Matt Grear sits in a lawn chair on the grass surrounded by lawn games that he has acquired

Grad Alum Is a Yard Games Maven (and Cornhole King)

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Matthew Grear, MHA ’17, not only holds two Guinness records; he also wrote a book on popular pastimes, from bocce to badminton 

By Melissa Newcomb

Matthew Grear, MHA ’17, was traveling around Europe in 2013 when he met people in Amsterdam playing a yard game called kubb, whose objective is to knock down an opponent’s blocks by throwing wooden dowels at them. Grear happily joined in, quickly befriending the players.

Then, on another trip—this time to Peru—he discovered sapo, in which players try to throw coins into a metal frog’s mouth. Again, Grear gained both new friends and new skills. 

Those experiences inspired him to become an aficionado of yard games—having, to date, played more than 100 of them around the country and the globe.

“Every culture has games that are specific to them,” observes Grear, who holds a master’s in health administration from Human Ecology.

“They bring people together. You don’t need to be able to speak someone’s language to play a game and enjoy a moment with them.” 

In 2021, Grear penned The World’s Greatest Backyard Games, in which he compiles his 28 favorites—from bocce to badminton, croquet to cornhole. 

The book cover of The World's Greatest Backyard Games, featuring a globe with yard games like horseshoes and spike ball floating around it.

“A game’s got to be fun—duh,” he says with a laugh. “But it also can’t have too many rules, or people lose interest. It should be portable, durable, and easy to set up. And you should be able to play it with a drink in one hand.”

(Among the lesser-known pastimes he profiles: tejo, from Colombia, in which players throw a metal disk onto a clay-covered board, aiming to hit targets filled with gunpowder—which explode.)

You don’t need to be able to speak someone’s language to play a game and enjoy a moment with them.

In addition to being an avid chronicler of yard games, Grear is an adept player.

He holds two Guinness World Records in cornhole: for longest backward throw (44 feet, 10 inches), and blindfolded throw (54 feet, 7 inches).

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(Another record, for longest underhand throw—62 feet, 6 inches—has since been broken.)

Matt Grear plays corn hole next to a lake
Taking a toss at cornhole.

As Grear notes, his first time setting up yard games for a crowd was on the Hill, when his grad program hosted a tailgate at Homecoming.

“I brought cornhole for everybody to play,” he recalls. “I’ll always be the guy bringing the games.” 

When Grear and his then-fiancée were looking for a home big enough for his game collection—and outdoor space to play them—they landed on an episode (fittingly titled “Going Yard in Boston”) of the HGTV series “House Hunters.”

While his day job is in biotech, Grear also runs a Boston-area firm, Yard Games World, which rents and sells equipment for such games as ladder toss, Kan Jam, giant versions of Jenga and Connect 4, and much more.

And he hosts a company Instagram account that has more than 5,500 followers.

“Yard games are an easy way to connect with strangers, break the ice, and spark conversation when you don’t know what to say,” he says.

He adds with a laugh: “At a cookout, it’s also a great way to escape questions from your family member about why you don’t have a girlfriend yet.”

(All images provided.)

Published June 21, 2024

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