The best cornhole players from across Ontario are set to square off in Orillia this weekend.
For the first time, the Ontario Cornhole Championships will be held at ODAS Park from Friday, July 21 to Sunday, July 23.
Nick Bornino, owner of the Orillia Cornhole Club and president of the Ontario Cornhole Association, says most Ontario players reside in Orillia, Barrie, Newmarket, and Vaughan.
“For our players, it’s really nice that this event is close to home,” he said. “They get to showcase what they can do here in Orillia.”
Bornino says the vast majority of people who try the unique sport become frequent players. In just two years of operation, the Orillia Club has grown into one of the most successful cornhole organizations in the province, he noted, saying he hopes the rapid growth of the game will one day result in it becoming an Olympic sport.
“There is a lot of strategy to the game that people get hooked on,” he said. “The strategy behind each shot and trying to think ahead of what your opponent is going to do is what drives people and makes it exciting.”
This weekend, 46 of the top 64 players from across Ontario have signed up to play in the Elite 64 tournament.
“It’s always exciting to see everyone and to have everyone cheering each other on,” Bornino said. “I’m really looking forward to seeing how well some of our Orillia players can do in these tournaments.”
The Elite 64 tournament will be streamed on the Ontario Cornhole Facebook page for those who want to watch.
Glen McNutt, who was nationally ranked as the best player in Canada from September 2022 until last week, will be representing Orillia this weekend and is looking to reclaim his top spot.
McNutt, now the sixth-ranked player in the nation, only began playing cornhole just before the COVID-19 pandemic put everyone on lockdown.
“We didn’t have much to do so it was something I could do in the backyard,” he explained.
McNutt moved to Ontario in the 90s from Nova Scotia where he grew up playing washer toss.
“I was very good at it,” he explained. “Cornhole is the same motion as it was throwing a washer into a box about 27 to 30 feet away.”
McNutt practises daily in his basement to become more consistent.
“Everybody needs a competitive outlet,” he said. “There is a lot of strategy involved and it gives me the competitive outlet I was looking for in a non-contact way during the pandemic."
McNutt says some of the best cornhole players in Canada reside in Orillia and they will have the opportunity to prove that this weekend.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to showcase our club,” he said.
The Ontario Cornhole Championships begin on Friday at 6:30 p.m. with an open-to-everyone event where players will switch partners for all four round-robin games. Anyone registered with Cornhole Canada is welcome to participate.
“There is no experience necessary to play,” Bornino said. “It’s a chance for us to try to grow the game, get new people interested, and have people come to see what we are all about.”
Bornino says players could even get partnered with McNutt, one of the top players in Canada.
“It’s kind of exciting if you get partnered with him,” Bornino said. “He’s full of tips, knowledge, and a lot of things that people wouldn’t even think of in the game.”
Mixed doubles play begins on Saturday morning at 9 a.m., while the Elite 64 tournament starts at 12:30 p.m., and the doubles bracket will kick off at 4 p.m.
“Some people don’t realize until they come out how much fun it really is,” Bornino said.
