Cornhole

Cornhole is an outdoor game that is played with 2 or more players/teams. Teams can consist of 2 people (one by each platform). The basic objective is to throw a bean bag towards the platform and get it to land on the platform, or preferably go into the hole. The first one to get the designated number of points wins.

Cornhole Components
How to Play
How to Score
How to Win
How to Build Your Own Game
Other Names for Cornhole

Cornhole Components

  • 1 or 2 Cornhole platforms
  • 2 or 3 sets of Bean Bags (each set is a different color)

Note: The instructions below are written assuming the use of two platforms. If there is only one platform, the bean bags will have to be retrieved and then returned to the original tossing line.

How to Play

Set the two platforms up by placing them at least 15 feet apart from each other. The two platforms should be facing each other. Each team is given a set of four bean bags each.

The first round will begin by having one player from each team stand next to Platform 1. It is up to the players to determine who goes first at this point. Each player will take a turn throwing one bean bag until every player by Platform 1 has thrown all four of their bags. Once all the bags have been tossed, the points will be added up (see "How to Score" below). The next round will begin by having the players at Platform 2 toss the bags back towards Platform 1. The team with the most overall points after the previous round will throw first.

How you throw the bags is up to the individual. Some like throwing them straighter and letting them "slide" up the platform. Others prefer more of an arc to allow it to land on the platform and have minimal sliding.

How to Score

In-The-Hole - A bag that ends up in the hole (whether thrown in or knocked in by another bag) is worth 3 points.

On-The-Board - A bag that ends up landing on the board (any portion of the bag resting on the board) is worth 1 point.

  • If a bag touches the ground before touching the board, it does not count.
  • If a bag rests on the board, is not touching the ground, and is touching or resting on a bag that did touch the ground, then it is still in play and can be scored.
  • Any bag not on the platform is not counted.

Scoring Variation - Cancellation - An alternative scoring technique is to cancel out each others score. The number of points from the team with the fewest points in that round is deducted from the number of points from the team with the most points in that round. The result is the number of points the team with the most points will get. In the case of a tie, neither team gets the points. This allows only one team to gain points per round and creates a slightly longer game.

Cancellation example: If John lands 2 bags In-The-Hole (6 pts) and one On-The-Board (1 pt) and Steve lands two bags On-The-Board (2 pts). In this situation, John would end up with 5 points and Steve would end up with 0 points.

Another slight variation to the Cancellation is to only have In-The-Hole points be cancelled by the other teams In-The-Hole points. Thus, an On-The-Board point would not affect the In-The-Hole points. This variation would allow for both teams to potentially gain points (highest in each category would get points).

How to Win

In order to win, you must be the first team to reach a score of exactly 21. This means that you are not allowed to go over. If you go over, your score for that round will not be counted. For example, if you are at 20 points and you need 1 point to win but you land a bag In-The-Hole, you would now be at 23. Because you went over, your score for the next round will still be 20.

Winning Variation: The team with the highest score over 21 wins. If only one team reaches a score of 21 then that team wins. If both teams go over 21 in the same round then the highest score wins. If the score is tied, play more rounds until one team is ahead after the round. The team with the highest score after the round would be declared the winner.

How to Build Your Own Game

Building your own Cornhole game does not take a lot of work and it can save you a fair amount of money. This particular design is quite sturdy and is much more durable than some boughten versions that exist. It is also quite cheap and easy to make.

Download the Instructions on how to build your own Cornhole Game

Download the Google Sketch-Up 3-D design model of the Board.

Other Names for Cornhole

  • Baggo
  • Bags
  • Bean Toss
  • Bean Bag Toss
    		•   
  • Beanbag Toss
  • Cornhole
  • Corn Toss
  • Sack-Hole
    		•   
  • Sacks and Holes
  • Tailgate Toss
  • Teabagging
  • Tumor Toss
    		•