“ There ’ s more ( to it ) than just throwing a bag . There ’ s a defense to it , if you want to do that . You ’ ve got four bags – a lot of times people like to throw that first bag , which is called a blocker bag . They throw it to stop in front of the hole and make your opponent do what he ’ s going to do , whether he ’ s going to try to slide in around yours ( or ) throw an ‘ air mail ’ and just go over yours into the hole . Normally , when they do that , they ’ re going to make a mistake . And when they do , that ’ s when you try to capitalize on the next bag by trying to push it . … It ’ s really a fun game if you ’ ve never thrown it .
““ For me , it ’ s like a family atmosphere ,” Shepherd adds . “ I ’ ve met so many friends that I consider friends for life that I ’ d have never met it I didn ’ t play cornhole .”
So You Want To Play Cornhole ?
American Corhole Organization players Terry Mathis and Jeff Shepherd Sr . offered some advice for novice cornhole players .
“ When you ’ re first starting out , try to get your bags to land flat ,” Mathis says . “ You want to make sure you ’ re lined up to the hole every time . Find your place , find where you want to hit and try to hit that spot every time .
“ All I ’ ll say is go out and practice , or just go out and have a good time . That ’ s all it is .” Shepherd advises players to avoid getting nervous or frustrated in the beginning . “ It ’ s a fun sport ,” he says . “ It ’ s a hobby . It ’ s not life or death .”
As with horseshoes , softball or bowling , there ’ s a certain level of skill that comes with practice .
“ There ’ s different throws , believe me ,” Shepherd says , adding that players eventually find what works for them . “ Me and Terry , we ’ ve seen people who hold the bags by one little corner and try to throw it one way . I wouldn ’ t recommend that for anybody , but we ’ ve seen one guy that does it so long , he ’ s pretty good at it . But I ’ d say most of your top 40 players , they throw a flat , spinning bag .”
The ACO uses regulation boards and bags with a slick side and a sticky side . The bags are filled with plastic resin beads ( bugs and rodents are less apt to snack on them over the classic corn-filled bags ).
“ The bags we use are anywhere from $ 50 to $ 80 a set ,” Shepherd says .
13