A friendly afternoon match brings campers together for some casual competition. Thump… thump… thump… thump. “You suck! Watch this!” …thump …thump …thump …thump. “Ha! Seven! That’s twenty-one, loser! Game over!”
Music blares while groans and insults fly. Laughter and the steady hum of conversation fill the air as night falls. Beer flows, offering relief from the summer heat. A golf cart arrives, bringing spotlights to fend off the darkness, and just like that—another game begins.
In many campgrounds across America, a typical Saturday night involves a game known by different names: cornhole, sack toss, dummy boards, or doghouse. But if you are camping in central Illinois, it is simply—and fiercely—called Bags.
The Culture of Campground Trash Talk
At Illinois campgrounds, only bad weather stops the gameplay. Terry Lee Lacy, a Jacksonville local and campground bags champion, describes the draw of the game:
“It’s about the people. You have some assholes, but we do our own little thing… play bags, drink, have a good time.”
Something that is incredibly prevalent—at least at the campgrounds in Jacksonville, IL—is the trash talk. Good-natured ribbing is just part of the game. Adding another layer of skill, players trade sharp barbs as they try to knock opposing teams off their mental game.
Sandy Martin, a full-time RVer and avid bags player, notes that the competitive banter is all out of love:
“…it’s all part of the game. You talk shit to each other, but everyone knows you really love them. We’re all just family here.”
How to Play Bags: The Basics
Reminiscent of horseshoes and just as popular, the gameplay is straightforward:
- The Setup: Four players (two to a team) stand at raised wooden boards.
- The Goal: Toss a small, fabric-filled bean bag into a hole cut into the center of the board.
- The Turn: Players take turns tossing four bean bags each per round.
- Winning: The first team to score 21 points wins the game.
Bags vs. Cornhole: What is the Real Difference?
While the casual observer might think Bags and Cornhole are identical, true enthusiasts know the primary difference lies in the scoring system. Both games use cancellation scoring (where the difference in points between the teams is awarded to the round’s winner at the end of the turn). A bag landing on the board is worth one point, and a bag in the hole is worth three. However, the path to victory differs:
- In Bags: The winner simply needs to be the first to reach or exceed 21 points.
- In Cornhole: A team must hit exactly 21 points. If a team busts and goes over 21, they are penalized a specific number of points, and gameplay continues until a team lands exactly on the mark.
From Ancient Greece to Illinois: The History of the Game
The concept of the game stretches back centuries. Both horseshoes and bags are closely related to an ancient ring-toss game called quoits. Quoits was described in Apollonius of Rhodes’ Argonautica and is considered the inspiration behind a game depicted in a Greek myth involving the lovers Apollo and Hyacinth.
The modern iteration of Bags, however, officially began in 1883 with a filing submitted to the United States Patent Office for an indoor game called Parlor Quoits. The patent detailed a raised wooden board, a square hole, and bean-filled bags.
Decades later, an early 1970s article in Popular Mechanics described a similar game called “bean-bag bullseye.” While its dimensions were different, it inspired two independent movements:
- Cornhole developed independently in Cincinnati, Ohio.
- Bags developed directly in Illinois, spreading to northern Indiana through the 1970s and 1980s.
Today, the sport has grown so large that three professional organizations govern it: The American Cornhole Association (ACA), the American Cornhole Organization (ACO), and the American Cornhole League (ACL), which even broadcasts tournaments on major sports networks.
The Ultimate Low-Impact RV Workout
Beyond the social fun, Bags serves as a great, accessible activity for campers of all ages and physical abilities. Tossing the bags with perfect arc and precision is akin to Tai Chi.
Moving your body in a fluid way to consistently hit the board works core and stabilizing muscles throughout the body, making it a fantastic low-impact workout.
Join the Game Across Central Illinois
If you want to experience this vibrant culture firsthand, you don’t have to look very far. Central Illinois campgrounds are the true epicenter of the sport. Throughout the camping season—which typically runs from April through the end of October—regional campgrounds offer a mix of weekend and seasonal sites bustling with activity.
During the summer months, seasonal RVers have their custom boards set up every single weekend, and it is common to find games running on casual weekdays too. Many local campgrounds even sponsor organized weekend tournaments for their guests.
Don’t be shy—pack your lawn chair, grab a cold drink, and head over to the nearest setup to join the fun!
