Arts & Entertainment

Nothing But Hole

By Mr. Night 

All those sweaty, sticky nights in your friend’s backyard, just pounding away at it until you hit the sweet spot; all the hours spent trying to find your stroke as darkness falls; the triumphant shout of exultation when you smoke your sack right down the pipe and taste the sweet nectar of victory; yes, cornholing offers joys that few men can resist. And now that you’ve mastered the art, you should strut your stuff in public. You know, take on all comers. So grab your lucky bags and hightail it over to Castlewood State Park (1401 Kiefer Creek Road, Ballwin; www.madcowpirate.com/tournament/index.cfm) today for the Missouri State Cornhole Championships. The recreational cousin of washers – yes, it’s a game; what did you think we were talking about? – involves throwing a one-pound bag of corn through a six-inch hole cut in a two-by-four-foot piece of plywood set at an angle and placed at a distance of twenty-seven feet. Points are scored by getting the bag completely through the hole, by getting the bag on the playing surface and for a bag hanging partially through the hole (a.k.a., “rimming it”). Registration ($40 per team of two in advance, $50 per team at the gate) starts at 11 a.m., and games start at 12:30 p.m. It’s a double- elimination tournament with cash prizes for top-three finishers – and the first keg of beer is included in your registration. Cornholing makes you powerful thirsty, after all.