Locals to take tosses at becoming king of cornhole

Elvis wants to be the king.

No, Elvis hasn't re-entered the building.

This royal contender is Elvis Orr, and he wants to be the King of Cornhole.

Yes, that tailgate party game that consists of tossing a corn-filled bag into a hole on a board 27 feet away has a world championship tournament.

The American Cornhole Organization's fourth world championships start today at Harrah's Tunica in Mississippi.

The top men's division is the King of Cornhole. Of course, the throne would be lonely without a Queen of Cornhole, who also will be inaugurated.

Orr, a railroad equipment mechanic from Chesapeake, finished the 2011 qualifying season ranked eighth in the world. He was No. 1 for nearly a month.

The top 40 players in the "Corny Forty" rankings earned automatic spots in the tournament. But only 32 are making the trip. That means there will be 32 qualifying spots available for nearly 200 others attempting in today's first round to complete the field of 64.

Orr, along with Scott Reilly of Chesapeake (ranked 32nd) and Tam Ho of Newport News (40th), have byes into Friday's second round.

Attempting to earn a spot in the field will be Virginia Beach's Keith Lowrance and Greg Vadja, ranked 46th and 50th, respectively, and Mark Cahalan of Chesapeake (55th).

All also are playing in the Crew (team) Division of the event. The championships also include several divisions for social-level players.

To be the new King of Cornhole, the men's field will have to dethrone three-time winner Matt Guy from Kentucky - a former professional horseshoes player who enters as the No. 1 seed.

"He's definitely the man to beat," said Orr, 33. "But everybody's really good at this point. When you get to this tournament, it is so psychological. It comes down to who is on and who isn't."

Lee Tolliver, (757) 222-5844, lee.tolliver@pilotonline.com