With the 2023 LEG season upon us, we are rolling out the inaugural Preseason Awards. This is akin to Preseason All-American awards in college football and basketball. The award categories are as follows:

• 2023 Preseason Most Valuable Player
• 2023 Preseason Most Improved Player
• 2023 Preseason All-LEG Team
• 2023 Preseason Singles Tournament Champion

All players who consistently show up for regular season matches and tournaments have been included in the pool of nominees, and league members can cast their vote by clicking on the player of their choice.

You all know the players and since these are only preseason awards, there is no player-specific summary outlining why one is deserving of each award. With that said, let’s jump into voting for the 2023 LEG Preseason Awards!

*Voting closes Thursday, May 11 at 12:00 pm EST.

2023 PRESEASON MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

Quite simply, cast your vote for the one person you anticipate having a breakout year worthy of winning the 2023 MVP. Whether you value regular season statistics, tournament championships or a combination of both, it’s your choice! Vote now!

2023 PRESEASON MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

Who is the one person anticipated to make the biggest jump in their game from 2022 to 2023? Vote now!

2023 PRESEASON ALL-LEG TEAM

The Preseason All-LEG Team is similar to the All-Tournament Team voting, but applied to the entire season. Choose the four players you believe will have the best 2023 campaign. Again, this could be based on a prediction of championships they win, anticipating excellent statistical seasons, or both. Vote now!

2023 PRESEASON SINGLES TOURNAMENT CHAMPION

Yes, it’s the beginning of May and we are asking you to predict who will win the 2023 Singles Tournament. In case it’s helpful, here is the historical breakdown of Singles Tournaments.

• 2018 – Nick beat Galz in the championship match
• 2019 – Dibble beat Galz in the championship match
• 2020 – KP beat Nick in the championship match
• 2021 – KP beat Brendan in the championship match
• 2022 – Barker beat KP in the championship match

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.