Four bags, a board and a desire to have some fun is all you need to take part in one of Barrie’s newest sports leagues.
Sebastian Gian is the president of the Barrie Cornhole League, which is set to host its first ever regional cornhole tournament on Dec. 4 at the Lions Gate Banquet Centre in the city’s east end.
Players will be playing for regional points that go toward their Canadian Cornhole League national standings. Players can participate in social or competitive singles, open doubles and women’s divisions, he tells BarrieToday, adding the league was officially launched in March 2020.
While pandemic restrictions have thrown them some curve-bags, Gian says they have been hosting regular “league nights” on and off since last summer — first outside and more recently at the Barrie Curling Club on Essa Road.
“We’ve been doubling our growth every time we do a new tournament. It’s like the more (people) play the more they tell their friends,” he says, estimating there are approximately 40 leagues nationwide, and about a half dozen in and around Simcoe County.
One of the reasons, he says, is likely because it’s simply an easy game to play.
“You get four bags and you literally just have to throw it in the hole. It’s not rocket science,” he says. “A lot of people have played it before at a cottage and just for fun."
After being stuck at home for so long, Gian says many people are just looking for something to get out and do with friends.
“It’s also something that you can do while keeping socially distanced, so the comfort level for people is there, too," he says.
Cornhole is one of those transition sports for folks who are maybe finding themselves not wanting — or able — to play as hard as they used to, Gian says.
“I played all the sports, but now I am in my 40s. … Do I really want to go play hockey and play with the 25-year-olds that are going so hard? It is a great midlife crisis sport,” he jokes. “You can get together, have a few drinks and play.
"This is the only sport you can play with a drink in your hand.”
Next month's tournament, which he anticipates will see upwards of 60 competitors, is the next progression for the league and will be more structured and competitive than their regular league nights.
“The league nights we try to make it more of a social thing," Gian says. "Come out, throw some bags — there’s still competitive juices flowing, but it’s not like do or die.
"With the tournament, we are trying to make it with proper divisions, playing to win, but still it is still a friendly and fun environment.”
