The Adams Senior Center hosts a cornhole tournament on Monday morning. More than a half-dozen contests are being held at senior centers across the county this month. The next one is Tuesday morning in Sheffield.
Lee Jaggi shows competitors the trophy for which they are playing. Health New England is sponsoring the play as a way to stay active and healthy.
Each of the participating senior centers will receive two boards from Health New England so they can continue to offer the recreational opportunity.
Players applaud a good score at Monday's game. More than a dozen two-person teams vied for the title of 'Cream of the Crop.'
ADAMS, Mass. — Wearing his American Cornhole Association sticker and explaining the game and its rules to dozens of seniors outside the Adams Visitor Center on Monday morning, Lee Jaggi looked like an aficionado of the sport.
"I totally am not," Jaggi said while the second leg of Berkshire County's Health New England Cornhole Summer Extravaganza went on behind him.
"To be honest, I've only played maybe three times in my life up until today. I did join [the ACA] just to get my education on cornhole. They sent me this sticker."
But Jaggi's enthusiasm for the sport is as much about his work with senior centers throughout the county as it is any connection to the sport that the ACA lays claim to formalizing in 2003.
Today, the backyard sport has a presence on national television, merchandise ranging from boards to customized beanbags and partnerships with organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs and Special Olympics.
And, thanks to Jaggi, a Medicare plan specialist for Health New England, it has a toe hold at a half-dozen senior centers scheduled to host tournaments throughout the month.
The first was last Friday in Great Barrington.
Monday morning's stop in Adams included more than a dozen two-person teams vying for the title "Cream of the Crop" and a trophy in a bracket-format tournament.
The teams were paired off in preliminary round matches with the first team reaching 21 points (three points for a bean bag in the hole, one point for a bag on the board) advancing to the next round.
Some competitors came with T-shirts testifying to their experience with cornhole, but even those who, like Jaggi, have limited experience easily picked up on the basics of a game played in back yards and in stadium parking lots coast to coast.
Basically, anyone who has ever pitched horseshoes or played ring toss, already knows how to play cornhole — even if they are not ready for a spot on ESPN … yet.
But the beauty of the sport for Jaggi is not in the competition or the trophies as much as in the opportunity for seniors to get out and be active with other members of their communities.
In his job, he had experience talking to senior center staff from Williamstown to Sheffield, and they all told him that they were looking for something new to offer their clients.
"I don't know why cornhole just came to mind," he said. "It was like the perfect solution. No one was playing yet, and anyone can — people in wheelchairs, people with their walkers. It's very social. Health New England loves promoting healthy and social activities.
"And I introduced it to the senior centers as something they could give their crowds, and they were so excited. They couldn't believe they hadn't thought of it."
Each of the participating senior centers will receive two boards from Health New England so they can continue to offer the recreational opportunity to local residents after the tournament comes through town.
The Cornhole Summer Extravaganza is scheduled for weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and includes refreshments for participants. On Monday, competitors at the Adams Visitor Center enjoyed pizza for lunch.
The other dates on the calendar for the event are:
Tuesday, July 16, Sheffield Senior Center.
Friday, July 19, Harper Center, Williamstown.
Friday, July 26, Dalton Senior Center.
Monday, July 29, Ralph J. Froio Senior Center, Pittsfield.
Wednesday, July 31, Spitzer Center, North Adams.
The mid- to late-July tournament dates are built around World Cornhole Day, an event of the American Cornhole Organization, based in Camp Dennison, Ohio — not to be confused with the American Cornhole Association, based in Cincinnati.
Though the July time frame could present challenges for seniors in what is shaping up to be one of the hottest summers on record, no one on Monday morning in Adams was complaining about the heat and Jaggi and his colleagues were working hard to keep everyone safe and comfortable.
"It's always a concern," Jaggi, who is a nurse, said of the weather. "We will definitely take care of everyone that's here. Inside, there is are-conditioning, and we have all kinds of shaded areas.
"Hopefully, we can manage the crowd really well and take good care of them. We're providing drinks and refreshments. … But, you know, their health — as a health insurance company — is always our main concern. But this is so good for their mental health. I just love it."
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