Horseshoe pitchmen share their sport at the fair

A sporting competition not involving livestock is taking place all week at the Auglaize County Fair: an open horseshoe pitch tournament. The games started at 6 p.m. Sunday, with other games Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.

Rex Knoch has been managing the tournament for at least 30 years and said the fair board furnishes money for winners.

“We used to pitch during the week ourself, but I can’t get get nobody around Wapak to pitch hardly any,” he said.

So competitors came from leagues in other areas, including Coldwater, Celina, St. Marys, Lima, Columbus Grove and Bowling Green to

participate in a class, round-robin tournament with each class having six players. Tuesday had A and B class players.

Classes were determined by ringer percentage.

Players earned three points for throwing ringers, six for having two ringers at the same time. They could also earn a point if their shoe was within six inches of the stake. Players could cancel each other out for points.

Knoch has been playing since grade-school. “My dad always had horses,” he said. “I had four other brothers going to school right at the

same time I was going to school. We waited on the school bus and we pitched horseshoes.”

He said what made the game appealing was the competition and desire to win, and much practice was involved for the roughly 50 players participating this week. Winners will earn

$50 per tournament and can only participate twice.

His biggest goal for the tournament is for everyone to have fun, but he also wants good weather.

“If it rains we can’t throw,” he said.

Rick Muter of Celina has been participating in these tournaments for about 13 years and keeps coming back for the camaraderie. But he also enjoys the challenge and was confident in

his abilities.

“I’m gonna win it all, yeah” he said. “Everybody’s going down and we’re going home happy.”

John Hesser came all the way from Toledo. Hesser has played for seven years.

“When I retired I started playing horseshoes,” he said.

His goal was to throw 60 percent ringers, but like Muter he wanted to win.

Hop Muter, also from Celina, is an avid horseshoe player and wanted to compete and win.

Dan Smith typically competes in Lima but traveled from Bowling Green when he found

out about the tournament.

Hop Muter, left, and Rick Muter, right, participate in Tuesday’s horseshoe tourment; Rex Knoch, center, is the guy who manages the tournaments. Below, Dan Smith and Hop Muter check out where their “shoes” landed.