Now that the 2022 LEG season has come to a close, it’s time to reflect and award some of the players for elevating their play this season. For the first time, league members are asked to vote for winners of the following awards: Rookie of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Most Valuable Player.

The nominees for each award are listed below, and league members can cast their vote by clicking on the player of their choice. The case for each nominee is also outlined below. The beauty of the league-wide vote is that each person may value different aspects of what it takes to win an award. For example, one person may emphasize tournament performances, while another person may focus strictly on regular season statistics.

With that said, let’s jump into the case for the 2022 nominees!

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Several rookies joined LEG in the 2022 season, including a handful who only played in the Preseason Kick-Off and Postseason Tournament. After reviewing all the data, three nominees stood above the rest.

Brent – wasted little time putting the league on notice when he partnered with Turley to win the Preseason Kick-Off Tournament. He had another great tournament run by finishing third in the Singles Tournament. His regular season numbers were also fantastic – finished #4 in the Power Rankings, won games at a 67% clip (overall record of 33 – 16), posted an 18.5 KPM, 74% accuracy, 5.8 ppr and 1.42 cpr.

Dan – Dan joined for the back half of the season and immediately climbed in the Power Rankings, finishing #9 overall. His ~.500 record (14 – 15 overall) doesn’t reflect how strong of an individual player he is. He posted a 15.4 KPM, 74% accuracy, 5.0 ppr and 0.99 cpr.

Pete – like Dan, Pete joined for the second half of the season. Pete’s only tournament appearance was the Singles Tournament, where he encountered the usual rookie struggles. But his regular season numbers were great, especially for a rookie – finished #14 in the Power Rankings, posted a 13.9 KPM, 66% accuracy, 4.5 points per round (“PPR”) and 0.91 cornholes per round (“CPR”).

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

Narrowing down the list of nominees for Most Improved Player was very difficult, which means the race to win this award is likely to be very tight. Below we will dive into the numbers from 2021 to 2022 to help the voters make a decision.

Jack – for someone who doesn’t play as often as most of the group, Jack’s 2022 numbers jumped a lot compared to 2021.

• KPM – increased to 11.9 in 2022, compared to 10.2 in 2021 (16.7% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 61% in 2022, compared to 59% in 2021 (3.4% increase)
• PPR – increased to 3.9 in 2022, compared to 3.4 in 2021 (14.7% increase)
• CPR – increased to 0.72 in 2022, compared to 0.53 in 2021 (35.9% increase)

Tony – another guy who has the talent, but doesn’t appear as often, Tony made the most of his five games in 2022.

• KPM – increased to 13.5 in 2022, compared to 12.1 in 2021 (11.6% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 63% in 2022, compared to 55% in 2021 (14.6% increase)
• PPR – increased to 4.3 in 2022, compared to 3.8 in 2021 (13.2% increase)
• CPR – increased to 0.89 in 2022, compared to 0.82 in 2021 (8.5% increase)

JV – continues to get better and better, despite claiming he doesn’t love the game. He re-worked his mechanics this year, and still produced a better statistical season while fighting through the growing pains of his new throw.

• KPM – increased to 15.0 in 2022, compared to 13.6 in 2021 (10.3% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 64% in 2022, compared to 62% in 2021 (3.2% increase)
• PPR – increased to 4.7 in 2022, compared to 4.3 in 2021 (9.3% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.08 in 2022, compared to 0.92 in 2021 (17.4% increase)

Nick – you might be asking yourself how the perennial stats leader is in the mix for Most Improved Player. Easy answer – he keeps getting better and setting the bar higher for the rest of the league.

• KPM – increased to 19.6 in 2022, compared to 18.9 in 2021 (3.7% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 76% in 2022, compared to 73% in 2021 (4.1% increase)
• PPR – increased to 6.1 in 2022, compared to 5.9 in 2021 (3.4% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.53 in 2022, compared to 1.48 in 2021 (3.4% increase)

Erik – the lefty from French Lick not only finds himself regularly in championship contention during tournaments the last few years, his statistics are also proving that he’s capable of carrying a team on a deep tournament run.

• KPM – increased to 15.2 in 2022, compared to 13.1 in 2021 (16.0% increase)
• Accuracy – decreased to 69% in 2022, compared to 72% in 2021 (4.2% decrease)
• PPR – increased to 4.8 in 2022, compared to 4.3 in 2021 (11.6% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.03 in 2022, compared to 0.71 in 2021 (45.1% increase)

Barker – another guy that rarely shows up during the regular season, yet is so skilled that he’s second all-time in total LEG championships with four, including a 2022 Singles Championship.

• KPM – increased to 15.9 in 2022, compared to 14.4 in 2021 (10.4% increase)
• Accuracy – decreased to 76% in 2022, compared to 78% in 2021 (2.6% decrease)
• PPR – increased to 5.1 in 2022, compared to 4.7 in 2021 (8.5% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.03 in 2022, compared to 0.81 in 2021 (27.2% increase)

KP – statistically he was better in 2022, but it didn’t produce any championships – he finished second in the Singles Tournament and the Postseason Tournament.

• KPM – increased to 19.6 in 2022, compared to 16.3 in 2021 (20.3% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 77% in 2022, compared to 72% in 2021 (6.9% increase)
• PPR – increased to 6.1 in 2022, compared to 5.4 in 2021 (13.0% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.52 in 2022, compared to 1.16 in 2021 (31.0% increase)

Turley – a knee injury might have kept Turley from becoming a triple crown winner in 2022. He swept the Preseason Kick-Off and Postseason Tournament championships in rather convincing fashion. And, his regular season statistics improved compared to 2021.

• KPM – increased to 17.0 in 2022, compared to 14.7 in 2021 (15.7% increase)
• Accuracy – increased to 76% in 2022, compared to 69% in 2021 (10.2% increase)
• PPR – increased to 5.4 in 2022, compared to 4.7 in 2021 (14.9% increase)
• CPR – increased to 1.19 in 2022, compared to 0.97 in 2021 (22.7% increase)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

Many of the nominees for Most Valuable Player are also nominees in the other two awards. Therefore, we won’t spend a lot of time recapping the accomplishments. We will, however, provide new information to consider, when applicable.

Brent – the regular season statistics speak for themselves, as does his Preseason Kick-Off Tournament championship and third place finish in the Singles Tournament. Brent did not play in the Postseason Tournament.

Turley – what else can be said about Turley’s stellar 2022 campaign? The only “blemish” was the missed opportunity to win the Singles Tournament because of a DNP (“did not play” – knee injury).

Nick – exceptional regular season, statistically, as outlined above and evidenced by his tie for #2 in the Power Rankings. Unfortunately did not produce much tournament success in 2022, but that’s also comparing to a ridiculous two-year run where he won all four doubles tournaments in 2020 and 2021.

Brendan – appeared only twice during the 2022 season, but made the most of those appearances. In one regular season appearance he posted a 16.2 KPM, 80% accuracy, 5.2 ppr and 1.03 cpr. Then he partnered with Turley in the Postseason Tournament and won a championship.

KP – no championships in 2022 stings, but two runner-up finishes (Singles Tournament and Postseason Tournament) in a deepened talent pool make it apparent that his game is improving.

Barker – he did not play in the Postseason Tournament, but steam-rolled the field in the Singles Tournament and managed to post better statistics in 2022 (compared to 2021) despite playing only 16 total games.

Scott G. – he only plays the tournaments, and is almost always a threat to win a championship. This season he finished in second place in the Preseason Kick-Off Tournament and fourth place in the Singles Tournament.

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – The sun has set on the 2022 LEG season, yet that glimmer of light in the darkness is Turley’s star reflecting off The Cup. Turley becomes the fourth player to claim two championships in the same year, joining JG in 2017, Barker and JV in 2018, and Nick in 2020 and 2021. His wire-to-wire titles in 2022 give him three straight championships, which is the second-longest streak in LEG history behind Nick’s four consecutive titles.

Turley didn’t win the 2022 Postseason Tournament alone – he joined forces with Brendan to form “Tool Time”. Though Brendan looked the part of Al Borland, he was anything but the sidekick in this tournament. He was the better player statistically and won the head-to-head match-up against his opponent in every tournament game.

Don’t get it twisted, Turley played well. It’s hard to win a championship. Period. But it’s almost impossible to win a championship without both players playing well. Statistically, Turley was just a little off his season average, primarily because cornholes were harder to come by on this day. He averaged 4.78 points per round (“ppr”), 0.81 cornholes per round and 79% accuracy for the tournament (he averaged 5.4 ppr, 1.19 cornholes per round and 76% accuracy during the season).

Meanwhile, Brendan averaged 5.19 ppr, 0.97 cornholes per round and 81% accuracy. They key to their success? Accuracy. Neither player drained cornholes at an alarming rate, but they littered the board with bags, creating more obstacles for their opponents to navigate while trying to gain a scoring advantage. “Tool Time” was comfortable playing conservative, placing bags on the board while watching their opponents grow impatient and attempting more aggressive shots.

Was that their strategy? Was that just how their “misses” came to rest? Those are great questions for them. No matter the answer, it worked to the tune of a 2022 Postseason Championship.

HOW “TOOL TIME” DROPPED THE HAMMER

The suspense of who won is broken, but let’s revisit how it all played out.

Eight teams were divided into two pools consisting of four teams each. Round robin games were played within each pool, and the results of pool play were used to determine tournament seeding. This is how round robin play and subsequent tournament seeding unfolded:

Pool A:

1. “Tool Time” (Turley and Brendan) finished 3 – 0, earning the #2 overall seed in the tournament
2. “The Nature Boys” (Galz and Bushie) finished 1 – 2, earning the #5 overall seed in the tournament
3. “Log Smokers” (Bob and Dan F.) finished 1 – 2, earning the #6 overall seed in the tournament
4. “Average Joes (“AJs”) in the House” (JV and Coach Mike) finished 1 – 2, earning the #7 overall seed in the tournament

Pool B:

1. “Benoit Bag Boys” (Dibble and Erik) finished 3 – 0, earning the #1 overall seed in the tournament
2. “Step Brothers” (Scott G. and Jeff M.) finished 2 – 1, earning the #3 overall seed in the tournament
3. “Dickheads” (Nick and Steve-O) finished 1 – 2, earning the #4 overall seed in the tournament
4. “Erotic City” (KP and Dan R.) finished 0 – 3, earning the #8 overall seed in the tournament

“Benoit Bag Boys” looked strong through round robin, coasting to victories of 21 – 8, 21 – 13, and 21 – 6. Dibble’s tournament demons are well documented, but earning the #1 seed was an enormous first step in exorcising those demons. That is, until his team’s first round match against #8 “Erotic City”.

All his struggles surged to his head when Dan R. outscored him head-to-head and KP averaged 7.7 ppr against Erik, resulting in “Erotic City” undressing the undefeated #1 seed, 21 – 5.

The remaining first round matches were all chalk (i.e., the higher seed won).

• #4 “Dickheads” vs. #5 “The Nature Boys” – “Dickheads” mushroom stamped “The Nature Boys,” 21 – 2, despite not even playing well. Nick averaged just 4.4 ppr and Steve-O 4.5 ppr. However, Galz hadn’t properly summoned the Ric Flair spirit – he was too sober and hadn’t yet slayed his groupies waiting for him in the bushes. Actually, his struggles were likely due to throwing while wearing his suitcoat, which clearly wasn’t easy given his 2.0 ppr. Bushie wasn’t much help, averaging just 3.3 ppr.
• #3 “Step Brothers” vs. #6 “Log Smokers” – “Log Smokers” held a late, 16 – 13 lead. Then Jeff M. stopped trying to finesse his throw and turned into an athlete with excellent hand-eye coordination. Jeff dominated Bob down the stretch, finishing the game with rounds of 4 – 2, 4 – 2, 6 – 6, and 6 – 0, the last of which was the game clincher. During that critical stretch, Scott also neutralized Dan F., who was heating up in an attempt to carry Bob to victory. “Step Brothers” pulled out a 21 – 17 win.
• #2 “Tool Time” vs. #7 “AJs in the House” – “Tool Time” raced out to a 14 – 6 lead, but “AJs in the House” battled back, cutting the deficit to 14 – 10. Unfortunately they could not manufacture anymore points, losing 21 – 10.

Second round Winners’ Bracket matches were set.

• #4 “Dickheads” vs. #8 “Erotic City” – After looking terrible and going winless in pool play, Dan R. and KP continued to write their Cinderalla story in the tournament. Dan averaged 5.5 ppr while dominating Steve-O head-to-head, 22 – 10. KP averaged 7 ppr, helping him outscore Nick head-to-head. The #8 seed advanced again, this time blowing out “Dickheads,” 21 – 3.
• #2 “Tool Time” vs. “3 “Step Brothers” – Jeff M. and Scott G. slept through game time. When they woke up, they found themselves in a 15 – 2 hole against “Tool Time”. Honestly, “Step Brothers” hadn’t played that poorly, despite the scoreboard. Scott surrendered only three of those 15 points, and although Jeff M. gave up the remaining 12 points, he did so while playing well. Brendan started the game with rounds of 6, 8, 5, and 8. Jeff weathered the storm and then added seven quick points for his team before Scott tacked on six more points. Suddenly, “Step Brothers” was back in the game, down just 17 – 15 and possessing all the momentum after their quick 13 – 2 run. Jeff and Scott both missed prime opportunities in the final rounds, while Brendan and Turley capitalized on their chances, allowing them to escape with a 21 – 15 win.

The Winners’ Bracket quarterfinal featured #2 “Tool Time” vs. #8 “Erotic City” with the winner gaining a significant advantage by becoming the only undefeated team left in the tournament. “Erotic City” couldn’t have asked for a better start, building an 11 – 8 lead and winning every round during that stretch except one – an 8-point round for Brendan. Confidence was not an issue for “Erotic City,” but patience was…particularly for KP. “Tool Time” clung to a 14 – 13 lead, and it appeared KP grew tired of the blockers Turley continued to throw. He began throwing airmails and cut shots in hopes of putting pressure on Turley to have to push through his own blockers, rather than continue to allow Turley to nickel and dime by throwing bags on the board. KP failed to execute those more difficult shots, costing his team a chance to win. Turley had low-scoring rounds of 2, 4 and 4 points down the stretch, yet KP couldn’t capitalize, scoring 4, 3 and 3 himself.

“Tool Time” finished the game on a 13 – 2 run, capturing a 21 – 13 victory and sending “Erotic City” to the Losers’ Bracket.

LOSERS’ BRACKET LUNACY

“AJs in the House” (JV and Coach Mike) – JV and Coach looked as though they had found some mojo upon taking a 12 – 7 lead over “Log Smokers” in an important Losers’ Bracket match. But Bob and Dan F. combined for 11 points in consecutive rounds, leap-frogging into an 18 – 12 advantage. “AJs in the House” clawed back to a 20 – 17 deficit, but couldn’t get over the hump. “Log Smokers” held on for a 21 – 17 victory. That loss sent “AJs in the House” into a tailspin. They were eliminated after losing their next match to “Step Brothers,” 21 – 3. Lately, both Coach and JV have been searching to find the “fun” in tournaments again. Sometimes forgetting the results and focusing on enjoying the environment with friends is helpful. These two have great chemistry, and despite their 0 – 3 finish, they seemed to play with more joy than in recent tournaments. Hopefully that helps each player get back on the winning track in the future.

“Dickheads” (Nick and Steve-O) – Nick did his best to carry Steve-O back into contention, searching for their third LEG championship as partners. Unfortunately for Nick, Steve-O looked more like a SpaceX astronaut than a cornhole player. He booked a one-way ticket to Uranus, and “Dickheads” limped to two

more losses – 21 – 18 to “Log Smokers” and 21 – 11 to “Benoit Bag Boys”. Considering these two have two prior championships as partners, this tournament has to be considered a disappointment given their 1 – 3 record and early exit.

“Step Brothers” (Scott G. and Jeff M.) – “Step Brothers” looked to bounce back after a disappointing loss to “Tool Time” in the Winners’ Bracket. Unfortunately they faced “The Nature Boys” just when Galz was elevating his game. “The Nature Boys” handed “Step Brothers” a crushing loss, 21 – 7, pushing them within one game of elimination. They kept hope alive by beating “AJs in the House” in an elimination game, 21 – 3. With their backs still against the wall, “Step Brothers” looked good early against “Benoit Bag Boys,” taking a 10 – 9 lead. But “Benoit Bag Boys” pieced together a 10 – 0 run to blow the game open, 19 – 10, and eventually eliminated “Step Brothers” with a 21 – 14 victory. Considering they were the #3 seed, I’m sure “Step Brothers” felt as though they left some wins on the table. But, there are several positives for this team, including Jeff M. playing solidly in his first LEG tournament. He averaged 4.03 ppr, but more impressive is his 60% accuracy. That’s great accuracy, especially as a starting point. As he gains more experience, the accuracy will only increase, as will his cornhole rate (0.81 cornholes per round for the tournament). Even though Scott G. didn’t play to his usual standards, they still had an excellent opportunity to knock off “Tool Time” in the Winners’ Bracket. Who knows how things could’ve turned out had they won that match…it’s such a fine line between winning and losing.

“Benoit Bag Boys” (Dibble and Erik) – After earning the #1 seed, these guys went into a freefall. As previously mentioned, they were upset in the first round by #8 seed, “Erotic City”. “The Nature Boys” then rolled them 21 – 9 in the Losers’ Bracket, giving them no more room for error. Another loss, and their day was done.

After the blowout loss to “The Nature Boys,” Dibble slumped to the sidelines and murmured, “I don’t know what happens to me in these tournaments. I just can’t ever find it when it matters.” He stared at the updated bracket in amazement, trying to figure out how it unraveled so quickly.

Credit to Dibble and Erik, they avoided elimination for two more games, stringing together wins over “Dickheads” (21 – 11) and “Step Brothers” (21 – 14). But that earned them one more date with “The Nature Boys” and the result wasn’t any different. “Benoit Bag Boys” were sent packing after a 21 – 8 defeat, with Bushie outscoring Dibble head-to-head and Galz getting the best of Erik thanks to two huge rounds to end the game (10 – 5 and 9 – 7).

Erik played to his normal standards in this tournament, while Dibble was almost one full point per round lower than normal, and was 12% less accurate than his season average. Troubling numbers that are not a championship contending recipe.

“Log Smokers” (Bob and Dan F.) – This was a gritty team. “Log Smokers” weren’t always pretty to watch, but they kept battling in every match, refusing to give in. After losing their first match of the tournament, “Log Smokers” ripped off three consecutive wins in the Losers’ Bracket to fight back into championship contention. They beat “AJs in the House” 21 – 17, “Dickheads” 21 – 18, and “The Nature Boys” 21 – 4. Dan F. averaged 6.05 ppr during the three game win streak, but ironically lost head-to-head matches with JV (51 – 50 in total points) and Nick (49 – 48 in total points). Bob was the one who pushed his team over the top for those victories by winning his head-to-head matches handily.

The reward for “Log Smokers” winning three straight games was a showdown with “Erotic City,” the winner advancing for a shot at dealing “Tool Time” their first loss.

Dan R. was lights-out for “Erotic City,” averaging 5.7 points per round and scoring 13 of his team’s 21 points in a 21 – 9 victory.

“Log Smokers” dropped to the Double Losers’ Bracket, playing “The Nature Boys” in an elimination match, with the winner advancing to the semifinals.

“Log Smokers” jumped out to an early 12 – 6 lead before surrendering a crippling 15 – 2 run by “The Nature Boys”. Bob and Dan F. combined to average just 1.75 points per round in the last two rounds of that game, which was their undoing.

Nevertheless, their fourth place finish and late surge through the Losers’ Bracket was something to be proud of. And, they were arguably the best-dress team at the event, looking every bit like Cheech and Chong.

“The Nature Boys” (Galz and Bushie) – We already know “The Nature Boys” made a run to the semifinals. What is most impressive is how they got there. Two consecutive wins in the Losers’ Bracket (21 – 9 over “Benoit Bag Boys” and 21 – 7 over “Step Brothers”), followed by a blowout loss to “Log Smokers” (21 – 4) put them in an elimination game against the suddenly resurgent “Benoit Bag Boys”. At this point Galz was on a tear, determined to carry Bushie as far as possible. They beat up “Benoit Bag Boys” 21 – 8 and avenged their earlier loss to “Log Smokers,” 21 – 14. In the win over “Log Smokers,” Galz closed the game with a 9 – 1 round over Bob, culminating a fantastic performance that saw him score 18 of his team’s 21 points.

The semifinal match against “Erotic City” was an uphill battle from the start. Bushie misunderstood the meaning of his team’s name – rather than representing Ric Flair, he interpreted “The Nature Boys” as he should consume every type of edible Mother Nature has to offer. Though he was floating, his dead weight was too much for Galz to carry any further.

Galz averaged 5.6 points per round against KP, but it wasn’t quite enough because KP averaged 6.4 ppr. At the other end of the boards, Dan stayed hot, averaging 5.5 ppr while scoring 14 of his team’s 21 points. “Erotic City” advanced to the championship with a 21 – 5 victory, while “The Nature Boys” made the podium with their third place finish.

Galz was excellent for much of the day, and deserved more consideration than he received for All-Tournament Team honors. Individually, he was also the best-dressed of any player at the tournament. If Bushie could have given anything besides a blank stare in the final handful of games, “The Nature Boys” might have had a legitimate shot to win a title.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Sandwiched between “Erotic City’s” Losers’ Bracket win over “Log Smokers” (21 – 9) and Double Losers’ Bracket win over “The Nature Boys” (21 – 5) was a rematch against “Tool Time”. Similar to the first match between these teams, “Erotic City” started well, taking a 10 – 5 lead. But “Tool Time” stuck to the game plan of “death by one thousand papercuts” and manufactured a 16 – 0 run over seven rounds to win in runaway fashion, 21 – 10.

Now, these teams faced off one final time with The Cup on the line. “Erotic City” was confident, starting each of the prior two games strong and possessing leads before ultimately losing.

“Tool Time” was also supremely confident, given their undefeated record meant “Erotic City” needed three straight wins to claim The Cup, while “Tool Time” needed only one victory.

“Tool Time” wasted little time in their pursuit of The Cup, stunning “Erotic City” with a 15 – 0 run to open the first championship match. It looked like they were going to waltz to a title.

KP tried to give “Erotic City” some life with four points against Turley, making the score 15 – 4. But “Tool Time” kept pounding, upping their lead to 18 – 4.

Dan R. and KP refused to go away easily, scratching and clawing to stay in the match with a 14 – 1 run during rounds 11 through 16, cutting their deficit to 19 – 18. KP scored 9 points during the run, while Dan R. added 5 points.

For the first time all day, Turley and Brendan were on the ropes, and visibly nervous. In the 17^th round KP had an enormous advantage with two bags sitting on the hole, and another bag on the back of the board. Meanwhile, two of Turley’s first three bags were on the board and out of play. KP contemplated a normal slide shot versus an airmail with his final bag, the goal being to take both bags on the hole in for three cornholes and a 10-point round. That would secure a victory, advance “Erotic City” to game 2 of the championship, and potentially be the momentum swing “Erotic City” needed for an improbable championship comeback.

This match was later in the day, and conditions had slowed down significantly. KP opted for the airmail, thinking a normal slide shot wouldn’t be enough to take all three bags into the hole. As soon as the shot left his hand, KP encouraged his bag, “Be as good as you look!” The airmail was on target, connecting with the two bags on the hole and the third bag on the back of the board. Instead of going in the hole, KP’s final bag trampolined off the board, taking one of his bags with it, while the two bags on the hole pinched together, refusing to fall.

Turley opted to softly board his final bag for a 3 – 2 round win, giving his team a 20 – 18 advantage. Fortunate luck for “Tool Time” and unfortunate physics for “Erotic City”. The errant shot from KP was deflating, once again demonstrating that “Tool Time” was more than happy living with the results of their opponents attempting shots with higher degree of difficulty.

Brendan added the final point needed for a title in the next round, and “Tool Time” celebrated their championship! They were smart and steady on a day where, for whatever reason, almost every player seemed to be a bit “off” their normal game. “Tool Time” deployed the proper strategy, and in hindsight, seven other teams wished they had executed it as well.

Brendan becomes a first-time champion with this win! Congratulations to him! Turley now has three consecutive championships, and seems poised to win more.

Dan was excellent in helping his team finish as runners-up. Questions continue to swirl about KP after reaching the championship for the fifth time, losing for the fourth time. Only time can provide those answers, but right now critics have a hard time viewing him as a championship player.

TOILET BOWL

As the first four teams eliminated, “AJs in the House,” “Dickheads,” “Step Brothers,” and “Benoit Bag Boys” qualified for the Toilet Bowl Championship. Dibble and Coach Mike rushed to leave the tournament early, leaving holes in two for the four teams.

So, Erik and JV partnered to form “AJs in the House 2.0” and “Log Smokers” slid into the Toilet Bowl as the fourth team.

“Dickheads” somehow managed to beat “AJs in the House 2.0” with Steve-O stumbling into just enough cornholes to help Nick squeak out a win.

“Log Smokers” won the rubber match against “Step Brothers” in the other semifinal, 21 – 14.

In the Toilet Bowl Championship, it felt like “Dickheads” were playing 1 vs. 2. In a surprise to absolutely no one, “Log Smokers” coasted to a Toilet Bowl Championship, 21- 10. Honestly, it’s a great consolation price for Bob and Dan F., given how well they played all day.

After winning the Toilet Bowl, Bob admitted to several players that he privately told Dan F. before the tournament that this was his goal. Congratulations, fellas! You are with good company on that trophy.

Bob, next time you put something in the atmosphere, try aiming for The Cup!

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

The top four players receiving votes from the rest of the group were named to the 2022 Postseason All-Tournament Team.

Dan R. helped lead “Erotic City” to a runner-up finish, earning him a spot on the All-Tournament Team for the second time in his career. He allowed the third-fewest points per round to his opponent, giving up just 4.15 ppr on the day, helping him record a +0.41 differential per round (“DPR”), the fourth-best of all players – in other words, Dan gained an average of 0.41 points on his opponent every round he played.

His “Erotic City” partner, KP, was also voted to the All-Tournament Team, marking the sixth time in his career that he’s received that honor. Though KP was well below his level of play throughout the season, he still managed the third-best points per round (5.43) and second-best DPR (+0.69).

Brendan was consistent all day and quite possibly the smartest player in the tournament, regularly daring his opponents to execute a higher risk shot. The strategy worked in his favor more often than not, evidenced by his +1.33 DPR, the highest DPR of any player in the tournament. When you factor in his membership on the championship squad, it’s a no-brainer that he was voted to the All-Tournament Team for the second time in his career.

Turley was named to the All-Tournament Team for the third time in his career, winning his first MVP honors in the 2022 Postseason Tournament. While Turley was not the best version of himself, he did help lead “Tool Time” to a championship while going head-to-head with the other team’s best player throughout most of the day, and still managed to post a +0.11 DPR.

Congratulations to Turley on his first MVP, and to Brendan, Dan R. and KP for their All-Tournament Team honors.

APPENDIX: THE STATISTICAL SLUMP

For the stat nerds out there, this appendix summarizes each player’s tournament statistics while also comparing to their season average statistics. Scott G. doesn’t have regular season statistics, so the numbers reflected below are his performance from the 2022 Singles Tournament. If this table isn’t enough to prove most players were “off” compared to normal, consider this…only three players made a 4-bagger during tournament play – Jeff. M., Erik and Nick (each player had one). Typically there are 5x that amount, or more.

	Season Average				Tournament Average
Player	KPM	PPR	Cornholes Per Round	Accuracy	KPM	PPR	Cornholes Per Round	Accuracy
Nick	19.6	6.1	1.53	76%	18.9	5.83	1.54	69%
Dan F.	None				18.2	5.69	1.41	72%
KP	19.6	6.1	1.52	77%	17.1	5.43	1.23	74%
Brendan	16.2	5.2	1.03	80%	16.0	5.19	0.97	81%
Scott G.*	18.9	5.93	1.44	75%	15.3	4.90	1.03	71%
Erik	15.2	4.8	1.03	69%	15.1	4.78	1.07	66%
Dibble	17.8	5.5	1.40	69%	14.7	4.59	1.15	57%
JV	15.0	4.7	1.08	64%	14.6	4.67	1.00	67%
Turley	17.0	5.4	1.19	76%	14.5	4.78	0.81	79%
Galz	14.0	4.4	0.99	62%	14.4	4.56	1.03	63%
Dan R.	None				14.0	4.56	0.85	71%
Bushie	14.3	4.6	1.00	64%	13.2	4.15	1.00	54%
Jeff M.	None				12.5	4.03	0.81	60%
Bob	12.6	4.0	0.84	59%	11.0	3.58	0.68	56%
Coach	10.8	3.5	0.66	55%	10.8	3.47	0.68	53%
Steve-O	12.1	3.9	0.75	60%	10.5	3.42	0.63	54%

 

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

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – For the first time since June 20, 2020, cornhole returned to Coach Mike’s house in Clawson. It has been 25 months since Coach last hosted an event, but that event was monumental – it was the 2020 Preseason Kick-Off, which broke COVID-19 and quarantine protocols to bring this crew of flunkies together for some much needed debauchery.

Twenty-five months ago COVID-19 was raging, Tiger King was the rave of Netflix, and DaBaby had the #1 spot on the Billboard 100 locked down with his hit, “Rockstar”.

Hold on guys, Bushie just took a break from yelling at the clouds, “Who is the baby and why is it a Rockstar?”. No Bushie, it’s DaBaby, and that song meets the beats per minute and number of drops necessary to be called “a banger”.

The last event at Coach’s house was a phenomenal bash, and as you’d expect, this one was no different. Whether it was because we played at Coach’s house, which is always an enticing draw, or whether it was Jack’s farewell tour before he moves to Chicago, everyone came out of the woodwork to hang and play. 14 guys were there, and most showed up early and stayed late. Hell, Steve-O showed up on a Thursday! Tony came out of retirement! There were bitches in the living room getting it on, and we weren’t leaving ‘til six in the mornin’!

GAME OF THE NIGHT

This week’s Game of the Night featured the 1980s MSU stone-washed jeans crew, plus Mr. Cocksucker. Since some of you don’t know what that means – Tony and Bushie paired up against Steve-O and Nick.

Honestly, it’s amazing this game qualified for Game of the Night considering at least 50% of the participants were high as a kite.

Despite substance abuse, this was a well-played game. After three innings the score was tied 9 – 9, and Bushie held firm against Nick, giving up just one net point (Bushie scored three on Nick, while giving up four points). Bushie averaged 6 points per round through three innings, while Nick averaged 6.3 points per round. The majority of the damage was done at the opposite end of the boards with Steve-O and Tony taking turns with big scoring rounds.

The damn broke in the fourth inning, where Nick scored six points on Bushie and Steve-O added another against Tony, making it 16 – 9. They pushed the lead to 18 – 9 after the fifth inning, and inched closer to victory after the top of the sixth inning, 20 – 9.

Somehow Nick only managed two points in the bottom of the sixth inning, yet Bushie couldn’t capitalize, scoring only three points. At least Bushie kept his squad alive, 20 – 10.

After a 4 – 4 wash in the top of the seventh inning, Bushie conjured all his internal rage and dropped the hammer on Nick – a 10 – 4 round to close his team’s deficit to 20 – 16!

The bags flipped to Tony and Steve-O. Gramps – Tony’s nickname…like I said, he came out of retirement – alleviated the stiffness in his back just long enough to drain his first three bags. Meanwhile, Steve-O’s cleanse hurt him at the worst time, hunger pangs for 50 mg edibles derailed his focus. He conceded an enormous round, making only one bag on the board. Tony had an opportunity for a 4-bagger on his last throw, even though the game was over, and missed because of too much heat on the bag.

No matter, his 9 – 1 round completed his team’s 20 – 9 comeback and handed Steve-O and Nick a “choke”. That game-clinching round also earns Tony this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment. Congrats, Gramps! Like Ric Flair, it’s back to retirement. But it was great to see you!

NEWS AND NOTES

• Jack Daddy ended his 2022 season on the highest of notes, finishing with a 3 – 1 record. His 10.3 KPM isn’t his best, but it’s negatively impacted by the fact he made just 0.50 cornholes per round. His 61% accuracy was solid, especially given the conditions, which were extremely difficult for all players this week. The wind was swirling, but I also believe the unfamiliar sightlines caused players trouble. Regardless, Jack leaves us on a winning note and we only hope that this moment represents the end of a season, not the end of a career.

Jack, from all of us, we will miss you and prefer you to be local so we can spend more time together, more frequently. But, we understand this opportunity for you and your girl, and wish you both the best as you move to Chicago. Just two rules – 1) STAY IN TOUCH and 2) Please don’t become a Chicago sports fan!

We love you, brother, and will miss you dearly.

• As for the rest, I’m just going to post individual stats for quick browsing. Thank you to Coach for being such a gracious, amazing host (like always). Hell of a week, fellas.
• Nick – 19.7 KPM, 3 – 4 record, 6.2 points per round, 1.47 cornholes per round and 82% accuracy
• Turley – 18.5 KPM, 3 – 3 record, 5.8 points per round, 1.42 cornholes per round and 73% accuracy
• KP – 18.2 KPM, 5 – 2 record, 5.7 points per round, 1.39 cornholes per round and 73% accuracy
• Barker – 17.7 KPM, 2 – 0 record, 5.5 points per round, 1.36 cornholes per round and 70% accuracy
• Brent – 16.9 KPM, 4 – 2 record, 5.3 points per round, 1.31 cornholes per round and 66% accuracy
• Dibble – 14.9 KPM, 3 – 2 record, 4.7 points per round, 1.1 cornholes per round and 63% accuracy
• Tony – 13.5 KPM, 2 – 3 record, 4.3 points per round, 0.89 cornholes per round and 63% accuracy
• Bob – 12.5 KPM, 2 – 3 record, 3.9 points per round, 0.94 cornholes per round and 51% accuracy
• Bushie – 12.3 KPM, 3 – 4 record, 3.9 points per round, 0.88 cornholes per round and 53% accuracy
• Steve – O – 11.1 KPM, 1 – 6 record, 3.6 points per round, 0.74 cornholes per round and 52% accuracy
• Jack – 10.3 KPM, 3 – 1 record, 3.4 points per round, 0.50 cornholes per round and 61% accuracy
• Coach Mike – 9.3 KPM, 2 – 3 record, 3.0 points per round, 0.60 cornholes per round and 45% accuracy

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – Last week we talked about the two new rookies, and their “welcome to the league moments”. What a difference one week makes – both players looked more comfortable on the boards, allowing their talent to shine.

Pete made a huge move in the Power Rankings, jumping from #16 last week to #11 this week. He threw a 14.9 KPM with 4.7 points per round, 1.04 cornholes per round and 66% accuracy. He was also impressive in his head-to-head match-ups this week, winning every single head-to-head match-up in all seven games he played, and obviously winning the aggregate head-to-head as well.

• Beat Turley head-to-head, 38 – 34 (one game)
• Beat Dan head-to-head, 113 – 105 (three games)
• Beat JV head-to-head, 17 – 11 (one game)
• Beat Bob head-to-head, 68 – 44 (two games)

Pete finished with a 3 – 4 record, but clearly did his part in all seven of those games. Pete has phenomenal mechanics, with one of the flattest bags in the league and a deadly airmail. As he gains more experience, Pete could easily become a perennial top five player in the league.

The other dynamic rookie, Dan, may have stayed at #8 in the Power Rankings, but his KPM jumped from 14.7 last week to 16.0 this week (he’s at 15.5 overall on the season). The rest of his numbers increased nicely week-over-week, as well:

• Points Per Round – 5.1 this week vs. 4.8 last week
• Cornholes Per Round – 1.07 this week vs. 0.84 last week
• Accuracy – 75% this week vs. 79% last week

Dan’s accuracy dropped a bit, but that’s a small sacrifice for seeing the bag go in the hole more often and to score more points every round.

It’s going to be difficult for either of these two to overcome the Rookie of the Year advantage Brent has, simply because of his Preseason Kick-Off Tournament championship and 18.5 KPM so far this season. However, both of these guys are capable of winning the Postseason Tournament and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them make noise in the Singles Tournament. If either guy has impressive runs in the final two tournaments of the year, it’s possible they leap to the front of the Rookie of the Year race.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

This may sound like a broken record week after week, but choosing this week’s Game of the Night was almost impossible. Of the 14 games played this week, nine were decided by six points or less and seven were decided by three points or less. Read that again – seven of 14 games were played to a score of 21 – 18 or closer. That’s unbelievable! For that reason, this week’s Game of the Night is a nod to all the close games – we’ll briefly recap and highlight all seven games decided by three points or less. Let’s dive in!

• Game 2 – Turley and Nick vs. JV and KP
  • Score: Turley and Nick win 21 – 20
  • Recap: Turley and Nick found themselves down 8 – 0 and 20 – 15, yet battled back to take this one. Nick weathered storms of 10 – 7 and 12 – 9 in the sixth and seventh innings against KP, which made the score 20 – 15 in favor of JV and KP. In the eighth inning, Turley tied it at 20 – 20 with an 8 – 3 round over JV, then Nick scored the final point in the bottom half of the inning to secure victory.
  • Stats: Turley scored 41 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 5.13 points per round, while JV scored 38 points and 9 cornholes, averaging 4.8 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Nick scored 46 points and 12 cornholes, averaging 5.8 points per round, while KP scored 47 points and 13 cornholes, averaging 5.9 points per round.
• Game 3 – Dan and JV vs. Pete and Bob
  • Score: Dan and JV win 21 – 20
  • Recap: This game was TIGHT every round through the middle stages of the game, with Pete and Bob ahead 11 – 10 after five innings. In the sixth inning, Bob blew the lid off the game with an 8 – 1 round over JV, making the score 18 – 10. Pete added another point in the top of the seventh inning, making it 19 – 10. JV then ignited a rally with four points in the bottom of the seventh, 19 – 14. The teams traded points in the eighth, making it 20 – 15, and just like the previous game, you didn’t want to be the team with a 20 – 15 lead. Dan closed it to 20 – 19 with an 8 – 4 round, and Mr. Closer (JV) did his thing, outscoring Bob 4 – 2 to clinch the game, 21 – 20.
  • Stats: Dan scored 34 points and 4 cornholes, averaging 3.8 points per round, while Pete scored 35 points and 7 cornholes, averaging 3.9 points per round. At the other end of the boards, JV scored 44 points and 10 cornholes, averaging 4.9 points per round, while Bob scored 42 points and 10 cornholes, averaging 4.7 points per round.
• Game 6 – Pete and Turley vs. Dan and Nick
  • Score: Dan and Nick win 21 – 18
  • Recap: This game was absurd. Pete and Turley raced to a 13 – 0 lead after just two innings, but Dan and Nick hung tough mentally and pieced together a 14 – 2 run over the next four innings, making the score 15 – 14 in favor of Pete and Turley. Across the next three innings, the teams exchanged points in a nip-and-tuck battle. The score was 18 – 17 in favor of Pete and Turley. In the 10^th inning, Pete and Dan played to a 10 – 10 wash, neither player willing to give an inch down. Nick threw fire in his half of the 10^th inning, draining three cornholes and building immense pressure on Turley. Turley managed just five points, including missing his final bag off the board to lose the round, 9 – 5, and the game, 21 – 18. For those scoring at home, losing that 13 – 0 early lead represents a choke for Pete and Turley, and a comeback for Dan and Nick.
  • Stats: Pete scored 54 points and 11 cornholes, averaging 5.4 points per round, while Dan scored 49 points and 11 cornholes, averaging 4.9 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Turley scored 52 points and 12 cornholes, averaging 5.2 points per round, while Nick scored 60 points and 14 cornholes, averaging 6.0 points per round.
• Game 8 – KP and Turley vs. Bob and Pete
  • Score: KP and Turley win 21 – 20
  • Recap: This game was tied at 6 – 6, then 11 – 11, then 18 – 18. Bob scored two points on KP to inch closer to victory, 20 – 18. Turley made it 20 – 19, but couldn’t quite find the hole enough to win the game. In the top of the eight, KP blocked the board with his first two bags, making life difficult for Bob. KP’s third bag pushed through blockers and into the hole, giving him a 5 – 2 lead through three bags. Bob scored his final bag on the board to cut the round deficit to 5 – 3, but that allowed KP to simply board his final bag for the win. He did, giving his team a 21 – 20 victory.
  • Stats: KP scored 34 points and 6 cornholes, averaging 4.3 points per round, while Bob scored 28 points and 3 cornholes, averaging 3.5 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Turley scored 34 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 4.9 points per round, while Pete scored 38 points and 9 cornholes, averaging 5.4 points per round.
• Game 10 – KP and Nick vs. Dan and Turley
  • Score: KP and Nick win 21 – 18
  • Recap: Dan and Turley had an 18 – 10 lead, then survived a 12-point round from Nick (Turley scored 10 to limit the damage to two points) and an 8-point round from KP (Dan scored 7 to limit the damage to one point). With the score 18 – 13, Nick closed the deficit to 18 – 15 before handing the bags to KP, who closed the game with a 10-point round. KP sank three cornholes on his way to a 10 – 4 win, giving he and Nick a 21 – 18 win.
  • Stats: KP scored 36 points and 10 cornholes, averaging 7.2 points per round, while Dan scored 32 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 6.4 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Nick scored 30 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 6.0 points per round, while Turley scored 31 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 6.2 points per round.
• Game 12 – KP and Turley vs. Dan and Bob
  • Score: KP and Turley win 21 – 18
  • Recap: The two head-to-head match-ups were quite interesting, with Dan absolutely working KP at one end and Turley destroying Bob at the other end. Dan and Bob held a late 17 – 12 lead before KP and Turley produced an 8 – 0 burst in one inning to take a 20 – 17 lead. Dan won the next round against KP, 7 – 6, keeping his team in the game (20 – 18). But similar to Game 8, Bob struggled in a clutch moment with the game on the line, scoring zero bags while Turley scored three points to win the game, 21 – 18.
  • Stats: KP scored 47 points and 8 cornholes, averaging 4.7 points per round, while Dan scored 56 points and 15 cornholes, averaging 5.6 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Turley scored 50 points and 9 cornholes, averaging 5.0 points per round, while Bob scored 36 points and 7 cornholes, averaging 3.6 points per round.
• Game 13 – Turley and Nick vs. Dan and KP
  • Score: Turley and Nick win 21 – 18
  • Recap: Turley and Nick almost choked this game away. They were up 14 – 0 through three and a half innings, then KP provided the spark his team needed with an enormous four-bagger against Nick to win the round 12 – 1. Suddenly, the game was 14 – 11. Nick responded nicely with rounds of 10 – 7 in the next two innings to put his team on 20 points. Dan held off Turley during that stretch by scoring four of his own points. The game was 20 – 15. Dan and KP cut it to 20 – 18 with three total points in the seventh inning, but couldn’t overcome the early hole they found themselves in. Nick held off KP in the eighth inning, scoring three points to win the game (he won the round 6 – 3 after KP tried to muddy the board and then failed to push any bags in on his final throw).
  • Stats: Turley scored 43 points and 9 cornholes, averaging 6.14 points per round, while Dan scored 39 points and 7 cornholes, averaging 5.6 points per round. At the other end of the boards, Nick scored 51 points and 13 cornholes, averaging 6.4 points per round, while KP scored 50 points and 14 cornholes, averaging 6.3 points per round.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT (“MSM”)

Week 8 featured so many candidates for the Mushroom Stamp Moment, but let’s continue to go rogue this week…normally the winning of the MSM hit a huge shot or round to clinch a game or ignite a game-changing run. This week’s MSM is different – flashback to the Game 6 summary above when the game was on the line, pressure was intense, Pete and Dan both threw a phenomenal round that ended in a 10 – 10. That round from both players earns this week’s MSM.

The honorable mention MSM goes to Bob. In Game 12 Bob hit one of the sickest shots you’ll see, defying physics when his bag rode the left rail (i.e., side of the board) and suddenly shifted hard right around two of Turley’s blockers, finding the bottom of the hole. It was such a hard right turn that Dan and KP looked at each other in amazement, wondering how the bag performed that way. Bob did win that round, 7 – 5, giving his team a 17 – 12 lead. But they went on to lose that game, which is partially why he isn’t rewarded with the MSM.

NEWS AND NOTES

• Nick was off the charts this week, registering a 20.4 KPM with 6.3 points per round, 1.6 cornholes per round and 79% accuracy. Those numbers helped him to a 6 – 2 record, including a comeback. Somehow Nick was #5 in the Power Rankings coming into the week, which I’m pretty sure is the lowest ranking he’s ever had. He jumped to #3 after this week’s performance.
• KP ended the night at 17.8 KPM, averaging 5.6 points per round and 1.34 cornholes per round with 73% accuracy. He ended the night with a 7 – 2 record and remains at #2 in the Power Rankings.
• Turley stays at #6 in the Power Rankings despite a 16.3 KPM. He finished the night with a 5 – 5 record and averaged 5.2 points per round, 1.10 cornholes per round and 75% accuracy.
• JV only played three games before retiring for the night. He finished 1 – 2 with a 13.9 KPM and averaged 4.4 points per round, 0.95 cornholes per round and 63% accuracy.
• Bob dropped from #14 to #16 in the Power Rankings, partially because of Pete’s surge and partially because Bob only produced a 12.1 KPM. His 1 – 7 record was abysmal, but if there is a silver lining in all of this, it’s that he had several opportunities to clinch close games. Despite coming up empty all night, those experiences could pay off in the future. Bob averaged 3.9 points per round, 0.76 cornholes per round and 59% accuracy.

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – Mr. Cocksucker, the most decorated champion in LEG history, turned 40 years old this week! When reflecting back, it’s hard to believe we started the LEG shenanigans when he was 33 years old, and we’re still going at it seven seasons later. Happy Birthday, Nicholas!

Part of the group’s birthday gift to Mr. Cocksucker was some new, rookie blood. Whether it’s swooping in sober at 9 pm and dominating when the rest of the group has been drinking for 3+ hours, or “aww shucks’ing” his way to a 21 – 0 win over innocent rookies, Nick basks in the glory of beating up on the less fortunate.

Enter stage right – his latest victims, rookies Dan and Pete. These newbies arrive with less fanfare than the current Rookie of the Year favorite, Brent, but only because they aren’t on the cornhole circuit making names for themselves. Both players have natural skills and love to play the game. LEG is the perfect environment for them to thrive.

Before thriving, they must take their customary lumps. Those lumps included the following:

• Dan and Pete partnering in Game 1 against Galz and KP. They lost the match, 21 – 9, in just six innings and had to deal with KP throwing rounds of 12, 10 and 12 on his way to averaging 8.7 points per round.
• Dan and Pete partnered in Game 6 against JV and Bushie. More to come on that in the Game of the Night.
• Pete losing his head-to-head battle against JV in Game 7, 31 – 25, and almost blowing an 18 – 14 lead to lose the game. JV put a 10-spot on Pete (won the round 10 – 5) to give his team a 19 – 18 lead, but he almost hit a 4-bagger that would’ve won the game. For Pete’s sake (see what I did there?), Bushie bailed him out in the bottom of the inning, recovering to win the game 21 – 19.
• Dan losing his head-to-head match with Nick in Game 15, 31 – 26. Barker was on fire, though, and carried Dan to a 21 – 12 victory.
• Dan and Dibble partnering in Game 16 against Coach Mike and KP. They lost the match, 21 – 3, and Coach outscored Dan head-to-head, 28 – 23.
• Dan and Barker partnering in Game 18 against Dibble and Bushie. They lost the match, 21 – 19, and Dibble outscored Dan head-to-head, 27 – 23. Even worse, Dan and Barker logged a “choke” with this collapse – they were leading the game 19 – 3 before giving up 18 unanswered points to lose the match.

While there were plenty of negative moments, both players also had a lot to be proud of. Pete finished his first night with a 12.6 KPM, averaging 4.1 points per round and 0.71 cornholes per round on 67% shooting. He also had a 2 – 3 record, and flashed potential as arguably the best airmail thrower in the league.

Meanwhile, Dan posted a 14.7 KPM and 4 – 4 record thanks to 4.8 points per round, 0.84 cornholes per round and a blistering 79% accuracy.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

The Game of the Night featured the rookies, Dan and Pete, against JV and Bushie. The rookies did a great job early in the match of keeping things close, until JV hit Pete with an 8 – 2 round to help his team take a commanding 13 – 5 lead. At this point, you’d expect a rookie pairing to collapse under such a large deficit, but they showed resilience when Dan immediately scored five points against Bushie (won the round 6 – 1) to vault his team back into the game – 13 – 10.

JV immediately pushed the score to 16 – 10 with another 8-point round (won the round 8 – 5). But Dan was there to the rescue again, winning the round 8 – 5 against Bushie and cutting the deficit to 16 – 13.

JV and Dan volleyed points back and forth for their respective teams, with JV scoring two more and upping the lead to 18 – 13. Dan immediately responded with three of his own to make it 18 – 16.

Serve was broken in the top of the seventh when Pete finally scored on JV, tallying two points to tie the game at 18 – 18. Dan wanted badly to capitalize on his partner’s big round by closing the game. He almost did, but threw an errant bag off the board and settled for two points, taking their first lead of the entire game, 20 – 18.

Here we go again – a clutch moment near the end of the game and the bags are in JV’s hands. He delivered three times in similar moments just last week. This time was no different, as he gave Pete a lesson in clutch performances. JV won the round 5 – 2, using two blocker bags to prevent Pete from easy hole access and then drilled an airmail to secure the game, 21 – 20.

Welcome to the league, rookies.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT (“MSM”)

Game 2 was a close match the entire game, with Bob and Brent leading the entire time against Bushie and JV. Bob and Brent held a 19 – 17 lead late in the game with the bags in Bob and Bushie’s hands.

Bob had an opportunity to apply tons of pressure on Bushie, but missed his first bag off the side of the board. That was the opening Bushie needed, and he proceeded to drill three consecutive cornholes to take a 9 – 2 lead in the round after three bags. Bob was helpless, his final bag did not matter. Bushie tried to cap a great round with a 4-bagger, but missed long off the back of the board. No matter, his 9 – 2 round gave his team their first lead of the game when it mattered most…to score 21 points and win the game 21 – 19.

Bushie earns this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment for delivering in a big time moment.

NEWS AND NOTES

• The Birthday Boy had a great night, going 4 – 3 with an 18.4 KPM and averaged 5.8 points per round and 1.35 cornholes per round on 78% shooting. He sank two 10-point rounds and two 4-baggers.
• KP threw a 21.0 KPM thanks to 6.5 points per round, 1.70 cornholes per round and 77% shooting. He added seven 10-point rounds and two 4-baggers. Despite those numbers, he finished with a 2 – 4 record.
• Brent was on fire, throwing a 20.9 KPM, 6.5 points per round, 1.71 cornholes per round, and 76% shooting. Those numbers helped him to a 2 – 1 record this week.
• Barker also played very well, going 4 – 1 with an 18.2 KPM, 5.7 points per round, 1.37 cornholes per round and 74% shooting. He knocked in two 4-baggers, matching his season total entering this week.
• Dibble went 3 – 3 with a 16.3 KPM, 5.2 points per round, 1.18 cornholes per round and 70% accuracy. Not a bad night at all, but he did slip from #2 to #3 in the Power Rankings.
• Bushie had an excellent week with a 7 – 4 record and 14.7 KPM. He was part of the huge comeback win in Game 18, scoring eight of his team’s 18 points during their game-winning streak. He scored 4.7 points per round, 1.0 cornholes per round and 68% shooting.
• Galz fell from #9 to #13 in the Power Rankings because of his 10.7 KPM. He averaged just 3.6 points per round and 0.56 cornholes per round on 61% shooting. A forgettable night for him.
• Coach really struggled, going 1 – 7 with an 11.2. KPM, 3.6 average points per round, 0.67 cornholes per round and 57% shooting.
• JV was less than stellar with an 11.7 KPM, causing him to fall from #7 to #10 in the Power Rankings. He averaged 3.9 points per round and only 0.66 cornholes per round on 64% shooting. He did, however, have some loud moments despite his overall inconsistency.
• Bob went 2 – 2 with a 12.4 KPM, averaging 4.0 points per round, 0.77 cornholes per round and 62% shooting.

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – For the second consecutive week we’re in birthday celebration mode…this time it’s double the pleasure, double the fun! Unfortunately the Double Mint Twins weren’t making an appearance, so we had to settle for Jack and Erik.

Last week’s celebration of Coach Mike overwhelmed the cornhole effectiveness, with most players throwing poorly. Maybe it was the hardened livers, maybe we were all still drunk and found our groove from seven days ago. No matter the cause, the effect was more entertaining cornhole this week, compared to last.

Normal nights kick-off with a friendly pillow fight, with both sides softly batting each other around until someone concedes the “match”. Not this week. This week’s opener was like the new porn star thoroughbred who couldn’t wait to bust a nut. Bob and JV challenged Paul and Rich, and it got out of hand quickly – Bob and JV jumped out to a 12 – 1 lead thanks to eight points from JV across two innings, and a 10-point round from Bob that contributed an additional four points.

The score through two innings was 12 – 1, which is impressive but also in the choke/comeback territory. SPOILER ALERT!

Somehow after two innings Bob outscored Rich head-to-head, 13 – 10. Well, that didn’t last. Bob’s 10-point second inning slipped through his fingers like sand in an hourglass. He followed that up with rounds of 1, 0, 3 against the most talented player to ever participate in LEG (Rich).

Bob woke the sleeping giant with his 10-point second inning, and was then swallowed by the giant. His team’s 12 – 1 lead quickly evaporated. JV did everything he could to score points against Paul. It didn’t matter. Rich produced scoring round of 7 (8 – 1), 7 (7 – 0), and 6 (9 – 3) to complete the comeback and hand JV and Bob a choke, 21 – 14.

It was a phenomenal comeback by Rich (Paul essentially did nothing, with all due respect). But can I ask a frank question? How the hell does someone throw a 10-point round and follow it up with rounds of 1, 0, and 3? Credit to Rich. He would’ve continued grinding until the “W” was in the left side of his column. Still, one can’t help but wonder about the result of this opener had Bob maintained even a shred of composure.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Choosing this week’s Game of the Night was incredibly difficult because five of the 15 games played were decided by four points or fewer. Ultimately, the choice was Game 5, which pitted JV and KP against Erik and Rich.

Points were difficult to score early in this game, with Rich and Erik leading 6 – 5 after three innings. In the top of the fourth inning, KP created a little separation by throwing a 4-bagger to win the round 12 – 7 over Rich, giving his team a 10 – 6 lead. JV added another point in the bottom of the fourth inning to make it 11 – 6.

Rich and Erik scraped together three points in the fifth inning, cutting their deficit to 11 – 9, but JV and KP tacked on four more points in the sixth inning thanks to an 8 – 5 round for JV over Erik. The scoreboard was 15 – 9 after sixth innings.

In the top of the seventh inning Rich repaid the 12 – 7 favor to KP, throwing a 4-bagger of his own to rally his team within a point, 15 – 14. Erik hopped on the momentum train and outscored JV 5 – 2 in the bottom of the seventh inning, giving his team a 17 – 15 advantage.

Rich pushed the scoring run to 10 – 0 and upped the lead to 19 – 15 with a 9 – 7 advantage over KP in the top of the eighth.

A 15 – 9 lead for JV and KP was gone in the blink of an eye (1.5 innings), and they no longer had room for error. JV calmed the storm a bit with two points in the bottom of the eighth inning, 19 – 17.

KP delivered two enormous points in the top of the ninth to tie the game, 19 – 19. He won the round 7 – 5, and had an opportunity to win the game by making a cornhole with his final throw. His final bag was on target, but couldn’t push through two of Rich’s blockers to find the hole.

The bags were back in the hands of the league’s best closer, JV. Erik is a strong player, but his history of coming up big in end of game moments is not as decorated as JV’s. Add in the fact that Erik had only outscored JV in two of the eight innings leading up to this moment, what happened next was almost too predictable. JV recorded five points after his first three bags, while Erik missed the board with all three of his throws. The game was over, so JV tried a ridiculous airmail drag on his fourth bag. He missed it, but it didn’t matter because even if Erik went in the hole on his final bag, the round was still 5 – 3 for JV, which was good enough for a 21 – 19 victory. Erik’s final bag stopped short of the hole, giving JV a 5 – 1 final round to win the game.

Erik finished the game with 25 points and two cornholes, averaging just 2.8 points per round, which was significantly below his season average of 4.6 points per round. JV scored 35 points and 6 cornholes while averaging 3.9 points per round. Most importantly to JV, though, was the stat of closing out yet another game. The only stat he truly cares about is winning, and when it’s winning time he rises to the occasion. Unfortunately we don’t track games closed, but I’d be willing to bet a lot of money that JV would sit atop that list if we did track that stat.

The other end of the boards was lights out – KP scored 67 points and 19 cornholes while averaging 7.5 points per round, and Rich scored 73 points and 22 cornholes while averaging 8.1 points per round.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT (“MSM”)

This week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment is a bit unique. Normally we give this award for a specific

moment in a game, but this week’s award goes to someone who had an outstanding overall performance.

This week’s MSM is Rich’s total numbers. He was exceptional, shooting a 25.8 KPM, scoring 7.9 points per round, 2.27 cornholes per round, and 83% accuracy. He threw 12 total 10-point rounds and seven 4-baggers (i.e., 12-point rounds). It’s the most impressive week in the history of LEG, and for that reason deserves the week 6 Mushroom Stamp Moment.

NEWS AND NOTES

• Turley defied logic this week. He posted a 20.6 KPM while scoring 6.4 points per round and 1.56 cornholes per round on 83% shooting. Yet, he didn’t win a single game, going 0 – 3 with a -4.3 scoring differential. How does that happen? At least he can feel good about his performance, which included three 10-point rounds and one 4-bagger.
• Brent also had a great week, going 2 – 1 with a 20.8 KPM and averaged 6.4 points per round and 1.69 cornholes per round on 77% shooting.
• KP went 6 – 3 with a 20.3 KPM, averaging 6.3 points per round and 1.60 cornholes per round on 78% shooting. He finished the night with six 10-point rounds and one 4-bagger.
• JV had another strong week with a 5 – 3 record and 14.9 KPM. He averaged 4.7 points per round and 1.09 cornholes per round on 63% shooting. His most impressive stat was that he closed out three tight games with the winning points, which included the Game of the Night and games 12 and 14.
• Galz began his path to getting back on track this week, shooting a 14.1 KPM and averaging 4.4 points per round and 1.06 cornholes per round on 58% shooting. Galz hit two 4-baggers and another 10-point round tonight, good signs for his recovery. He still finds himself at #9 in the Power Rankings, which is hard to fathom given he’s never finished lower than fourth in the Power Rankings since joining the league in 2018.
• Erik had a less than stellar birthday week, posting just an 11.4 KPM. As outlined in the Game of the Night, Erik struggled. He scored 3.8 points per round and 0.62 cornholes per round on 63% shooting – all well-below his season averages. It should be no surprise he finished the night winless, 0 – 4.
• After a fantastic week 5, Jack dropped from #6 to #14 in the Power Rankings this week because of his 11.9 KPM. He did throw one 10-point round, but was much less consistent this week – scoring 3.9 points per round, 0.74 cornholes per round and 59% accuracy, while posting a 2 – 4 record.
• Paul finds himself at the bottom of the Power Rankings, dropping from #14 to #16 after shooting a 10.7 KPM on 3.4 points per round, 0.71 cornholes per round and just 50% accuracy.
• Bob had flashes of exceptional performance, as outlined earlier in this recap. Unfortunately for Bob, there were more moments of struggle this week, evidenced by his 11.9 KPM, 3.8 points per round, 0.84 cornholes per round and 52% accuracy. He did salvage the night with a 4 – 2 record, but most of that was due to having strong partners, as Bob only won one of his six head-to-head match-ups this week (29 – 28 against Erik in Game 6).