Mark Richards: The King of Cornhole?

“Might be the #1 player in the world he still gets nervous,” were the words echoing across the room as Jordan Power’s arching throw slid in the hole to claim 5 pivotal points against the man who doesn’t miss, current #1 player in the world, Mark Richards. Elite shit talking and confidence, I don’t think anyone expected that in a cornhole broadcast but 100% put that cheeky banter in an IV and put that in my arm.

4-2

20-2.

20-13...

20-18.

20-24.

Game. Set. Match. Big Dick Jordan Power and Air Rubin.

That’s 24 unanswered points for Jordan Power and Jay “Air” Rubin (still the best nickname in sports, thank you Dogcast) against the best in the world, Mark Richards and Phillip Lopez Jr. Pretty improbable against Richards especially, who boasts a .88 DPR and won 49.58% of his rounds, leading all players in the ACL. Not only did he win just under half of his rounds, he scored nearly a full point in every single one and missed the board 3.5% of the time. 

But... can you be the best in the world when you lose like that? Did we place a crown on his head too soon?

The best player in the world HAS to close out in a final at Rock Hill up 20-2. Especially when he has the best DPR and won a higher percentage of their rounds than anyone. He just needed one point from one round. That’s it.

I know you’re probably thinking, “Bro, it’s doubles, there’s another player and ALSO it’s cornhole, anyone can win.”

To that, I say no. In every team sport where we’ve collectively placed a crown on the best in the world, they captured the big win on the big stage. That’s Gretzky, Jordan, Brady, and more recently LeBron. They all had their trials and tribulations and maybe Mark isn’t quite that guy yet and this will be the spark to send him over the edge for an offseason of intense preparation.

Or maybe Jordan Power said it best.