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The American Cornhole League Comes to Syracuse Cornhole Comes to 'Cuse

By Michael O'Connor

MICHAEL O’CONNOR: Cornhole. For many, it’s a game you play at tailgates or backyard parties. But for the 100 players competing at this weekend’s professional tournament, it’s a sport. Since the ACL was founded in 2016, it’s already grown to include big-name sponsors, TV deals with major networks, and cash prizes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Still, it seems like a simple game. Just throw a square bag into a round hole, right? Only at this level, not all bags are the same. Tosstek cornhole owner Bronson Schalizki says some players aim straight for the hole.

BRONSON SCHALIZKI: For this we have a slower bag – there’s a carpet back. The front is a seven speed and the back is a four.

O’CONNOR: And for players aiming to slide up the board.

SCHALIZKI: They can look similar, but the front is a nine and then the back is not carpeted which is a six speed.

O’CONNOR: So while the bags come in all different shapes and sizes, so do the players, ranging from eight to even 70 years old from the open to the professional leagues; so anybody – even me – can play cornhole. Just look at eight-year-old Ashton Pendolf from Camden, the youngest competitor this weekend.

ASHTON PENDOLF: This is my first ACL tournament.

O’CONNOR: But Ashton isn’t just playing at the professional level.

ASHTON PENDOLF: I won my first game.

O’CONNOR: And according to his father Anthony, Ashton’s been winning even since his amateur debut.

ANTHONY PENDOLF: I brought him to Buffalo a year ago for his first tournament and he actually won the whole thing.

O’CONNOR: For Ashton, it’s not just about winning.

ASHTON PENDOLF: I just like meeting other people and throwing with them.

O’CONNOR: And with the cornhole community growing, dad says he’s excited for his son’s future.

ANTHONY PENDOLF: Hopefully with him being so little he can grow up with it and kick butt when he gets older.

O’CONNOR: In Syracuse, Michael O’Connor, NCC News.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) –Last month, the American Cornhole League (ACL) held its first regional tournament in the City of Syracuse at the Collegian Hotel & Suites. The event marks the first of many planned tournaments throughout CNY by Mad River Cornhole, a regional sub-division of the ACL.

To many, cornhole is just a simple game you play at backyard parties or bars. But since the ACL was founded in 2016, it’s already grown to include big-name sponsors, TV deals with major networks, and cash prizes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Last month’s regional tournament is actually one of thousands across the country, featuring open and professional divisions, and registration was open to the public. Gary Jeffries, the tournament director and Mad River Cornhole league member, says no matter one’s skill, anybody can play cornhole.

“You throw a square bag into a round hole,” Jeffries said. “It doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense, but anybody can pick it up.”

A table for Tosstek Cornhole offers different types of bags for players to throw at the ACL regional tournament.
Tosstek Cornhole Owner Bronson Schalizki says he sells different kinds of bags depending on a player’s strategy.
© 2023 Michael O'Connor

In addition to running the tournament, Jeffries and fellow league-member Bronson Schalizki co-own Tosstek Cornhole, an ACL-certified bag supplier. While many think of cornhole as a simple backyard game, Schalizki says it’s much more complicated.

“Players use different bags depending on how they want to play,” Schalizki said. “Some have carpet backs to slow them down and stick on the board, while others are faster no matter the board condition.”

The bags aren’t the only thing that come in different shapes and sizes – with no age limit, 8-year-old Ashton Pendolf was able to compete with the pros. Though he was the youngest competitor in the competitive division, Ashton didn’t just play in the tournament – he won both of his matchups.

“I just like meeting other people and throwing with them,” Ashton said.

Eight-year-old Ashton Pendolf stands in front of the cornhole boards and shares his experience from this weekend's tournament.
Though he’s only 8-years-old, Ashton Pendolf won both of his games in the competitive division.
© 2023 Michael O'Connor

His father, Anthony Pendolf, says Ashton’s been winning since he first started playing cornhole just last year.

“I brought him to Buffalo a year ago for his first tournament and he actually won the whole thing,” Pendolf said.

Jeffries says people like the Ashton prove that cornhole truly is open to anybody. Mad River Cornhole will continue to expand throughout Syracuse as a regional sub-division of the ACL, and plans to hold official ACL regional tournaments every month until the summer.

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