Local bean bag champ eyes pro game
Camryn Barrientoz, left, and his doubles partner Jay Robins took back-to-back titles at the Wenatchee Valley Cornhole tournament last week. Barrientoz is working his way into professional status, he said.
COURTESY PHOTO/CAMRYN BARRIENTOZ
MOSES LAKE — We’ve seen the game at almost every outdoor community gathering: two or more players tossing bean bags at a board tilted up at an angle, aiming for a hole in the board. But that bean bag toss game, also called cornhole, is more than just a casual pastime; it’s a serious sport with dedicated players.
“I’m trying to go pro right now,” said Camryn Barrientoz of Moses Lake. “I was No. 2 in Washington, and since I did really well in this regional (tournament), it got me enough points where it bumped me up to No. 1 in Washington.”
That regional tournament was held in Wenatchee on Dec. 12-13, and Camryn, along with his doubles partner Jay Robins, took back-to-back titles, according to an email Camryn sent the Columbia Basin Herald.
Camryn started his bean bog toss career playing with his dad, Fabian Barrientoz, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Right as COVID started in 2020, we were fishing a lot,” Fabian said. “Then with COVID restrictions, they stopped us from fishing, so we had to figure out something to do at home. We started playing backyard cornhole.”
Both father and son gained some serious skill at the game, although Fabian said he’s not ready to go professional.
“When it first started with me and my son, I was hoping that he would excel,” Fabian said. “But I kept on getting better myself. Both of us are playing actively.”
The Barrientoz father and son play in two clubs: the Central Washington Cornhole and the Basin Baggers groups, which Camryn started himself, he said. Both play on Tuesdays at Rick’s Eatery in Moses Lake.
A bean bag player builds up their career by earning points at various local and regional tournaments through the American Cornhole League, Camryn said. He’ll compete at the ACL Open in Las Vegas in February, and another ACL Open in Pasco in June.
“That’s the culminating tournament for all the pros to go to,” Fabian said. “We’ll see pros from all over the world.”
Camryn’s route to professional status begins with being ranked in the top six players in Washington, Fabian said. Professionals win through both sponsorships and through the prizes at tournaments. Professionals can make from $5,000 to $25,000 per year, according to the enthusiast website CornholeStore.com, although some tournaments have prizes of $50,000 or more. Camryn’s sponsors are Basin Garage Door, A1 RV Repair, Best Buy Auto Sales and Danco Construction of Moses Lake; Car Crazy Window Tinting of Ephrata; and Tommy Floors of Richland.
“A lot of people think of cornhole as a backyard game, but the way we play competitively … it’s a really skillful sport,” Fabian said. “It’s probably one of the most difficult sports I’ve played.”