CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – JV was at a different level this week. Sure, he played well (11.5 KPM and 63% shooting), but I’m talking about his party level. He let loose this week, almost to the infamous “Sake Man” level.

Don’t know that story? Here it goes…one lovely Sunday JV and Katie decided to start their “Sunday Funday” at their VIP table at Renshaw Lounge. JV started with a little of Daddy’s Medicine, Dewar’s on the rocks. He then loaded up on White Claws and shots before deciding to give in to Katie’s pleas for food.

If you know JV, you know he prefers not to eat until he’s done drinking. But JV is also the ultimate gentleman and obliged his future wife’s wishes.

They departed the VIP table and headed to Kyoto, a Japanese steakhouse. During the long wait at their hibachi table, JV befriended the chef by telling jokes and ripping sake shot after sake shot.

Dinner wrapped up and JV stumbled out of his chair like a drunken giraffe. The chef insists, “Sake Man! One for the road?!?!” As he’s already pouring the bottle in JV’s mouth.

“Oh god,” his soul whispered to himself as he continues toward the door. “I’m not going to keep this down.”

Like his high-arching rainbow cornhole tosses, he came up just short of “making it.” He vomited all over the lobby, with hungry patrons awaiting an open table. Without missing a beat, “Don’t worry, the food is fine!” he slurred in between hurling.

This week he wasn’t quite “Sake Man!” but he was spinning like a top. When he wasn’t yelling for all his bags to “GET THERE!,” he was threatening his opponents every time he made a cornhole – “Oh yeah, baby! Daddy’s gonna give you another one right here!,” as he doggy-styled the air.

It was a hell of a week, and ultimately he did spend some time visiting the porcelain dish throughout the night.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Given JV’s condition, it should come as no surprise that he was not part of the Game of the Night. This week’s thriller featured Erik and Galz against Paul and KP in Game 3. Speaking of doggy-style, Galz blew this game open right off the bat, dropping an 8-1 score on KP in the first inning. That helped Galz and Erik build an early 12-4 lead, which they increased to 17-7 in the fourth inning when Erik buried two cornholes in a dominating 6-1 inning against Paul.

Through four innings Galz abused KP, getting the better of him 19-13. In the fifth, KP salvaged some pride when he drilled three cornholes while Galz was erratic with his shot. KP’s 9-1 inning crept his team within 17-15.

Paul rode the wave of momentum in his half of the fifth inning and tied the game at 17-17. Each team traded a point in the sixth inning, continuing the deadlock at 18-18.

In the top of the seventh inning, Paul looked to close it out. Erik had honors and threw first, landing the bag on the board. Paul’s first toss found the bottom of the hole for three!

Erik launched his second bag, again landing on the board. Paul answered with one on the board.

Erik’s third shot missed the board wide, opening the door for Paul to drive a nail in the coffin. Paul’s third bag raced up the board, split the blocking bags, and fell into the hole for three more! Suddenly, Paul had a commanding 7-2 lead with one bag remaining.

Erik needed a cornhole to avoid losing the game. He trusted his fundamentals and executed a calm, confident throw. His bag also navigated all of the blockers on the board and slid into the hole for three! What a clutch shot to cut the scoring to 7-5 – advantage to Paul, but that shot kept Erik and Galz alive.

Paul could still win the game on his final bag by landing on the board. Unfortunately Paul didn’t know the situation, so he played aggressively and chased a cornhole. He missed his last toss long, and Erik sighed in relief.

Paul had given his team a 20-18 lead, but was frustrated with himself when the score was explained to him.

Focus turned to Galz and KP for a closeout opportunity. KP placed his first toss on the board, while Galz applied pressure with a cornhole.

KP’s second toss was wide, hitting the right side of the board and sliding off. Galz’s second toss slid up the center of the board and into the hole, giving him a 6-1 lead. KP needed a cornhole, and found one with his third toss.

Unlike Paul, Galz knew score and situation. He was up 6-4 and KP only had one bag remaining. One point on his third bag would likely force KP to need a cornhole to extend the match because only one point from KP would still allow Galz to win the game on his final toss with a bag on the board.

Galz fired his third bag aggressively at the hole. He missed the hole, but his bag settled on the board, in front of the hole, for one point. It was up to KP to extend the game. He had to have a cornhole, but Galz had successfully blocked an easy look at the hole. KP decided to attempt an airmail in order to avoid taking Galz’s blocker into the hole.

The final toss was high and looked to be on target, but carried over the board by about a foot. Game over. Galz didn’t need to throw his final bag, but he did with hopes of making it while taking the blocker in for a four-bagger. His final throw was offline and he settled for a 7-4 win in the inning, and a 21-20 “save.”

Galz was a beast, scoring 33 points on seven cornholes for the match, which went seven innings. Erik wasn’t far behind, scoring 28 points on six cornholes. After nearly blowing a 10-point lead, which would’ve given them a “choke,” Erik and Galz steadied the ship and got the victory.

HUNGRY LIKE A WOLFE

Speaking of Erik, he’s earned a player feature this week. He’s been on a roll in 2020, making an appearance in his first tournament championship match and was voted to the all-tournament team by his peers. Through seven weeks he’s posted a 10.1 KPM and is shooting 56% for the season.

This week he was an animal (pun intended) – he played with more confidence than we’ve seen all season, which helped him make 0.93 cornholes per round (i.e., essentially one of every four bags he threw was in the hole) and that elevated his game to a 13.3 KPM.

Though he was excellent throughout the night, Erik’s highlight was in Game 6 when he partnered with Paul against Jack and Galz. Erik single-handedly carried Paul to a convincing 21-13 win (Galz outscored Paul 30-18 in this match) by scoring 45 points and knocking in 12 cornholes in only eight innings (averaging 5.63 gross points per round).

By comparison, Galz was the next leading scorer in the game and he had 30 points and 6 cornholes. Those figures jump off the page and tell you just how good Erik was, both in that game and for the night.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT

This week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment was difficult to choose given there were several clutch throws, as well as six different 10-point rounds. However, the winner of the week 7 MSM is Galz for his 12-point round in the ninth inning of Game 1.

Not only does he earn the MSM because of the 12-point round, but dropped the four-bagged on KP’s chin in response to KP winning the previous round, 10-5, which helped KP’s team close their deficit to 14-12 (it was 14-7). Not only was Galz pissed about losing the round 10-5, but he wanted to up the ante. Boy did he ever…the 12-point MSM also gave his team a 21-12 victory in the game.

Galz is a stone cold killer.

NEWS AND NOTES

• Galz led the way this week, going 4-1 with a 14.8 KPM. His 12-point MSM gives him a third 12-point round for the 2020 season, tying him with KP for the league lead. He shot 68% while making 1.0 cornholes per round, and added two more 10-point rounds to his week 7 resume. His only loss of the night was in Game 6 when Erik went bananas.
• Nick wasn’t far behind Galz, coming in with a 4-1 record and 14.0 KPM. Nick had a 10-point round as well, while also shooting 70%. In his only head-to-head match-up with Galz, Nick got the better end of things personally by outscoring Galz, 23-19. But Galz’s team won the game, 21-10.
• KP had a rough night. Sure, he posted a nice, shiny 13.8 KPM. But when you polish a turd, it’s still a turd. He went 1-4 and couldn’t make a shot when it mattered. He was directly responsible for his team losing the Game of the Night, and besides that close loss (21-20) his remaining losses were blowouts – 21-12, 21-15, and 21-12. The only positive for KP on this night is that he didn’t fall in the Power Rankings.
• Turley continued his hot season with an 11.8 KPM this week, driven by 69% shooting and 0.58 cornholes per round. He also posted a 3-2 record, including going nuts in Game 4 with 39 points on eight cornholes, leading his team to a 21-3 win.
• Paul had a solid night, shooting 62% and dropping 0.58 cornholes per round, which was good for a 10.9 KPM. He finished the night 3-3, and jumped from #11 in the Power Rankings to #9.
• Jack struggled a bit this week. He was just 1-4, and though his accuracy was good (51%), he didn’t make enough cornholes (just 0.41 per round). He had an 8.5 KPM, which dropped his season KPM to 8.9. He was solid in his only victory (Game 7), scoring 24 points and five cornholes, while averaging 4.8 gross points per round. He won his head-to-head match-up with Turley, helping his team to a 21-6 victory.

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – “So I’m back up in the game. Running things to keep my swing. Letting all the people know, that I’m back to run the show. ‘Cause what you did, you know, was wrong, and all the nasty things you’ve done. So, baby, listen carefully, while I sing my comeback song.”

Return of the Jack – hold on! Return of the Jack – don’t you know!

Jack made his first appearance since the 2020 Preseason Kick-Off Tournament, where he helped his “$80 of Baking Soda” squad to a semifinal appearance. Despite the five week absence, Jack had a really good week 6, narrowly missing the 10.0 KPM mark with a 9.7.

He partnered with KP, who was also his partner in the Preseason Kick-Off, in a convincing 21-6 win over Paul and Turley. He out-shot Turley in the head-to-head match-up, 20-15 and held a 4-3 cornhole advantage.

That victory was his only one of the night, which was cut short after just three games. He finished 1-2, losing a close match (21-15) to JV and Bushie. In that match he was head-to-head with JV, and held his own for much of the match – he was ultimately outscored by JV, 32-21 (including 7-4 in cornholes), but JV blew that margin open when he recorded three cornholes in the sixth inning on his way to a 9-1 explosion that erased a 15-14 lead for Jack and Paul, winning the game 21-15 for JV and Bushie.

Jack’s 47% shooting was solid given the lack of reps this summer, and he nailed 0.63 cornholes per round. Really nice showing for Jack this week.

PEACE, FLOWERS, LOVE, AND CORNHOLES

Turley joined the league in 2019, and had the tools to contend for Rookie of the Year honors. Unfortunately for him, Dibble was a mid-season joiner and ended up easily winning Rookie of the Year.

However, the talent was clear, and Turley was a sleeping giant, waiting to wake up. He finished the 2019 season with an 8.1 KPM, 42% accuracy, 0.47 cornholes per round, and 2.6 gross points per round. Those numbers aren’t reflective of a “sleeping giant,” but when watching his sweet, sweeping left-handed stroke, it was apparent that it was only a matter of time before Turley put everything together.

Well, 2020 has been the season where he begins putting it all together. So far he’s averaging 10.1 KPM, 57% accuracy, 0.53 cornholes per round, and 3.3 gross points per round. Those are major jumps in his sophomore campaign, and he’s just getting started.

This week he was a model of consistency, with his week 6 numbers mirroring his season-long averages.

The highlight of Turley’s night was when he helped lead a comeback victory in Game 15 (more on that in the Game of the Night section) by outscoring Bushie 29-23, including a 6-5 advantage in cornholes.

GAME OF THE NIGHT – “DON’T STOP, BELIEVING IN!”

As alluded to earlier, the Game of the Night featured a ridiculous comeback/choke! In Game 15, Galz and Bushie exchanged blows with Dibble and Turley.  Galz and Bushie couldn’t have started any better, jumping out to a 13-0 lead after two innings!

Galz was instrumental in the opening innings, scoring 12 of his team’s 13 points thanks to a four-bagger in the second inning, giving him a 12-2 advantage over Dibble!

It was blowout city, baby!

Facing a huge deficit and decent odds of a bun run, Dibble and Turley didn’t panic. In the top of the third inning Dibble posted a 9-4 score on Galz, getting his team on the board with five critical points.

In the bottom of the third inning Turley chipped in two more points, cutting his team’s deficit to 13-7.

Okay, we have a game now. Turley and Dibble took a knockout punch to the chin, legs wobbling beneath them as they fell into the ropes. But they survived the 10 count and stepped back to the center of the ring for more fight.

Battling through that early 13-0 hurricane appeared to boost Dibble and Turley’s confidence. In the fourth inning they tacked on five more points, shrinking the deficit to 13-12.

Galz halted Turley and Dibble’s 12-0 run in the top of the fifth inning with three points when he drilled a cornhole and two more bags on the board. It was now 16-12.

But that would be the final points scored for Galz and Bushie. Turley chipped in three more points over the next two rounds, setting the stage for Dibble to complete the comeback.

In the top of the seventh, Galz couldn’t find his stroke, landing only two bags on the board and missing the other two off the back of the board. Dibble also missed two bags, but he capitalized on the other two bags, both finding the bottom of the hole. A 6-2 advantage for Dibble gave his team a 21-16 victory, and etched a “choke” next to Galz and Bushie on the stat sheet.

The head-to-head between Dibble and Galz was worth the price of admission – okay, bad cliché since this is a free event. Anyway, each player dropped nine cornholes out of their 19 scoring bags (i.e., 47% of scoring bags were in the hole), and they played each other to a draw by scoring 37 gross points, respectively. Galz made a big statement early with the four-bagger, and a 12-2 win in the inning. But, Dibble got the best of Galz with the game on the line. It was a classic head-to-head match.

The real difference was at the other end of the board, where Turley was steady throughout the game, never scoring fewer than four points in a round. He outpaced Bushie for the game, 29-23, and helped keep his team in the game until Dibble could land the final TKO.

Galz was disappointed, and Bushie literally couldn’t swallow the choke. He walked off – pissed off – took his ball and went home.

CARDIAC CATS

Nick and KP have a penchant for dramatics. In week 4 they overcame a 19-14 deficit against Galz and Dibble to win 21-19 on a walk-off four-bagger (read about it here: https://legcornhole.com/2020/07/03/2020-week-4-recap/).

This week, they partnered against Dibble and Galz, again. They found themselves in familiar territory again, down 10-5 after Dibble and Galz went on an 8-0 run.

KP tied the game, 10-10, in the top of the sixth inning when he scored a four-bagger against Galz. But Dibble and Galz once again got “streaky,” going on another run, this one 10-3 behind a 10-point round from Dibble.

The score was 20-13 in the top of the 10^th inning. Galz was erratic but KP couldn’t capitalize, managing just a 3-0 win in their half of the inning. Nonetheless, he kept his team alive and turned the bags over to Nick with the game 20-16.

Dibble needed just one point to clinch a win. Nick had honors with the first toss. Cornhole!

Dibble missed his first bag completely off the board. Nick’s confidence boosted a bit more as he readied his second toss.

CORNHOLE!

Dibble’s shoulders slumped, pressure mounting. He *needed* to throw a good bag. He fired, short of the board!

Nick already bombed two cornholes and now had a clean board for his third toss. CORNHOLE!

Holy shit. It’s happening again, just like in week 4. Would we have another walk-off four-bagger?

Dibble faced a 9-0 hole. To keep the game alive, he needed to make two cornholes on his last two bags, and hope Nick didn’t make a cornhole on his last bag.

Dibble’s third toss was wide of the board! The game was now clinched, and Nick had a chance for a four-bagger just for fun. His final bag was long, off the back of the board.

He couldn’t complete the four-bagger, but his 9-0 10^th inning (Dibble also missed his final toss) ripped the hearts from his opponents’ chests and gave he and KP another thrilling, down to the wire win over Galz and Dibble.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT

We’ve already highlighted two games where things didn’t go Galz’s way. But, don’t feel bad for Galz.

He earned this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment in Game 11. He partnered with Turley to play Nick and Coach Mike. This game was tight throughout, and Turley had just given his team a 20-18 lead by outscoring Coach Mike, 4-0, in the top of the 10^th.

In the bottom of the 11^th inning Galz dropped three cornholes en route to a 10-point round, winning the game for his squad, 21-18 (Nick’s six points weren’t enough to keep his team alive). The 10-point closeout round deserves the MSM, but he earned it based on the totality of his Game 11 performance. He scored two 10-point rounds *in the game* and dropped 15 total cornholes and 61 gross points against Nick. It was a monster performance, deserving of the week 6 MSM.

To Nick’s credit, he also posted two 10-point rounds in this game against Galz, and made 15 cornholes and scored 59 gross points. Galz just got the better of him at the end, with the game on the line.

It was reminiscent of the Galz vs. Nick historic Singles Tournament championship match from 2018.

NEWS AND NOTES

• Bushie started the night 0/12 shooting in Game 1, but rebounded to shoot 55% for the night and posted a 10.8 KPM. His 4-5 record was okay this week, considering almost everyone hovered around the .500 mark.
• As we mentioned, Galz had two 12-point rounds and added two more 10-point rounds to earn this week’s MSM. Ironically, Galz lost both games in which he scored a 12-point round. His 16.2 KPM, 64% shooting, and 1.25 cornholes per round were incredible.
• KP added another 12-point round to his season, giving him three for the year. He shot 74% for the night and averaged 1.32 cornholes per round, helping him post a 17.8 KPM and 6-1 record.
• Nick played excellent, dropping four 10-point rounds on the night on his way to a 15.5 KPM. He shot 66% and had a 4-2 record to end the evening. He also had one of the most impressive shots on the night – in Game 9 he was head-to-head against JV, and in the top of the first inning JV held a 3-1 advantage with one of his bags halfway in the hole. Nick had one final bag to throw, and as he’s taking his back swing says, “Fuck it, I’m just going to airmail,” thinking he’d take both bags down in the process. He hit nothing but net, not even grazing JV’s bag sitting on the edge of the hole. It was the first inning and just a 4-3 advantage to tie the game, 1-1. But, it was a shot that required an absurd amount of touch to avoid dragging JV’s bag with it, and he pulled it off.
• Dibble had a 16.4 KPM and 4-3 record. He continues to sit at the top of the Power Rankings with a 15.4 KPM on the season.
• JV is receiving his first mention of the article, but he had an excellent night! He went 4-1 with an 11.0 KPM, despite shooting a season low 52%. JV was tinkering with his toss, trying to throw a lower, more aggressive bag. He’s like Tiger Woods making a swing change when his current form is already championship level. If JV can successfully revamp his throw, or at least add another layer of versatility to it, he’ll be hard to keep away from The Cup.
• Coach Mike had the back-handed taint tickler working this week, making 0.63 cornholes per round. He had a 9.7 KPM, which is very good, and would’ve been closer to 11.0 if not for 46% accuracy. Coach has a lot to feel good about with his game, as it looks like he’s turning the corner and finding the rhythm that makes him such a dangerous player. When he works his right-to-left draw that lands in the front right corner of the board and runs into the hole, you know he’s on. That’s his natural bag, and he had that working for much of the night. That toss is indefensible because he throws it with such velocity that it can run over, or through, any potential blockers. Coach is the second “Mike” in this league who is on the cusp of a breakout season.
• Paul rounds things out this week with a 10.5 KPM, while dropping in a season high 0.75 cornholes per round. He played very well, though his 1-3 record doesn’t reflect that. Paul lost his first two matches of the night before recovering to split his final two.

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – Welcome to Clawson, JV! That’s right, JV is a new homeowner and broke in the new neighborhood by hosting week five.

To nobody’s surprise, this momentous week turned up 12 players, feeling more like a Postseason Tournament than a mid-season Thursday night.

Cars lined Hudson Street, perhaps more action than the block has ever seen. Bitches lookin’ at us strange, but you know we don’t care. Step up in this motherfucker just a-swangin’ our hair.

Player after player carrying booze as they stroll down the sidewalk, Coach Mike with so much indo to smoke, and Galz with a pocket full of rubbers and his homeboys did too.

This is a Thursday nobody wanted to miss.

DON’T CALL IT A COMEBACK

Actually, that’s exactly what you should call it – Bushie and Nick squared off against Coach Mike and KP in Game 7, and it didn’t take long for things to get out of hand.

In the top of the first inning Bushie dropped a three-bagger on Coach Mike, outscoring him 10-3 to create a 7-0 lead for his team.

Bushie and Nick had pushed their lead to 13-0 after three innings thanks to seven total cornholes during that stretch, compared to just two cornholes from Coach Mike and KP.

The lead stretched to 16-0 after the top of the fourth inning when Bushie drained another cornhole and outscored Coach by three points.

Ol’ Aunt Millie Mike looked primed for yet another bun run. KP began fluffing himself, anticipating his second bun run of the 2020 season as Aunt Millie’s partner.

In the bottom of the fourth, things started to shift the other direction. Down 16-0, KP knew it was now or never – not to get back in the game, but to simply score one point and erase the possibility of a bun run.

KP sank cornholes on his first two tosses, while Nick managed only one bag on the board. While this early 6-1 advantage for KP looked promising toward negating a bun run, Nick can never be discounted because of his big round ability.

To ensure no bun run, KP needed another cornhole in at least one of his final two tosses. He heaved the third bag toward the hole, and it landed perfectly in the middle of the board before sliding into the hole!

He couldn’t finish the inning with a 12-pointer, instead settling for a 10-point round. But Nick, deflated after losing an opportunity to bun run his opponents, managed only two points in the round.

Suddenly, the match was 16-8 after KP’s big fourth inning. Coach Mike cut the deficit to 16-11 in the top of the fifth, but Nick inched his team closer to victory when he upped the score to 18-11 in the bottom of the fifth.

Coach Mike was excellent in the sixth inning, scoring all four of his tosses, including one cornhole. But Bushie held steady and limited Coach to only one point in the round. The game was 18-12, with bags back to Nick and KP.

Momentum and confidence are interesting influences on the brain. Just two innings earlier Nick and Bushie had it all, which was instrumental in helping them build a 16-0 lead. But now Coach and KP were in the midst of a 12-2 run and had tons of confidence, fueled by KP’s 10-point fourth inning.

The underdogs drew closer in the bottom of the sixth after KP knocked in three more cornholes and another 10-point round, this time besting Nick 10-5. The scoring streak now at 17-2, and deficit down to 18-17.

Coach Mike gave his team a 19-18 lead in the top of the seventh after his back-handed taint tickler found the hole, giving him a 5-3 win in the inning.

Ok, enough is enough. Nick is a closer. A killer. The Kobe Bryant of LEG. The bun run talk was fun, and this little run by Coach and KP was cute. But this is where he steps in to win the game. Right?

Wrong! In the bottom of the seventh, KP posted his third 10-pointer in the last four innings, this time beating Nick 10-6 to complete the comeback!

What a game! What a comeback by Coach and KP! To recap, the game consisted of a 16-0 run to start the game by Bushie and Nick, and ended with a 21-2 run by Coach and KP to win the game.

Interestingly, three of the four players in this match were also involved in last week’s comeback game. KP was on the positive end of the comeback in both weeks, Nick on the choking end both weeks, and Coach Mike split the difference going 1-1.

ZOINKS SCOOB!

Throughout his career, Paul has chased a 10.0 KPM. Whether on a weekly basis, or his season average, that threshold has been elusive for Paul.

In fact, he didn’t have an individual week crossing the 10.0 barrier until Week 5 in 2019, and then he strung together three consecutive weeks by doing it again in Weeks 6 and 7.

That three week stretch in 2019 helped him climb to a 9.6 KPM for the season, falling just shy of his 10.0 goal. But that 2019 campaign was a significant upgrade from his 2018 and 2017 seasons when he finished at 8.2 and 7.1, respectively.

He started the 2020 season with three consecutive weeks below 10.0 (9.8, 9.2, and 7.1), before posting his career-high week last week (11.3). This week, he backed that up with an 11.1 KPM to drive his season average to 9.9…once again, on the cusp!

But this week was different for Paul. He was an animal, shooting 71% on his way to a 6-1 record and ridiculous +7.6 scoring differential across his seven games. His only loss was in the first game of the night when he partnered with Erik to battle Bushie and Dibble. Paul went head-to-head with Dibble, and helped his team climb out of an early 8-0 hole before losing 21-18.

During the comeback Paul dropped a 10-2 round on Dibble, and ultimately was narrowly outscored head-to-head in the match, 37-34 and 5-4 in cornholes.

After that Game 1 loss, Paul ripped off six straight victories to close his night. The highlight during that stretch, among many highlights for him, was when he and Jimmy partnered to beat Erik and KP in Game 16, 21-20. Paul had a game-high seven cornholes and averaged 4.4 gross points per round.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Many of you may be wondering how Coach Mike and KP’s epic comeback isn’t the Game of the Night. Well, that’s because there was also an ultra-competitive match featuring Coach Mike and Erik against Turley and Jimmy in Game 15.

Coach was excellent initially, outscoring Turley 12-7 through the first three innings while leading his team to a 10-1 advantage.

In the fourth inning Turley cut into the lead, making it 10-6 after he drained two cornholes during an 8-3 inning. It looked to be the spark Turley and Jimmy needed, but Coach used that spark to ignite his joint and serve an 8-3 inning right back to Turley.

After five innings, Coach and Erik had a 17-6 lead. But Turley’s eight gross points in the fourth inning gave him rhythm, and the left-hander wanted no more taint tickling! He bombed seven total cornholes through innings 6 – 8, and outscored Coach 6-2, 5-2, and 7-2 during that period.

Turley scored 12 of his teams 13 net points during a 13-3 run, cutting the score to 20-19 in favor of Coach and Erik.

In a match down to the wire, the focus was on a rookie. Jimmy, in just his second week playing, had an opportunity to make a statement by clinching the game against Erik, who has been playing at a much higher level in 2020.

Erik gave Jimmy a chance, scoring just two points in the top of the ninth inning. Unfortunately Jimmy caved under the pressure and scored only one point. Erik’s 2-1 advantage was enough to win the game, 21-19, narrowly avoiding squandering an early 10-1 lead.

Turley led all scorers with 36 gross points and six cornholes.

QUICK STUDY

Jimmy was understandably bummed from failing to rise to the occasion at the end of the Game of the Night. But in the very next game (Game 16) he found himself in familiar territory.

This time, he and Paul were tied, 20-20, against KP and Erik. The bags were in Jimmy’s hands, again with an opportunity to win the game for his squad. KP was his head-to-head foe this time. The lessons from the prior game paid off quickly, as Jimmy was composed against KP and scored three of his four tosses, including a cornhole. He was up 5-4 and KP had one bag remaining – a bag on the board extends the game, while a cornhole wins it for Erik and KP.

KP launched, attempting an airmail, and missed. Jimmy played the inning perfectly and won the game for his team, 21-20!

It was Jimmy’s only victory of the night. He finished 1-4, but had losses of 21-19 (Game 15), 21-16 (Game 17), and 21-20 (Game 19). He made a major statement executing in a tense moment against KP. Jimmy’s potential is there – he shot 56% this week. He just needs to keep building the foundation of his skill set, and this week he added another layer.

MUSHROOM STAMP MOMENT

Week 5 had so many key moments to choose from, but ultimately this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment goes to Galz. In Game 5 he partnered with Dibble against Barker and Nick. Galz scored a game-high 48 points and nine cornholes, the last of which occurred in the top of the 11^th inning against Barker and clinched a 21-19 victory in this heavyweight, 11 round fight.

Galz was sensational in this game, and all night. He shot 69%, scored 0.90 cornholes per round, and posted a 14.2 KPM. He added two 10-point rounds to his resume, ironically losing both games he scored a 10-point round.

NEWS AND NOTES

With 12 players and 20 games played, it’s hard to address all the great moments and great players this week. But we’ll do our best to cover those that haven’t already been discussed.

• We know KP helped his team comeback from a 16-0 deficit, his second consecutive week coming back to win when down 10+ points. He was exceptional all night, going 7-2, producing a week-high KPM (14.9) while shooting 74%, and scoring a ridiculous seven 10-point rounds this week. One of his major moments took place in Game 12 with his team down 18-14, he won the game by closing out Dibble, 8-0. Last week he earned the MSM when his team was down 19-14 and he closed out Dibble, 12-5, to win the game.
• Barker was on fire, shooting 71% for the night. He was slow to make cornholes out of the gates, but rebounded nicely to finish the night making 0.45 per round and posted an 11.0 KPM. Barker is dangerous, as if we didn’t know by his two LEG titles. Scoring an 11.0 KPM and shooting 71%, yet *only* sinking 0.45 cornholes per round – if that cornhole number goes up, everyone is in deep trouble.
• Bushie continues his upward trend, scoring two 10-point rounds (tied with Nick for second-most this week) and earning a 10.1 KPM thanks to 61% shooting.
• Nick was just 3-4 overall, but his 75% accuracy is stupid-good this week. He added 0.84 cornholes per round, two 10-point rounds, and a 14.3 KPM.
• Despite being distracted from hosting and cooking, JV still shot 74% this week and posted an 11.9 KPM. His 2-4 record may be underwhelming, but the party he threw certainly was not.

This will be the first of many events JV hosts in Clawson. His neighbors may have been peering through the curtains wondering what circus rolled into town, but Hudson Street is a permanent stop of the LEG tour.

La di da di, we likes to party. We don’t cause trouble, we don’t bother nobody.

CLAWSON, MICHIGAN – Dibble’s wife was gracious enough to host this crew of flunkies we like to call LEG. It was the first time LEG played at Dibble’s pad, let’s hope it wasn’t the last because it was a hell of a night.

Since joining the league mid-season in 2019, Dibble has been very excited about cornhole. He looks forward to Thursday’s so much that he bailed on his Thursday night horseshoe league. He also shares that excitement with several of his friends, which has seemed to create some skepticism of how great LEG really is.

Last fall he told his friend Brad all about the league. A few of the LEG members later met Brad, and agreed he should come out to play some time. Then during the off-season the disrespect started. On several occasions Dibble talked about how legit Brad was, and I have no reason to believe he’s not a good player. But, Dibble also shared that Brad was talking shit – presumably about how he’s better than “us” and he’d come in and kick all our asses.

That’s a nice thought, especially considering he’d never seen any of us play. It’s also cute because he’s been invited to play several times, and not only did he not play, but he didn’t even respond to the invitations. Talk shit, then hide in the corner when invited to prove how legit you are? Disrespect.

I give you that background because it ties into this week. A few of Dibble’s horseshoe league friends stopped by the house to see what all the buzz was about. “Why did he quit horseshoes for cornhole?” they thought.

So, Ray and Wiggles got a taste of LEG. Wiggles is a solid player and Ray had a very good night, shooting 72% and posting a 14.5 KPM on his way to a 4-2 record. But we later learned that Ray also had some disrespect for the league, saying early in the night that he didn’t think “these guys were very good.”

Hey, he started the night 2-0, with head-to-head wins over KP and Galz. He should feel good about that. But what was he watching? In his first victory he partnered with Wiggles to beat KP and Coach Mike, 21-16. The head-to-head against KP was 68 gross points to 63 gross points and 15 cornholes to 13 cornholes, both in favor of Ray (the game went 12 rounds). Tip of the cap to Ray, he was excellent. But if those numbers don’t garner respect for your opponent, I don’t know what will.

At the end of the night, the numbers don’t lie. Ray’s head-to-head nightly totals against some of the top players went like this:

• Nick – 39 – 20 in Nick’s favor
• Galz – 67 – 60 in Galz’s favor
• KP – 68 – 63 in Ray’s favor (the two never faced head-to-head after the first battle)
• Ray didn’t play JV or Dibble head-to-head

The good news is Ray changed his mind by the end of the night, admitting to Dibble that there are a lot of good players and he had fun playing with us. The better news is that Ray is a great guy, and we also had fun playing with him, welcoming him into the league.

But what is it with outsiders disrespecting the league? Even Dibble came in last year with guns blazing. He had some early success by winning the Singles Tournament, and thought he was going to dominate everyone and everything moving forward. He has been served several doses of reality since then – he’s not the only good player in this league. In fact, there are many, and everyone is capable of winning/losing a match against anyone else. That’s part of why this is fun. The other reason it’s fun is because we all RESPECT one another, and while we are certainly competitive, we don’t sacrifice sportsmanship at the expense of competitiveness. LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN. Don’t forget it, and if you don’t know what we’re about, come educate yourself before you judge us.

NEED MORE EVIDENCE?

I really don’t need to say another word justifying that the guys in this league can play. In fact, I didn’t need to write the 667 words in the opening of this recap either. Everyone who matters knows the truth. But here is another reminder of how good we are – every single player this week produced a KPM of 10.0 or higher and shot at least 60%.

• Dibble – 16.2 and 83% accuracy
• KP – 15.5 and 77% accuracy
• Nick – 14.8 and 80% accuracy
• Galz – 14.7 and 75% accuracy
• Ray – 14.5 and 72% accuracy
• JV – 11.7 and 65% accuracy
• Paul – 11.3 and 69% accuracy
• Coach Mike – 11.0 and 60% (I see you, Coach! Atta boy!)
• Erik – 10.0 and 67% accuracy

Those are some damn good bags!

GAME OF THE NIGHT

The Game of the Night pitted KP and Nick versus Dibble and Galz in Game 9. This was one of the most intense games of the season, not only because it was back and forth, but because of how huge the momentum swings were.

Dibble and Galz jumped out to a 9-3 lead after four innings, led by an excellent second inning from Galz where he outscored Nick, 7-1.

KP and Nick erased the deficit and tied the game in the fifth inning when KP posted a 10-6 round against Dibble, and Nick bested Galz in the bottom half of the inning, 7-5.

Nick stayed hot in the sixth inning and pushed his team’s lead to 14-11 after draining two cornholes on the way to an 8-3 advantage. Over the course of the fifth and sixth innings, KP and Nick produced an 11-2 to get back in the game, and take the lead.

Galz and Dibble weren’t done, as they chipped away over the next few rounds to tie the game, again, 14-14.

In the top of the ninth inning Dibble returned the 10-point round against KP, swishing three cornholes to win the round 10-6 and give his team a critical 18-14 lead. Smelling blood in the water, Galz tried to clinch the win for his team in the bottom of the ninth inning.

He had a 5-3 advantage on Nick, each with one bag remaining. Galz had two options to win the game:

• Throw one on the board for a 6-3 advantage and hope Nick misses his last bag
• Throw one in the hole for an 8-3 advantage, creating a situation where the game is over unless Nick also makes cornhole on his final bag

If you know Galz, and we all do, he goes for the kill shot 10000000% of the time. He’s in maximum overdrive on the aggressiveness, and will never change. That’s part of what makes him so great – the aggressiveness and belief he can make any shot in any situation.

Galz fired his final toss and it ricocheted off one of Nick’s blockers, missing the board completely. Nick chose to fight another day and placed his final bag on the board, limiting the damage to a 5-4 advantage for Galz.

In the top of the tenth inning, the score was 19-14 in favor of Dibble and Galz, and Dibble had the honors to throw first. With a clean board, Dibble sank his first bag and applied tons of pressure on KP.

KP’s first toss nuzzled right up to the front of the hole, a perfect blocker to throw Dibble’s eye off. Dibble’s approach to his second toss appeared to be a push shot where he took KP’s blocker in the hole along with his own. However, he threw wide of the hole and the extra steam attempting to hit a push shot carried the bag off the back of the board.

KP’s second toss was perfectly executed, but dragged his first bag to the hole and the two bags combined to plug the hole. “How didn’t those two go down?” KP begged to the sideline. JV, keeping score, shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, acknowledging the great shot and unfortunate result.

Dibble’s third bag was on the board for a point, just short of the hole.

KP needed some heroics. He was down 4-2 in the round, and his team 19-14 for the game. His first two bags were on the hole, but not in, so he trusted the positive feelings he had to execute another shot. He threw his third bag high, going for the airmail to take three bags down. As soon as it released his hand, it looked good.

The bag landed perfectly on top of the two plugged bags, and with enough force to take all three bags into the hole! What a shot! An airmail for nine points!

The players on the sidelines were excited, sensing how big of a shot KP just hit. Suddenly Dibble faced a 9-4 deficit (and a 19-19 game) with each player having one bag remaining.

Dibble’s fourth bag was just under the hole and to the right, creating a slight lane between his third and fourth bags – a lane that KP felt good about hitting. Let’s face it, at this point KP felt like the hole was the ocean, and anything he threw was going in.

KP once again trusted his rhythm, and focused on the lane between Dibble’s bags. He fired a low heater that plowed throw Dibble’s bags and slid into the hole!

A 12-point round for KP! “FUCK YEAH!” he screamed. Then he paused for a few seconds before the realization hit – “That’s game! It was 19-14 before this round, right?” a rhetorical question to set-up what was coming next. “Yeah, it was 19-14, and then my round was 12-5, good for seven points. Add those seven points to our 14, and that’s game! 21-19!”

Dibble and Galz couldn’t believe it. Nick was still doing the math in his head as KP fist bumped JV and others on the sideline.

What a game. What a 12-point walk-off by KP.

As you might expect, KP’s walk-off 12-point round is this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment. It’s hard to top a 12-point round, but even harder to top THIS 12-point round. JV admitted, “that round, and that game, might have been one of the best I’ve ever seen. That was amazing.”

FIRST CHOKE OF THE SEASON

The first choke of the season occurred in Game 4, which featured KP and Paul against Nick and Coach Mike. For those who need a reminder, in 2019 we defined new metrics – save, choke and comeback. For more detailed information, the 2019 Week 1 recap is linked. But in short, if a team possesses a 10+ point lead in a match and failed to win the match, they receive a “choke,” while the team who came back to win the match receives a “comeback.”

https://legcornhole.com/2019/05/03/2019-week-1-recap/

Nick and Coach raced out to a 17-6 advantage (note, that’s an 11 point lead), and were absolutely dominating. During that stretch Nick crushed KP, outscoring him 17-7, while Paul did his best to keep pace with Coach, losing that battle, 9-8.

Just when it seemed like it was over, Paul and KP came alive…well, mostly Paul, but KP decided to actually stop getting butt-fucked so hard by Nick.

Paul led his team on a 13-1 run over three innings to give his team a 19-18 lead, thanks to rounds of: 7-4, 1-1, and an enormous 8-1 round.

KP held steady and owned a 17-15 advantage over Nick during that same stretch.

After exchanging blows in the seventh inning, the game was tied, 20-20. In the top of the eighth, KP drained two cornholes en route to a 7-4 advantage to complete the comeback and hand Nick and Coach Mike a “choke.”

This game was strongly considered for Game of the Night, but just couldn’t stack up with the drama involved with Game 9.

NEWS AND NOTES

• We’ve already talked about KP’s 12-point round, but he added five 10-point rounds to his resume this week. As outstanding as he was, which included a 15.5 KPM and 77% accuracy, he still finished with a 3-4 record. Think about that for a moment – it should tell you (AGAIN) just how good this league is.
• Despite ribbing Ray in the intro of this recap, he had a nice week, posting three 10-point rounds on his way to a 14.5 KPM and 4-2 record.
• Erik was really good in an abbreviated evening, shooting 67% and posting a 10.0 KPM during his three games (1-2 record). He also outscored JV head-to-head this week, 36-27.
• Dibble took advantage of the home court, registering a 16.5 KPM while going 4-1 – the only loss coming during the Game of the Night. He also scored two 10-point rounds this week.
• Paul had one of the best weeks of his career, shooting 69%, posting an 11.3 KPM, leading his team to a major comeback in Game 4, and going 3-3 overall during an exceptionally competitive week.

Overall, the competition was fierce and every single guy produced at a high level, which was summarized in the opening when each player’s KPM and accuracy were outlined. This week, every LEG player deserves a standing ovation for representing the legitimacy of the league.

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – The most controversial aspect of LEG is the foot snag. And while it’s not as exciting as an airmail, 12-point round, or a match decided by a walk-off toss, it has always been a hell of a source of entertainment.

For those who don’t know, the foot snag was invented by LEG in 2016. That’s right, we invented it and I’d challenge anyone to prove otherwise.

The concept is simple – a wayward toss that is gathered and controlled on another player’s foot (like a hacky sack) prior to the errant toss hitting the ground is considered to be a successful foot snag.

The thrill of a foot snag is twofold: 1) it’s damn hard to perform considering the unpredictability of speed and direction of the bag’s carom off the board; 2) and more importantly, the player who threw the errant toss is required to chug/finish their beer before the match is allowed to continue.

The concept was perfected by Humberto, who is widely considered to be the best foot snagger of all-time. He has single-handedly been a difference maker in tournaments through use of the foot snag, snagging players so that their intoxication level skyrockets and their skills diminish.

It wasn’t hard to convince the league that the foot snag needed to be a staple of LEG, and the numbers reflected that.

• In 2016 there were 38 total foot snags.
• In 2017 the total grew to 139, and we had a legitimate regular season race between JV and Adam for the foot snag crown. JV totaled 35, while Adam fell just short with 34. It was like a modern day McGwire vs. Sosa, without the steroids.
• In 2018, Adam was on a mission to win the foot snag crown and he did with ease, snagging 43 bags on the year. The league total dipped to 99, which was reflective of some brewing controversy among certain league members.
• In 2019, the controversy came to a head with several players calling it a distraction, claiming the game suffered because of it. Arguments can be made for each side, but the divisiveness of the topic caused many players to stop attempting the foot snag. The 2019 league total was just 11 snags, and JV had six of them.

Foot snags were trending toward classification as an endangered species. But it’s amazing what some new blood can inject into the league!

This week Jimmy popped his LEG cherry, which allowed players the opportunity to paint a full picture of the league – we gave a tutorial on the scoring format, the statistics spreadsheet, KPM concept, warned him of the consequences of losing a game 21-0, and of course, introduced the foot snag.

Listen, it’s our obligation to ensure every LEG player knows the league inside and out. We owed it to Jimmy to educate him on the foot snag rule. And then that new MFer went out and snagged three bags in his first week, including foot snagging his own partner, Paul, TWICE in Game 6! Of course Paul had to return the favor, foot snagging Jimmy later in Game 6.

No wonder they lost that game 21-5 to Erik and Barker…

Many players think it’s a sin to foot snag at all. But foot snagging your own partner is about as bad as it gets, in some players’ minds.

My view? Fuck it, foot snag anyone and everyone. You don’t want to be foot snagged? Don’t throw an inaccurate bag!

Thank you, Jimmy. We needed your energy and passion for rejuvenating the foot snag.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

The Game of the Night featured Jimmy and JV against Paul and Turley in Game 1. Jimmy’s inaugural game, and he makes the cut for Game of the Night!

Things didn’t go Jimmy’s way early on in this one. Through the first three innings, Jimmy scored just one gross point – 1/12 shooting to start his LEG career, and Paul capitalized by outscoring him 9-1 during that stretch.

JV wasn’t much better during that period, losing his head-to-head battle with Turley, 8-7. Jimmy and JV quickly found themselves in an 11-2 hole.

Jimmy flashed his potential in the fourth inning when he outscored Paul, 4-0, but his team’s deficit was still 14-6.

In the top of the sixth inning JV scored all four of his tosses, including one cornhole, while Turley managed only one toss on the board. A 6-1 advantage shrunk the margin to 14-11, and Jimmy piled on in the bottom of the sixth by besting Paul, 3-0.

The sixth inning surge allowed Jimmy and JV to tie the match at 14-14, and JV gave his team a 16-14 lead in the top of the seventh to cap a 10-0 scoring run.

Paul and Turley needed to answer. They were on the ropes, at risk of nearly choking away the game. That’s when Paul stepped in to save the game – in the bottom of the seventh he nailed a cornhole on his first toss, then scared the hole with his second toss settling fractions from another cornhole. Paul’s third toss was aggressive, clearly trying to take the second toss into the hole. But the toss was offline and long. Paul collected his nerves, and fired his final bag at the hole. It had a lot of steam on it, but tracked directly at the hole…the bag hit high on the board and slid into the hole, taking the other bag with it!

Two cornholes on the final toss of the inning, good for a 9-3 advantage and a 20-16 lead overall.

JV kept his team in it, cutting the deficit to 20-18 in the top of the eighth inning. But all eyes turned back to Jimmy and Paul in the bottom of the eighth.

Jimmy’s four throws produced four gross points, and Paul had managed just two points after his first three tosses. Paul had one bag remaining, and faced the possibility of a 20-20 tie, with bags going back to JV and Turley.

Paul stared at the hole, swinging his arm slowly back-and-forth, presumably developing a rhythm and measuring his throw. But it’s entirely possible he was daydreaming about which beer he’d drink next, and was clueless about the situation he was in. Nobody can ever tell with Paul, which is why we love him!

Paul let a low line-drive go toward the hole. Once again, this toss had heat on it. Once again, his final bag landed high on the board and pushed another bag in for a cornhole on it’s way into the hole.

Two cornholes on the final toss of the inning, for the second consecutive inning! This time, he erased a 4-2 deficit and flipped it to a 7-4 advantage, which closed the match, 21-18.

Paul’s clutch shots in the seventh and eighth innings were turning points in the match, and prevented Jimmy from his first career victory. For that, Paul earns this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment, his second of the 2020 season.

NEWS AND NOTES

Week 3 presented difficult playing conditions because of a strong breeze and uneven footing for the players to navigate in their throwing stance. KP decided to play in a new area of the yard to help preserve the health of his grass, and to avoid pissing off his neighbors, who interrogated Paul and Jimmy at the beginning of the night.

Several players still had really strong performances, but in general accuracy and consistency suffered.

• Jimmy cracks cornholes and he don’t care! It’s true, Jimmy knocked in 0.41 cornholes per round, which is really good given the playing conditions and the fact that he was making his LEG debut. His KPM was just 6.4, primarily due to 31% accuracy. By comparison, Jimmy wasn’t too far off from the following players, who have a solid track record:
  • Paul shot 32% and had a 7.1 KPM, which is crazy given the loud moments and MSM he had this week.
  • Erik shot 39% and registered an 8.0 KPM
  • Turley shot 43% and had an 8.6 KPM

Though Jimmy lost his first career game in heart-breaking fashion, he did finally get his first win and ended the night with a 2-4 record. Most importantly, he brought the foot snag back into style!

• Barker made his season debut and didn’t have much rust in his game. Despite the playing conditions, he shot 63% on his way to a 12.1 KPM and 2-1 record. The highlight of his night was holding off Galz in Game 10, losing the head-to-head battle, 39-37. Barker’s neutralization of Galz was key in helping his team to a 21-11 victory, including surviving a 10-point round from Galz by posting eight points to prevent a huge scoring swing.
• Speaking of Galz, the playing conditions seemed like no problem for him. He was the only player to produce a 10-point round (he had three of them), and he swished cornholes at a ridiculous 1.18 per round while also shooting 62%. His 15.4 KPM is really high on any night, let alone one like this. Galz was a stud, finishing the night 4-2 overall and was the most imposing player this week.
• JV was the most accurate player, shooting 65% this week. His 11.8 KPM is also impressive, and could’ve been much higher if he had made a few more cornholes (he averaged 0.66 per round). He finished 2-3 overall, and was oh-so-close to being on the right side of .500 if the Game of the Night had swung his (and Jimmy’s) way.
• KP posted a 13.4 KPM, which looks great on paper. However, that was inflated simply because of his cornhole rate (0.97 per round). His accuracy was way down (58% tonight, compared to 69% for the season coming into week 3) and, even more importantly, he was victim to two 21-5 losses. It’s hard to call that a good night when you get bombed that badly, no matter what the numbers say. He finished the night 3-3 overall

BEVERLY HILLS, MICHIGAN – Holy Bun Run Batman! We had dick out in Game 1 this week, nearly had it again in Game 2, and Game 3 produced more swingin’ sausage.

KP and Coach Mike started this week against JV and Dibble, and the latter duo only needed three and a half rounds to complete a 21-0 embarrassment. Not taking anything away from JV and Dibble, but KP and Coach were BAD. Coach’s KPM for the game was 5.4, while KP was a horrific 7.2 – a perfect recipe for tubesteak smothered in underwear.

Coach Mike’s pride was hurt, and he demanded we “run it back.” KP is the ultimate competitor, so he quickly agreed. Meanwhile, JV and Dibble snickered to themselves and happily obliged.

This time, JV and Dibble ran out to a 20-0 lead in just four rounds. Once again, they were very good, but Coach and KP were abysmal, with neither player scoring more than three points in any of the first four rounds.

In the fifth round, KP finally found some accuracy when he knocked three on the board and drained a cornhole for six points. JV only managed five points, and lost the opportunity for a second consecutive bun run. Dibble closed the game in the bottom of the fifth round, with a 7-6 advantage, for a 21-1 victory.

The foursome switched partners after two blowout games, with two-time LEG champion, JV, feeling confident that he and Coach Mike could find a different fate in Game 3. Turns out that partnership wasn’t any better. Coach Mike was bun run for the second time in three games, losing 21-0 in just four and a half rounds, capped by Dibble outscoring Coach, 8-1, in the top of the fifth round.

In each of the first three games Coach and Dibble played head-to-head, and Dibble outscored him 68-31, which was a primary factor in losing all three games by a combined score of 63-1 – yes, that’s SIXTY-THREE to ONE.

The Game 3 bun run was the sixth of Coach Mike’s career, and fifth since the 2019 season. He now has double the career bun runs compared to the second-most player (Paul – 3). He’s proven to be the king of bun runs, which is why we now call him “Aunt Millie Mike.”

GAME OF THE NIGHT

The Game of the Night pitted Aunt Millie Mike and JV versus Bushie and Erik (Game 8). Spoiler alert, this one didn’t end in a bun run. Hallelujah, because I don’t think we could handle anymore dingalings this week.

This match truly was a back-and-forth slugfest – JV and Aunt Millie jumped out to a 4-0 lead, followed by Bushie and Erik storming back to take a 5-4 advantage. This seesaw continued:

• JV and Aunt Millie back on top, 8-5
• Bushie and Erik rallying to a 13-9 lead
• JV and Aunt Millie chipped away, closing the deficit to 13-12 after six rounds

In the top of seventh round Bushie added another point, making it 14-12. Rihanna was banging in the background, and JV was juiced. Bottom of the seventh round:

Erik first toss – missed board

JV first toss – cornhole

Erik second toss – on the board

JV second toss – on the board

Erik third toss – on the board

JV third toss – missed board

Erik fourth toss – missed board

JV paused, focused on the hole, practiced his hip swivel…once, then twice. He fired his fourth bag, “RIGHT IN!” he yelled, bag not even two feet out of his hands. His high arching shot swished through the hole, barely grazing any wood!

“BITCH BETTA HAVE MY MONEY!” he screamed, and gave a Tiger Woods-like fist pump. A huge, 7-2 round gave JV and Aunt Millie a 17-14 lead!

Bushie then tied it at 17-17 in the eighth round with seven enormous points of his own, including two really difficult cornholes.

In the bottom of the eighth JV bested Erik, 5-3, to take the lead back, 19-17. Bushie did his best to close the game in the top of the ninth, knowing JV was surging at the other end of the boards.

He owned a 5-3 advantage with one bag to go, which helped tie the game at 19 apiece. He needed a cornhole to close the game, but his final toss caromed off the side of the board.

This is JV time. Game tied at 19, pressure to make shots with the game on the line, and he had momentum with back-to-back scoring rounds of 7-2 and 5-3. Erik has had plenty of positive moments in his LEG career, but he generally hasn’t performed in these situations. Advantage JV.

Erik threw first and found the board. JV answered with his first toss on the board. Erik’s second bag was right at the hole, but stopped hole-high with one corner of the bag dangling inside the hole, not enough to fall into the hole on it’s own.

JV wisely threw short and boarded his second bag, avoiding taking Erik’s bag into the hole.

Erik launched his third toss like it was shot out of a cannon. The bag landed perfectly in the middle of the board, just beyond JV’s d-bag, and ran up toward the hole. It smacked the back of the hole with so much force that it dragged Erik’s hanging bag into the hole as well.

What a throw! Two cornholes in one toss, taking a 7-2 advantage during a 19-19 game, and JV only had two bags remaining.

Where’s Rihanna when you need her? JV’s third toss was dead center of the board, but short – one point. Erik’s final toss missed the board, which could have completely clinched the game had he just boarded it (even a JV cornhole would have drawn Erik’s advantage to 8-6, and the game would’ve been over at 21-19).

Pressure shifted back to JV. Down 7-3, needing a cornhole to keep the game alive, he launched a Joe Dumars rainbow for three points. Unfortunately his fourth toss was short again, piling up all four of his bags in the middle of the board. Erik held on for a 7-4 advantage, and won the game, 21-19, with his two-for-one cornhole on the third toss.

There’s your money, JV!

Erik rising to the occasion with the game on the line was an enormous growth moment for him. But doing it against JV, one of the league’s top players, should give him tremendous confidence. Given the magnitude of the moment, who it was against, and how he pulled it off, Erik deserves this week’s Mushroom Stamp Moment for closing out Game 8 against JV.

HIGH ROLLERS

Up until now, you probably have the impression that Erik was really good and everyone else was running around naked. While that’s true, it’s not the entire story. A total of eight players participated this week, and six of them crossed the 10.0 KPM mark, while two more were damn close.

• Dibble – 16.8
• Galz – 15.1
• KP – 13.6
• JV – 11.9
• Erik – 11.5
• Bushie – 11.0
• Paul – 9.2
• Aunt Millie – 9.0

Excluding the three blowout games to begin the night, four of the next 10 games were decided by four points or fewer. The games were ultra-competitive, which you’d expect from the KPM distribution above.

For the second straight week, Erik started crushed his first game of the night. Last week he posted a 12.2 KPM in his first game, and this week he topped it at 12.6. Last week he cooled off as the night went on. This week he stayed hot, found the capacity to perform in the clutch, and finished with a 3-1 record.

Speaking of clutch, in the final game of the night (Game 13) Bushie and KP were down 20-19 to Aunt Millie and Dibble. Bushie closed the game with an 8-1 round against ol’ Bread Box.

Bushie had a great night, arguably his best individual night of any regular season to date.

Dibble had an incredible night, individually. His 16.8 KPM this week was just shy of his league-record 17.0 KPM (week 10 of 2019). He shot 72%, drained 1.21 cornholes per round, and scored 5.3 gross points per round. Yet, he finished just 4-4 overall, including 1-4 after the first three blowout games to begin the night.

Galz was also excellent this week, and shouldn’t be overshadowed by Dibble. His 15.1 KPM is crazy high, and he scored 1.07 cornholes per round while shooting 66%. In Game 6, he led his team (Paul) to a 21-6 victory while scoring 42 gross points and 12 cornholes in just six rounds (averages of 7 gross points per round and two cornholes per round).

NEWS AND NOTES

• KP started horribly and didn’t look good running naked with Aunt Millie. But he rebounded nicely after losing his first two games by a combined score of 42-1. He finished the night 6-3 (6-1 after getting embarrassed) and with a 13.6 KPM on 65% shooting. He also scored the only 12-point round of the night, which came in Game 5 against Galz – his 12-4 round blew open a 16-12 match and gave KP and Bushie a 21-12 win.
• Aunt Millie had many moments of embarrassment, including solidifying his career lead in bun runs. However, it still isn’t as bad as JV shitting his pants in week 6 of the 2017 season. Despite his struggles, he rallied to a 9.0 KPM and increased his accuracy to 55%. Though he finished with a 1-7 record, his lone win was a partnership with Erik in a 21-10 victory over JV and Paul. In that game, he won the head-to-head match-up with JV, 32-31, and drained a game-high seven cornholes.
• JV finished the night 4-5 with an 11.9 KPM on 70% shooting. Cumulatively he outscored every head-to-head opponent on the evening:
  • JV – 75 vs. Erik – 57 (though Erik put a Mushroom Stamp on JV’s head)
  • JV – 53 vs. KP – 42
  • JV – 33 vs. KP – 32
  • JV – 57 vs. Aunt Millie – 41

Oddly, JV never went head-to-head with Dibble, Galz or Bushie.