ST. ALBANS - Colin Hodet, BFA-St. Albans Class of 2022, became an American Cornhole League Pro at the Cornhole World Championships in Rock Hill, SC.
During the competition, which took place from August 2 to 11, Hodet competed in several categories, including singles, doubles, and as part of a team. He and his teammates qualified for the final bracket in the minor league team event. At last year’s competition, Hodet almost went pro, facing off against 32 others who were selected that year; this year, he went through the gauntlet, literally, and earned the coveted designation.
While visiting California over the weekend of August 24, Colin Hodet was invited to play a blind draw at Shamar Moore's house. Moore's backyard is known as Airmail City. Q&A with Colin Hodet What was it like competing in the Cornhole World Championships for the second time? I was more comfortable with my level of play since I had a full year under my belt competing against higher competition.
I had one of my highest finishes from the year, and I knew I had what I needed to possibly win the whole tournament. There were 15 brackets for singles, and I placed second overall in my bracket, which was a huge accomplishment for me. If I won that bracket, I was four games away from winning the whole thing.
What was your most memorable moment of the World Championships? During my last few games in the bracket there were a lot of people watching. When I was in the finals, my friends, family, and many I didn't know were watching. I hit a pretty cool shot, and the crowd gasped and cheered for me when I made it; that was pretty cool.
How did you prepare for Worlds throughout the last year? Last year, I was in the gauntlet at the World Championships to see how well I'd do. There were 750 players in that one tournament, and I made it all the way to the final bracket; I only needed two wins to become a pro. I ended up losing, but it motivated me to do the best I could to become a pro for this season.
Throughout this season, I did all I could to prove I could do it. From October of 2023 until August of 2024, I traveled to 10 of 16 open events. I went to Ohio, Texas, Louisiana, West Virginia, Wisconsin, South Carolina, Colorado, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New York.
We make it a family trip for the Regional Tournaments, which is pretty sweet. How did you grow as a competitor through the season? The level of competition that comes from traveling is totally different, and I was humbled many times. That made me want to practice and pushed me to do better.
Colin Hodet and his dad Dave celebrate after a win at an 802 Cornhole ACL regional tournament in 2024. What would you say were your three biggest gains this season? This sport is 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical. I gained a lot of confidence over the season; I knew I had the talent, but I had to learn to play with pro players.
I've learned how to not be nervous against a competitor I might think of as better or more experienced, and just play my game. I also learn a lot from watching others play. When I first started playing, I only wanted to learn to roll a bag.
It was really cool and not many people were doing it. I picked up that shot and made that the center of my game. I now block and roll over bags, and it's really effective.
Local guys and some I travel with now call me the Roll King. In individual competition, players are divided into random brackets, with 46 people in each of the 16 brackets. Each bracket is double elimination and is based on rankings from the open points collected during the American Cornhole League season.
Competitors can earn points competing at the local, state, regional, conference, and open events. What were your rankings throughout the 2023-2024 season? The American Cornhole League has three sets of rankings: State, Conference, and Open standings. Open standings include everyone who's part of the ACL worldwide.
I was first in Vermont, first in the Conference, which included New England, New York, and New Jersey. Last year, in the 2022 to 2023 rankings, I was ranked 208 in open standings and 20th in Conference. In the Open standings this year, I was ranked 13th.
I was proud of my rankings and seeing how my game play showed up in the rankings. Colin Hodet celebrates at his first American Cornhole Tournament. What are your goals going forward? Now that I've got my Pro Status, I want to be the number one player in the world.
I'm going to practice harder, play as many tournaments as I can, and want it more than the next guy. You can't reach that without doing everything in your power to make it happen. Are you seeking more Sponsorships? I’m looking for sponsorships for the 2024-2025 season, and anyone interested in sponsoring me can reach out to me on Facebook Messenger.
Thank you to all of my amazing sponsors for supporting me this season! I could not have done it without you!! MJ Electric Thank you Mike and Vickie Trombly for all support always! Any Electrical work that you need done, hit up MJ Electric you will not be disappointed! WEM Designs, Vermont Handcrafted Jewelry: Wendy Eckerson Miller Visit https://wemdesigns.com and get yourself some beautiful Jewelry handcrafted in Vermont! BG Cornhole: Thank you, Anthony Kissel and Rich Chamness! Thank you for supporting me this season. If you want the best bags in the industry go to https://www.
bgcornhole.com and get yourself a set. REDO Apparel: They have apparel for everyone! Check out their website for yourself and use my code CH10 at checkout for 10% off your order! https://redoapparel.
com 802 Cornhole: Thank you for everything you do for me TJ Kennison! If you are looking for someone to run a tournament, make sure to hit up 802 Cornhole. TJ runs the best tournaments! TOSS SAUCE : Toss sauce is the best bag break in product on the market, nothing can beat it! It will break in your bags from book stiff to game ready in just two hours. Use code JDUP10 at checkout for 10% off your sauce! https://shoptosssauce.
com Cornhole Anonymous 802 and Matthew King Make sure you join Matt’s group for all of the lastest cornhole related news! AAES Electricity When did you decide to pursue a pro career? At the end of last year when I made it so far in the pro qualifier I knew I had what it took. I had dreamt about it for a long time--since I was a freshman in high school; seeing I had what it took was a big eye opener. Colin Hodet (right) picked up his first tournament win at age 13 at Centennial Field.
The dynamic duo has played in several hundred tournaments together over the years and won hundreds of them. Colin is confident he couldn't ask for a better partner and dad. How can someone get started playing in leagues locally? On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, there's a local league at Bombardier Park in Milton.
On Wednesdays, there's a club in Milton at the Elk's Club. St. Albans has a club called Sneaky Baggers that plays indoors at the City Hall.
All of this can be found online at a free downloadable app called Scoreholio (ADD LIVE LINK). That app also gives information and registration about different tournaments in the area. Thank yous: I'd like to thank all my sponsors, my parents, Dave and Linda, and my brother Cameron for supporting me.
My whole family plays the game, and my Dad, Dave Hodet, is #2 in Vermont. He's the reason I started playing. My dad and I played together in my first tournament at Centennial Field in a WIZN tournament when I was 13.
There were 56 teams, and my dad and I won..
