Cornhole rules and scoring

• Scoring
• Example frame
• Setup
• Playing a frame
• Winning
• Score sheet

Two sides take turns pitching bags at a board 27 feet away — four bags each, eight to a frame. A bag through the hole is 3, a bag on the board is 1, and only the side with more points in a frame scores: they get the difference. First to 21 wins.

How scoring works

Bag	Points
In the holeGoes through at any point in the frame — including being knocked in by another bag.	3
On the boardStill resting on the board when the frame ends.	1
Dead bagTouched the ground before landing on the board, is touching both board and ground, or hit an overhead object.	0

Cancellation scoring: add up each side's points for the frame, then subtract the smaller from the larger. Only the side that came out ahead scores, and it scores the difference. A tied frame scores nothing for anyone.

Setting up

• Place the boards facing each other 27 feet apart, front edge to front edge.
• A regulation board is 2 ft × 4 ft, with a 6-inch hole centered 9 inches from the top.
• The front edge of each board is the foul line. Pitch from beside the board, with your feet behind it.

Playing a frame

• Toss a coin for first pitch. Players alternate until all eight bags are thrown, then the frame is scored.
• Bags can be knocked in, knocked off or blocked right up to the last pitch — nothing counts until the frame is over.
• Singles: both players pitch from the same end, then walk to the other board, score, and pitch back.
• Doubles: partners stand at opposite boards. One player from each team pitches at one end, then their partners pitch back from the other.
• The side that scored pitches first in the next frame. If nobody scored, the side that went first keeps it.

Winning

In the American Cornhole League's rules, the first side to reach or pass 21 at the end of a frame wins. There's no need to land on it exactly.

Backyard house rules

• Exactly 21 (bust): you have to land on 21 exactly, and going over knocks you back to a lower score — Tallero's default drops you to 11.
• Skunk: end the game early if one side leads 11–0.
• Win by two: keep playing until someone is at least 21 and two ahead.

Quick answers

Does a bag that bounces off the ground onto the board count?

No. Any bag that touches the ground before coming to rest on the board is dead and comes off.

Do both teams score in a frame?

Not with cancellation scoring — only the side with more points scores the difference. Some casual games let both sides keep everything, which makes for a much faster game.