How-To Build a Bean Bag Toss Board

Bean bag toss (or cornhole depending on where you live) is an outdoor game that anyone of any age and athletic ability can play. These games can also be easily transported to the park, beach or your friend’s backyard.

Get your kids involved with building these boards and teach them the basic skills of using a measuring tape, driving screws and cutting with a jigsaw. With the help of your family you can build these games in the morning and be playing in the afternoon.

Here are the steps to build bean bag toss boards

• Gather Your Materials
• Cut Holes in the Boards
• Build the Frames
• Attach the Board to the Frame
• Attach the Legs
• Sand and Paint or Stain
• How to Play Bean Bag Toss

Okay! Time to get started.

Gather Your Materials

The tools you need to build these corn hole boards include a cordless drill/driver, jigsaw, and compass (or pencil and string).

We are building an official size corn hole board based on dimensions from the American Cornhole Association.

Materials required include: Two 48”x24” birch covered ½” plywood, Four 8’ length 2x4s, Box of 2.5” deck screws, Four 3/8” carriage bolts with washers and wingnuts.

When finished you’ll need 8 official corn-filled bean bags. You can buy them now on Amazon for $20.

Our local home center (Lowe’s) had precut pieces of birch covered plywood already sized at 48”x24” so check that area first before buying and cutting an entire sheet

Cut 2x4s into the following lengths: 4 48” pieces, 4 21” pieces and 4 12” pieces.

Cut Holes in the Boards

Find your center and use a compass to draw your circle. We simply took a string measured at 3” and pinned one end to the center and tied a pencil to the other end to draw our circle.

After sanding the edges of all of your cut plywood and 2x4s you are ready to cut the holes into the boards. The hole in the board should be six inches in diameter and be centered nine inches from the top and 12 inches from each side of the corn hole platform edges.

Drill a starting hole for your jigsaw then cut along the circle line. Sand the inside and outside edges of the hole.

Build the Frames

Build your corn hole board frames by aligning the sides and ends and pre-drill holes before driving your deck screws. Your corners need to be perfectly square so the platform fits exactly over the frame.

Attach the Board to the Frame

Attach the platform placing it onto the frame and align each edge so it sits evenly over the frame. Pre-drill holes in each corner then drive your screws to secure each corner and drive additional screws along the sides, top and bottom to ensure the platform is firmly attached to the frame.

Attach the Legs

Before attaching the legs you need to round one end off so you can loosen and fold the leg for storage. Measure the center point of the board and take that measurement and mark it from the end down. Place your compass here and mark your half circle.

Use your jigsaw and cut the end and sand it.

Drill a hole through the center point of your board using a 3/8” bit.

Hold the leg against the outside of the top part of your corn hole board (the end with the hole) and using a pencil mark the center point through the leg onto the frame. Then drill your hole through the frame and attach your leg to the inside of the frame using your carriage bolt. Use a wingnut so you can easily loosen and fold down the legs for storage.

Sand and Paint or Stain

You can leave the boards unpainted and weather stain them or have fun and paint them. We recommend using semi-gloss or high-gloss paint so the bean bags will slide across the platform surface. For best results, countersink your screws and apply wood filler and sand for a smooth finish.

How To Play Bean Bag Toss

The boards are placed 27 feet apart and two teams of two, alternate tossing 12 oz. bean bags towards the corn hole board with the goal of making it through the hole.

If your bag goes through the hole the team is awarded 3 points. If it lands on the board your team gets 1 point and zero points for not landing on the board. The first team to 21 points wins.

Have fun!