Cornhole is an increasingly popular game where players toss a one-pound bag filled will with corn at a sloped box with a hole at one end. The points are awarded either by tossing the bag into the hole for three points or if the bag stays atop the box, the player earns one point. The first individual or team to 21 points wins the match. Best of three matches wins the game.

Section A. Dimensions - A Cornhole / Corn Toss court shall be a level rectangular area 10 ft wide and a minimum of 45 ft long. The court should consist of two corn platforms, designated pitchers boxes and foul lines. A north-south setting is recommended for outdoor courts to minimize the effects of the sun.

Section B. Pitcher's Box - The pitcher's box is the rectangle 4 ft by 3 ft at each end of the court, parallel and on both sides of Cornhole platforms. Each contestant must remain in the pitchers box while pitching the corn bag.

Section C. Multiple Courts - To eliminate distraction and safely separate activity, Cornhole / Corn Toss courts adjacent to each other shall be a minimum of 10 feet apart. A greater distance (at least 12 feet) is preferable.

Section D. Foul Lines – There are two sets of foul lines: (1) open adult play and (2) junior play. The open adult play foul lines shall be defined as an imaginary line 30 ft. from the beginning of the hole in the opposite Cornhole platform. For Cornhole / Corn Toss sets that meet ACA specifications, this foul line will be parallel to the front of the cornhole platform. The junior play foul lines shall be defined as an imaginary line 21 ft. from the beginning of the hole in the opposite cornhole platform. See the diagram below

Section E. Covered Or Indoor Courts - The regulations for covered and indoor Cornhole / Corn Toss courts are exactly the same with the additional stipulation that they shall have a minimum 12 foot vertical clearance to the lowest possible obstruction.

Section A. Equipment Standards - The ACA has adopted the following equipment specifications and standards for Cornhole / Corn Toss:

1. Each cornhole platform shall be a 48" x 24" rectangle made of half inch plywood. ACA sanctioned tournaments should only be played with wooden cornhole platforms as there is significant variance in play between wooden and plastic or other surfaces.

2. The hole in the cornhole platform shall be six inches in diameter and be centered nine inches from the top and 12 inches from each side of the cornhole platform edges.

3. The front of the cornhole platform shall be approximately 4 inches from bottom to top and be at near a 90-degree angle to the ground.

4. The back of the cornhole platform shall be approximately 12 inches from bottom to top and be at near a 90-degree angle to the ground.

5. The cornhole platform should have solid wood sides with the only opening to the underside of the cornhole platform being through the hole in the cornhole platform. Although portable fold-down platforms are acceptable (with open sides), platforms with solid wooden sides are preferred for ACA sanctioned tournament play as it is sometimes difficult (especially late in the day) to determine if a corn bag was pitched into the hole or came to rest under the cornhole platform by being pitched through the open sides in a cornhole platform.

6. The Cornhole / Corn Toss play surface shall be finish sanded to a very smooth texture and there shall not be any blemishes in the wood surface that might disrupt or distort play.

7. The Cornhole / Corn Toss play surface shall be painted with a high gloss latex paint resulting in a surface that allows corn bags to slide but is not so slippery that it allows the bags to slide back down the platform. The preferable color is white, but any easy to see color is acceptable for tournament play.

8. The corn bags shall be made from two fabric squares with a quarter inch double stitched seam on all four sides. The corn bags should be made from 12 oz / sq yd duck canvas and may be any color that is easy to see during Cornhole play. Each bag shall be filled with approximately 2 cups of corn feed and finished bags should be a minimum of 6" X 6" square and weigh between 14 and 16 ounces.

Section A. Adults - All open adult contestants shall pitch from the pitcher’s box behind the 30 foot foul lines. Physically impaired adults or seniors may, if agreed by all contestants, observe the 21 foot foul lines.

Section B. Juniors - Junior contestants may pitch from any place, but must observe the 21 foot foul lines.

Section A. Court Maintenance - Every effort shall be made to keep the Cornhole / Corn Toss play surface in perfect playing condition. Cornhole / Corn Toss courts should be free of anything that might distract a contestant during play. Each contestant is responsible for making sure the court is in good playing condition prior to starting the match. During a match, a contestant shall not be allowed to alter the Cornhole / Corn Toss court in any manner without the consent of the opponent or a tournament official.

Section B. Distractions During Play - Every effort shall be made to keep from distracting contestants during Cornhole / Corn Toss play. Drinks and other personal belongings should be placed behind the cornhole platform in designated beverage holders or other secure locations to keep from distracting contestants.

Section A. Singles Or Doubles Play - Cornhole / Corn Toss can be played as doubles or singles. In doubles play two contestants are partners against another team of two contestants; in singles play a contestant competes against another contestant. In doubles play, one member of each team pitches from one cornhole platform and the other members pitch from the other cornhole platform. In singles play, both contestants pitch from the same cornhole platform. All other rules are basically the same for doubles or singles play.

Section B. Innings - Every Cornhole / Corn Toss match is broken down into innings of play. During each inning of play each contestant must pitch all four corn bags.

Section C. Value Of The Corn Bag -

1. Corn Bag In-The-Hole - A corn bag in-the-hole (or Hole-In) is a corn bag which is thrown through the hole in the cornhole platform or otherwise comes to rest inside the cornhole platform (knocked in by another player or an act of God). A corn bag in-the-hole has a value of three points.

2. Corn Bag In-The-Count - A corn bag that is not in-the-hole but lands with any portion of the corn bag resting on the cornhole platform is in-the-count. A corn bag in-the-count has a value of one point. For a corn bag to be in-the-count, it must not touch the ground or any other portion of the court prior to coming to rest on the cornhole platform. If a corn bag touches the ground before coming to rest on the cornhole platform, it is a foul and must be removed from the cornhole platform prior to the continuation of play.

3. Corn Bag Out-Of-The-Count - A corn bag which comes to rest anywhere except in-the-count or in-the-hole is out-of-the-count and has no scoring value. A corn bag which is declared to be a foul is considered to be out-of-the-count (no matter where it comes to rest) and must be removed from the cornhole surface prior to the continuation of play

Section A. Point Limits - The Cornhole / Corn Toss match shall be played until the first team of contestants reaches (or exceeds) 21 points at the completion of an inning. The winning team does not need to win by two or more points.

Section B. The Inning Must Be finished - The Cornhole / Corn Toss match can never end in the middle of an inning. Thus, if a team that pitches first reaches or exceeds 21 points, the game can not end until the other side is allowed to pitch all of their corn bags and the inning is completed.

Section C. Ties At The End Of An Inning – If the Cornhole / Corn Toss match is tied at 21 or more at the end of an inning, play continues until one team or the other achieves a higher score at the end of an inning and wins the match.

Section D. Skunks - The game shall be played to 21 unless a team scores 7 or more points at the end of an inning before their opponents score any points. It this case the game is a skunk and the team that scores 7 or more points wins the match.

Section A. Cancellation Scoring - In cancellation scoring, corn bags in-the-hole and corn bags in-the-count pitched by opponents during an inning or half of an inning in doubles play cancel each other out. Only non cancelled corn bags are counted in the score for the inning.

1. Corn Bags In-The-Hole – Hole-ins (HI’s) cancel each other. A corn bag in-the-hole of one contestant shall cancel a corn bag in-the-hole of his competitor and those corn bags shall not score any points. Any non cancelled corn bag in-the-hole scores three points.

2. Corn Bags In-The-Count – Corn bags in-the-count cancel each other. A corn bag in-the-count of one contestant shall cancel a corn bags in-the-count of the opponent and those corn bags shall not score any points. Any non cancelled corn bags in-the-count score one point each.

Section B. Score Calculation - Cancellation scoring may be easily calculated as follows:

1. The points of both contestants are calculated for hole-ins and in-the-count corn bags.

2. The points of the lowest scoring contestant for hole-in corn bags are subtracted from the points of the highest scoring contestant for hole-in corn bags. The result is the hole-in score for the highest scoring contestant. The hole-in score for the lowest scoring contestant is zero.

3. The points of the lowest scoring contestant for in-the-count corn bags are subtracted from the points of the highest scoring contestant for in-the-count corn bags. The result is the in-the-count score for the highest scoring contestant. The in-the-count score for the lowest scoring contestant is zero.

4. The hole-in score for each contestant is added to the in-the-count score for each contestant to derive the recorded score for the inning.

5. In this manner hole-in and in-the–count corn bags from each contestant or team of contestants are cancelled out and only non cancelled corn bags are counted in the score

Section C. Individual Hole-In Percentage Scoring (HI%) - For purposes of calculating individual Cornhole / Corn Toss Hole-In percentages (see Rule 9 below) that is reported to ACA by members for purposes of ACA ranking and awards, ALL corn bags pitched in-the-hole are included in the total used to derive these percentages including those that would be eliminated under cancellation scoring rules. Only corn bags determined to be foul would be excluded from the individual

Section D. Recording The Score - In tournament play, the score sheet shall be the official record of the game and will be used to submit the Official Tournament Scoring Summaries to the ACA (see Rule 9 below). Contestants are encouraged to pay close attention to the score at all times. It is highly recommended that visible scoreboard (that all contestants can review and verify for accuracy) be used to keep score during tournament play. If a question or discrepancy occurs regarding the correct score, the contestant(s) may approach the scorer between innings to rectify the situation. If the discrepancy cannot be corrected to the satisfaction of both contestants, a tournament judge shall be called to make the final decision.