Match Play

Alright. Now that you and your partner have prepared for your match, how do you go about winning it? During a heated Cornhole match, how you and your partner approach and execute a "match plan" is directly proportional to success. Anyone can go out there and toss some corn around, but can you outwit an opponent and strategically place the bags to frustrate and confuse them? Here are some sure fire tips on developing a "match plan" to defeat your opponent.

Tip #1: Initiate the pressure. If you have the first toss of an inning, you don't have to go for the jugular . Put the bag on the board. If you go for the hole and miss, your opponent has then 4 opportunities to score to just 3 for you. By putting the first bag on, you also make it more difficult for your opponent to "go for it". If you are the second person to throw, read your opponent. If they miss, you might want to just put it on the board to establish a lead. If they have been cold and missing a lot of their shots, you should go for the hole and try to get lots of points.

Tip #2: Bag placement. If you ask a lot of Cornholers, "Where is the best place to throw your bag?" They would probably say, "In the hole jerk!" Sure it's great to get a cornhole, but it's also great to play some defense. The best way to do that is to throw the bag to where it's directly in front of the hole. That way, the only way your opponent can get a cornhole, without pushing yours in, is to throw it very high and it drop in the hole without hitting the board. That is the most difficult shot in Cornhole. Most of the time they miss the board completely, leaving you with the advantage. Most of the time, the only way to get points is to stack bags together in front of the hole setting up a "wall". Usually, this ends an inning with no points or 1 point going to the person who threw the first bag close to the hole.

Tip #3: Minimize the damage. It's inevitable that sometimes you get down in an inning. Maybe your opponent has thrown a cornhole, maybe 2 or even 3. When that occurs, sometimes it's best to cut your losses and minimize the damage. If you're down by 2,3 or more points and you have a couple of throws left, make sure you at least get them on the board. You want to turn a potential 5,6 points for your opponent to a more manageable 3 or 4 points. This will mean more innings played which means more opportunities to get those points back.

(And finally) Tip #4: Finish the job. Once you get close to victory, don't lose your focus. Even if it's close, continuously apply the pressure by putting the bags on the boards. If you have an opportunity to win a match, go for it. If the score is 18-17, for example, and you have the last bag to throw, and the current inning is tied, go for the hole! If you miss, it's still 18-17. More times than not, the aggressor at the end will win the close ones.

Hopefully, these tips will help you in your next Cornhole event. If it doesn't, you probably need to practice more. Thanks for your time and hopefully I'll see you at the next tournament.

From Behind the Boards,

Michael Heard

Cornholer

If any other cornholer would like to express their thoughts on play, strategy, tournaments, etc. feel free to contact me at michael@alabamacornhole.com

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