CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Gary Ferguson was announced as the new champion of the 2021 American Cornhole Organization’s Championship last month, earning him the title “King of Cornhole.”
Ferguson played against hundreds of competitors in Florida from July 26 to July 31. He told Clarksville Now that he has been playing cornhole for over 10 years, but it was just a way to bond with his friends.
“The great thing about it is anybody can play it,” Ferguson said. “You don’t have to be a superstar athlete to play.”
“One of the biggest feats you can accomplish in cornhole today is winning the ‘King of Cornhole,'” Ferguson said with a laugh.
Cornhole Champion 14 years in the making
Ferguson told Clarksville Now that he used to laugh at people who played cornhole.
“I thought, ‘This is stupid. You’re throwing a bean bag through a board hole,'” he said.
That was until one of his close friends, Josh Sykes, taught him how to play, and he ended up having a natural talent for the game.
“My friend Mike and I, we learned it and about two weeks later we could beat Josh,” Ferguson claimed.
Ferguson works full-time and has a family, so he didn’t play as regularly as most cornhole athletes, but when they did, it was an all-day event. Eventually, they were confident enough in their abilities to participate in local tournaments.
Ferguson said that he used to be the worst out of his group of four friends that would play together on a regular basis. “They would draw chips or flip coins to see who didn’t have to play with me.” Despite this, he and his friends would win almost every competition they participated in.
7-year hiatus
Ferguson said the first official competition they ever participated in was about 13 years ago at Gaylord Opryland, marking the first time he and his team ever lost.
“These guys would throw the bags through the hole so cleanly that it wouldn’t even touch the board.” For adults, the cornhole regulation boards are placed 27 feet apart, according to Ferguson.
His friends continued to play and learn, but they eventually fell off from competitive cornhole tournaments. This hiatus lasted for seven years.
About four years ago, Ferguson along with one of his friends from the original four, picked back up on it as if they never stopped.
“We would win the money, but we would give back to charity,” Ferguson said, and that his group gained a reputation by donating and eventually became well-liked.
The “Spongebob” of Cornhole
During many local competitions, onlookers and cornhole regulars would associate Ferguson with the yellow shirt he wore to nearly every tournament, usually paired with blue pants. He said he bought bought the shirt from a local Goodwill.
With this, he earned the nickname “Spongebob” from a good friend.
“During the tournament, a lot of my supporters went out and bought yellow shirts and used marker to write slogans on shirts to show support,” he said.
However, during the official ACO competition, he was asked to wear an official jersey, therefore retiring his classic Goodwill shirt.
King of Cornhole
Ferguson said that his wife, Teresa, is his biggest supporter.
“We made the trip to the World’s ACO tournament in combination with a trip to the beach,” Ferguson said. “I told my wife we would go to the beach on Wednesday and Saturday. The championship finals were scheduled for Saturday and I told her I didn’t expect to be in the Saturday championship and we would have the whole day on the beach.”
Little did he know that he would move on into the final championship on Saturday and become the King of Cornhole.
“This was the first time my wife actually went to see me play and she said it was the best time she had on the trip watching me win this thing – cornhole – which she knows very little about.”
Ferguson said that the game was tight and that his opponent, Austin Schlobohm, was very talented. After Ferguson had a huge lead and only six points needed to win, Schlobohm was gaining on him with only two more points needed to tie.
Ferguson was forced to take a chance and aim straight for the hole, rather than just on the board.
“Although I am known for making airmail shots, I had been struggling with the shot for some reason, probably the pressure,” Ferguson said. “I let go of the bag and it seemed to stay in the air forever. I didn’t feel good about it and I waited for it to land. I saw the bag come down behind some bags blocking the hole and I wasn’t sure.”
When Ferguson saw all of his friends running towards him accompanied by a thunderous roar of cheers, he knew it was over.
“I am the King of Cornhole National Champion,” Ferguson said. “Hats off to (my opponent) and all the other champions in that field.”