to go away quietly. He pieced together his own 14 – 3 run to take a 14 – 11 lead. In the back-half of the game, it was all Barker, all the time. Once again, Barker rose to the occasion during winning time. He tied the game at 14 – 14, washed the 12^th round, then dropped a 10 – 1 hammer in the 13^th round to win the game, 21 – 14.

Barker secured his spot in the championship match. Brent still had a chance at the title, but now couldn’t afford a loss.

Scott threw great against KP, building an early lead and holding onto it late into the game. KP just couldn’t get anything going because Scott was throwing so well, dirtying up the board and making it harder to score cornholes. Scott was on the verge of advancing, holding a 20 – 12 lead (or something close to that…the score got a little hazy). That’s when KP finally broke through, clawing together 1 point here and 2 points there, coming all the way back to beat Scott, 21 – 20.

Scott finished in fourth place and had exceptional tournament, despite being disappointed because he absolutely could have won it all.

KP survived another game and now faced Brent in an elimination match, the winner advancing to the championship. This game was like déjà vu for KP. He fell into an early hole and Brent slowly tossed dirt on him, burying KP one round at a time. Much of this game wasn’t close, and Brent had a late 20 – 10

lead. Somehow, KP did it again – without margin for error, he chipped away, stayed in the game and ultimately hit Brent with a 10 – 5 round to overcome a seemingly insurmountable deficit to win the game, 21 – 20.

After entering the final four undefeated, Brent lost three consecutive games and finished in third place. The tournament, as a whole, was a success for him, even though the ending leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

NUT CUP

Before we get to the championship match, we’re going to shift gears and highlight the Nut Cup.

The inaugural Nut Cup was created on the fly, mid-tournament, and was such a hit that it’s now here to stay. Similar to the Toilet Bowl in doubles tournaments, the Nut Cup was established as a secondary tournament where the first four players eliminated from the main tournament face off in a single elimination format with an opportunity to still win a championship.

JV and Coach Mike faced off in one semifinal, while Pete and Dibble were paired against each other in the other semifinal.

JV and Coach battled in a tight game that was so entertaining that JV stopped halfway through their match and yelled to the other players, “Where the hell is the support for the Nut Cup?!?!” He was right. Just because it’s a secondary tournament, doesn’t mean it’s lesser cornhole with lesser players. In fact, it’s not at all and never will be. The unfortunate reality is there will always be a few good players who qualify for the Nut Cup and/or the Toilet Bowl after going 0 – 3 or 1 – 3 in the main tournament.

JV and Coach were within three or four points throughout the entire match, with Coach holding a late 20 – 19 lead. He had a great chance to secure victory, but his back-handed taint tickler suddenly became erratic, likely because Coach keeps alternating between the taint tickler and trying to throw a flat bag. JV, who is also going through growing pains by changing his throw, played smartly and less aggressive than normal by taking points on the board to force Coach into tougher situations. JV piled up points, holding a 5 – 2 advantage in the round, requiring Coach to score a final bag cornhole to extend the game. He missed long off the board and JV won, 21 – 20.

Galz tried to write himself into the Nut Cup, despite not qualifying. He added his name squaring off against Nick in a faux semifinal match on the Nut Cup bracket. Even after JV and KP scribbled over it, he physically tried to take the court before Dibble and Pete arrived. Was he frustrated about being eliminated and having no additional matches to play? Did he want possession of the Nut Cup to add to his Toilet Bowl resume? You’d think his recurring pink eye and problematic sties in his eye would temper his genitalia-related enthusiasm.

Pete was eager to avenge two disappointing losses with a victory over the #4 ranked player in the Power Rankings, Dibble. He started well, hanging with Dibble early and in the middle stages of the game. Facing a 16 – 15 deficit, Pete had an opportunity to exorcise his late-game demons. His opponent has a checkered history of similar late-game problems. Who would get over the hump? This time it was Dibble. He finished the game on a 5 – 1 run to win, 21 – 16.

Nut Cup bragging rights would come down to JV vs. Dibble. After two competitive semifinal matches, the audience expected a great championship match. Dibble was determined to prevent that, blowing out JV with a 16 – 7 lead. Once he upped his lead to 16 – 7, Dibble started making the Aaron Rodgers “Discount Double-Check” motion, signaling a belt around his waist.

JV caught it out of the corner of his eye and the disrespect fired him up, especially when Dibble didn’t have the humility to realize he was nowhere near the championship belt. When JV is fueled and focused, he’s a dangerous player. That was on full display when he ripped off a 14 – 0 run to claim the Nut Cup with a 21 – 16 victory.

Thanks to Dibble, an otherwise sleepy Nut Cup championship match turned into a riveting match worthy of the main stage.

Congratulations to JV, the first-time winner and 2022 Nut Cup champion!

THE SHOWDOWN FOR THE BELT

The mental toughness and grind KP demonstrated while winning six straight elimination matches was impressive. Could he pull one more rabbit out of the hat, upsetting Barker to win his third consecutive Singles Championship?

This match was worthy of a championship in every facet. It lasted for more than 20 rounds, elapsed close to 30 minutes, and almost couldn’t get tighter on the scoreboard. Barker held an early 6 – 5 lead, before both players scrapped and clawed for points that yielded scores of 11 – 11 and 14 – 13 (advantage Barker).

Barker was up 17 – 14, but that had become comfortable territory for KP because of his jaunt through the double losers’ bracket. KP started the round with a perfectly placed blocker short of the hole and in

Barker’s lane, followed by Barker finally missing a bag off the board. KP tried to take full hole control with another block with his second throw, but the bag kicked left at the last moment and sat on the left side of the hole. Barker executed a perfect second throw by laying a block in front of the hole in KP’s lane, which is exactly where KP wanted his previous bag.

KP’s third throw was another perfectly executed bag, this time pushing into the two blockers and moving all three bags to the edge of the hole. This three-bag pile up also started to collect KP’s bag on the left side of the hole, bringing it back into play.

Barker’s third throw was an attempt to block behind the pile, making any push attempt for KP more difficult. He missed short and right of the pile, maintaining a lane for KP to push everything in. Final bag in hand, KP stepped out to the left, creating a better angle to push the pile. He fired a low heater that hit the pile almost perfectly! And…everything clogged. One of KP’s bags fell into the hole, but everything else – three more of KP’s bags and one of Barker’s bags – bunched around the hole. Barker was content to board his final bag and concede a 6 – 3 round to KP, tying the score at 17 – 17. But had the bags not clogged and instead fell, KP could have hit a 12 – 5 round to win the game 21 – 17 (although Barker could have slide his final bag into the hole for a 12 – 7 round and extended the game).

One round later, KP fogged out for a split second and side-railed his first throw off the board. An unusual and expensive miss. Barker capitalized by putting his next two bags in the hole. KP’s magic ran out. This round for Barker was too much to overcome. KP had to throw a back-side airmail without taking one of Barker’s bag in on his final throw just to have a chance, but missed long. It was over. Barker closed up with a 4-bagger on his final toss, a fitting ending to a fitting champion! Barker wins a thriller, 21 – 17 to claim the crown of 2022 Singles Champion!

Earlier in the year, KP and Barker hung out together on a cool, soggy Thursday night leading up to the 2022 Preseason Kick-Off Tournament. That night Barker told KP he was circling the calendar for the 2022 Singles Tournament, taking aim at winning the title. Barker has three prior championships, all in doubles, but still felt like he needed to validate what we all know – that he’s one of the top two or three players in this league.

Validation achieved, Barker. You’re the 2022 Singles Champion! Congratulations!

For those of you who want to watch the championship match, use this link. Recording started a few rounds into the game, with Barker up 6 – 5.

https://youtu.be/whj5Y_3DWXY

Postscript: Many of the players have reminded me of an important fact that needs to be highlighted, and interpreted however you choose – Galz gave breathalyzers to several players immediately after the championship match finished because Barker seemed a little too sober in the eyes of many. Indeed he was – he blew 0.036, which equates to one or two beers. KP registered at 0.105. Make of that what you will.

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – Week 11 was the final tune-up prior to the 2022 Singles Tournament, and seven guys took advantage of the opportunity at JV’s house.

All seven players are also scheduled to participate in the Singles Tournament, and each one of the guys seemed to have extra focus on this night, working on tweaking and perfecting throwing mechanics in advance of the Singles Tournament. The heightened attention yielded some of the best group results of the season.

All seven players finished at or above a 15.3 KPM. KP paced the field with a 19.7, but most notable was Galz posting a 17.6 KPM. Galz is a perennial top five player in this league, but the 2022 season has been a bit of a struggle for him. Coming into tonight he ranked #14 in the Power Rankings with a 12.7 KPM, 4.1 points per round (ppr), 61% accuracy and 0.82 cornholes per round, all of which are the lowest of his career, excluding his rookie season in 2018.

Although his strong night didn’t cause a huge jump in the Power Rankings (he moved from 14 to 13), it does create a lot of optimist as he enters the Singles Tournament, where he’s a two-time runner-up. Knowing Galz, that son of a bitch has been sandbagging all season and is waiting in the weeds to pop up Saturday and bite someone.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

This week’s Game of the Night pitted JV and Brent against Erik and Nick. Early on, Erik and Nick were giving their opponents the business, racing out to a 10 – 0 lead. Nick scored six points against Brent during that stretch, while Erik chipped in another four points against JV.

JV quieted the storm in the top of the third inning with four points, but Nick immediately added two more points in the bottom of the inning, making it 12 – 4.

As we’ve seen countless times, no lead should ever be considered comfortable or safe. Nick and Erik’s lead in this game was no different. In the fourth inning, JV scored two points followed by five from Brent and in the blink of an eye their deficit shrunk to 12 – 11.

The duo extended their scoring run to 13 unanswered points when JV pounded Erik in the fifth inning, 7 – 1, giving his squad a 17 – 12 lead.

Nick rebounded nicely in the bottom of the inning by scoring four precious points to keep his team in the game, down just 17 – 16.

In the top of the sixth inning, Erik had an opportunity to win the game. He possessed a 7 – 5 lead after three bags and a cornhole would give him a 10 – 5 lead in the round. Those five points would’ve been enough to earn a victory, pending JV missed his final bag off the board. None of those scenarios mattered, though, because Erik only boarded his final bag. JV did miss, rubbing a little salt in the missed opportunity wound. Still, Erik gave his team a 19 – 17 lead by winning the round, 8 – 5.

The bags flipped to Nick and Brent, both of whom are players who want late game opportunities like this. However, both players looked as though the moment overwhelmed them a bit. They combined for just 10 points in the round, with Brent snagging a 6 – 4 advantage, knotting the game at 19 – 19.

Here we were again, bags in JV’s hands with an opportunity to clinch a win. A similar opportunity presented itself in last week’s Game of the Night, but Erik withstood that challenge and closed the game by getting the best of JV. Both players held firm in this game, playing the round with superb strategy and washing the round at 7 – 7. The missed bag from both JV and Erik was an aggressive cut shot (Erik) and an airmail attempt over two blockers (JV).

Back at the other end, Nick and Brent had a shot at redemption after crapping the bed with the game on the line in the last inning. Brent applied pressure with a first bag cornhole, followed by a front-board miss from Nick. Brent’s second bag was also a cornhole, giving him a 6 – 0 lead in the round. Nick drained a much-needed cornhole on his second bag.

Brent’s third bag was a block, the perfect shot under the circumstances. Nick nestled his third bag behind Brent’s, creating a two bag pile.

Brent attempted to push the pile on his final throw, rather than board it to take an 8 – 4 lead and force Nick to airmail or push the pile just to limit damage and extend the game. He was wide of the target and had too much heat on the bag, missing off the board. Nick still had to be in the hole on his final throw, but now an airmail would wash the round at 7 – 7, or pushing the entire pile would wash the round at 9 – 9. He opted to stay skinny and hard up the middle, something his wife has never seen in her life. He rammed the pile, but not hard enough because all three bags sat on the rim of the hole. The round finished in favor of Brent, 7 – 5, which was good enough for a 21 – 19 comeback victory.

The comeback was the first of the season for both Brent and JV, while also handing Nick his second “choke” of the season and Erik his first of the season.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT

In Game 5, Galz and Erik had a 16 – 13 lead over Brent and JV. The bags were in Erik and JV’s hands, which is becoming a common head-to-head match-up producing late-game heroics.

In recent weeks, Erik is the chink in JV’s closing armor. For the second consecutive week, Erik was unfazed by JV’s closing prowess, taking the fight right to him by draining three cornholes on his way to a 9 – 2 win in the round, giving his team a 21 – 13 victory. JV rarely blows saves, especially in such blowout fashion. But Erik has his number lately, which is blossoming into an entertaining rivalry.

Congratulations to Erik for earning this week’s MSM!

NEWS AND NOTES

• As mentioned earlier, KP finished with a 19.7 KPM. His 83% accuracy helped him score 6.2 points per round and 1.45 cornholes per round. Despite the numbers, he finished with a 0.500 record, 3 – 3.
• Nick ended the night with an 18.8 KPM, 5.9 ppr, 74% accuracy, 1.45 cornholes per round, and 2 – 3 record.
• Brent posted an 18.7 KPM, 5.9 ppr, 80% accuracy, 1.36 cornholes per round, and a stellar 5 – 1 record.
• JV finished with a 15.6 KPM, 4.9 ppr, 64% accuracy, 1.17 cornholes per round, and 3 – 2 record.
• Dan posted a 15.3 KPM, 4.9 ppr, 71% accuracy, 1.02 cornholes per round, and 4 – 3 record.
• Erik’s numbers mirrored Dan’s in many ways – 15.3 KPM, 4.9 ppr, 72% accuracy, 1.02 cornholes per round, and 3 – 6 record.

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – Action returned to Dibble’s house for week 10, which is always filled with phenomenal food, a great atmosphere, and a helluva time. This week, though, Mother Nature decided to add a wrinkle by dropping a monsoon on us.

We successfully completed two games before a long rain delay pushed us into the garage for cover. Once in the garage, drinks flowed, shots were ripped and non-stop laughter ensued.

After an hour, the sky cleared and JV and KP used leaf blowers to dry the court so cornhole could continue.

The hour of excessive drinking in the garage was immediately evident. It was as if the guys couldn’t play a competitive game to save their lives (though individual level of play remained high). Of the 12 total games played, 10 were decided by 10 points or more, and three of the blowouts were bun runs, including back-to-back in games 6 and 7.

• Game 6 – Not the Real Dan and Bushie teamed up against JV and Not the Real Scott. Bushie tallied one point in the top of the first inning against JV, while Not the Real Dan added five more points in the bottom of the first. In the second inning, those two combined for nine more points to make the score 15 – 0. Bushie ended all hope when he hit a two bag drag on his final throw to score a 9 – 2 advantage in the top of the third inning, winning the game 21 – 0. It was a sick shot to secure the victory, one worthy of a Mushroom Stamp Moment.
• Game 7 – Nick and Brent formed a super team against Not the Real Dan and Bushie. This one had the look of a bun run on paper, and that’s exactly how it unfolded. Brent hit Not the Real Dan with a 9 – 1 round to start the game. Nick piled on with a 7 – 3 advantage over Bushie, followed by three more points from Brent to make it 15 – 0. Nick finished the job in the bottom of the second inning with a 4-bagger and 12 – 6 win over Bushie, capping the game at 21 – 0.
• Game 11 – JV was mad as hell about his earlier bun run and wanted to take it out on someone. His newest enemy is Nick – he ALWAYS wants a piece of him. So, he summoned Nick to the court and requested KP and Not the Real Dan to join. Nick was feeling froggy after being called out, so he leaped and snagged Not the Real Dan as his partner, clearly wanting to stick it to JV by winning as an underdog. That plan didn’t work out so well. Nick joined the bun run crew and Not the Real Dan earned his second bun run of the night. JV outscored Nick head-to-head 18 – 8, while KP bested Not the Real Dan 19 – 8, and the bun run was complete in just three innings.

Not the Real Dan (twice), Not the Real Scott, JV, Bushie and Nick all lined up together and did naked suicides in Dibble’s driveway. If you’ve never played basketball, a suicide is where you sprint the length of the court and back, touching various lines along the way. The five-man bun run was a LEG original, and let’s just say it won’t be forgotten any time soon.

As the boys were finishing their naked sprints, Mother Nature thought it would be even funnier by unloading rain to moisten their naked bodies. I’m glad she laughed, because everyone else in attendance looked for the puke bucket.

Not the Real Dan, aided by a BAC north of 0.20, flashed back to his days as a Marine and got dressed in the rain, deciding only to put shorts back on. LEG doesn’t have a no shirt, no shoes, no service policy, so the games continued in down-pouring rain. Eventually Brent took his shirt off, KP took his shoes and shorts off (he’s fat, so he kept his shirt on), and a few other brave souls stepped out to soak themselves for a few more games (click here for video of the rain action: https://youtube.com/shorts/lxnTtUcGMfo?feature=share)

Only at Dibble’s house!

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Because there were so many blowouts, the Game of the Night wasn’t difficult to choose this week. In game 8 Dibble and Erik took on Brent and JV. At first, this appeared to be on the verge of a third straight bun run (as mentioned earlier, games 6 and 7 were bun runs) with Dibble and Erik building a 13 – 2 lead thanks to hot starts from both players.

In the fifth inning Brent gave his team some traction with a 4-bagger, snagging three points over Dibble. JV tacked on three more points in the bottom of the inning, cutting their deficit to 13 – 8.

Brent earned three more points in the sixth inning, while Erik scored one to give his squad a 14 – 11 lead. Dibble dropped a 10-point round on Brent in the seventh inning, but that was good for only one point because Brent hung tough with a 9-point round. 15 – 11 in favor of Dibble and Erik.

In the bottom of the seventh, JV got red hot and sank three cornholes on his way to a 10 – 4 advantage, giving his team a 17 – 15 lead. An early blowout suddenly looked like a choke/comeback.

Dibble scored his second straight 10-point round in the eighth inning (10 – 7 over Brent) to take the lead back, 18 – 17. In the bottom of the eighth JV was poised to close the game out after Erik’s first bag landed on the board but out of play, serving as a bumper. JV promptly drained a cornhole with his first bag. Erik responded, using his bumper to perfection for a cornhole. JV’s second bag scored, but was out of play as another bumper on the left side of the board. They were even, 4 – 4 after two bags each.

Erik split the bumpers for a third bag cornhole. JV looked unusually tense when releasing his third bag, which landed short and left for one point.

Erik stayed down the middle on his final bag for a cornhole, taking a 10 – 5 lead in the round. JV’s final bag had to be in the hole to extend the game. It was clear he didn’t trust a slide shot with stickier than normal board conditions, so he reverted back to his usual short airmail throw – high, landing a few inches before the hole and creeping in. He threw it well, likely expecting the humid boards to hold the bag’s path. Instead, his bag hydroplaned upon hitting the board and flew off the back of the board.

Game over. A 21 – 17 win for Erik and Dibble.

Despite the slow start for Brent and JV, they recovered nicely to push Dibble and Erik to the limit. This was a phenomenal game to watch, with all players balling out.

• Dibble ended the game with 62 gross points and 18 cornholes, averaging 7.75 points per round
• Erik ended the game with 47 gross points and 11 cornholes, averaging 5.9 points per round
• Brent ended the game with 58 gross points and 16 cornholes, averaging 7.25 points per round
• JV ended the game with 45 gross points and 11 cornholes, averaging 5.6 points per round

Erik’s 10-point round to clinch the game earns this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment, particularly because he was down 3 – 1 after one bag against the best closer in the league. Rebounding with three straight cornholes to score a 10-point round and hold-off JV is big time. Congratulations to Erik for this week’s MSM!

NEWS AND NOTES

• Erik had a great week with an 18.2 KPM and 2 – 0 record while averaging 5.7 ppr, 75% accuracy and 1.36 cornholes per round
• Dibble overcame the normal “host curse,” playing very well. His 20.1 KPM was his highest since week 4, helping him to a 4 – 2 record. Dibble averaged 6.3 ppr, 76% accuracy and 1.60 cornholes per round
• Brent wins weirdest stat of the week. His 21.5 KPM is fantastic, yet it didn’t produce victories. He finished with a 2 – 3 record despite posting excellent numbers – 6.7 ppr, 83% accuracy and 1.70 cornholes per round
• JV continues to look more and more like his old self while battling through new mechanics, this week with a 15.1 KPM, 4.8 ppr, 67% accuracy and 1.06 cornholes per round
• Bushie finished 4 – 3 with a 16.3 KPM, 5.1 ppr, 66% accuracy and 1.23 cornholes per round
• I’m pretty sure Justin Timberlake wrote, “Mirrors” for KP and Nick – “It’s like you’re my mirror! My mirror staring back at me!” Both players threw a 21.3 KPM and averaged 6.6 ppr. Nick was slightly more accurate (77% vs. 76%) while KP sank a fraction more cornholes per round (1.76 vs. 1.75). For the entire season, the story is the same: KPM – Nick 19.3 vs. KP 19.0; points per round – Nick 6.0 vs. KP 5.9; accuracy – Nick 78% vs. KP 75%; cornholes per round – Nick 1.46 vs. KP 1.46; and head-to-head points for the entire season – Nick 270 vs. KP 264