Hoop dreams dashed: Hornell YMCA pulls the plug on annual Gus Macker basketball tournament

Neal Simon, The Evening Tribune
·3 min read

After more than two decades of hand-off dribbles, rim-shaking dunks and smooth backdoor cuts, the Hornell Area Family YMCA has pulled the plug on the Maple City's annual Gus Macker 3-on-3 basketball tournament.

The YMCA announced the move in a Facebook post Thursday. The YMCA Board of Directors said declining sponsorships, fewer teams participating and a dwindling pool of volunteers led to the "extremely difficult decision" to end the tourney.

The Gus Macker tournament has taken over the Hornell business district one July weekend every summer for about 25 years. Main Street is closed to vehicular traffic during the event, allowing 3-on-3 games to take place on courts spread over a large swath of downtown and Broadway Mall.

The tourney has also proved popular with spectators, with fans packed around the courts to cheer on their friends and family.

But according to Kristoph Kocan, chief executive officer of the Hornell Area Family YMCA, overall participation has been trending lower for the last four or five Gus Mackers.

"That's not unique to Hornell," said Kocan, noting that other communities in New York state that previously hosted Macker events have stepped away.

Danielle Richardson goes in for a layup during a past Gus Macker event in downtown Hornell.
Danielle Richardson goes in for a layup during a past Gus Macker event in downtown Hornell.

Kocan said volunteers play an out-sized role in putting the event on every year, including months of pre-planning and "a lot of manpower" during tournament weekend.

“It an event that takes several dozen volunteers, from the referees, to the scorekeepers, to the people checking people in," he said.

And while past tourneys may have raised up to $15,000 for the YMCA programs, the 2019 tournament brought in about $10,000 and the 2022 event raised “significantly less," Kocan said.

Gus Macker tournaments began in 1987 and are held around the country, providing an opportunity for local organizations to raise funds for charities.

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There were no tournaments held in Hornell in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Another factor that challenged the YMCA: Hornell has fulfilled its current three-year contract with Gus Macker and to continue it would have to commit to another three years.

“That makes it more difficult. It ties up a lot of resources to commit to do it for three years," Kocan said. “We are looking to do something else for the community. We can use the resources and staff that would spend the months leading up to Macker to focus on some other stuff, whether it’s another event or we put something else on.”

Hornell's downtown is expected to be modified starting in 2024 as a result of the city receiving a New York state DRI grant, making it unusable for Gus Macker games. Kocan said the YMCA does not have an alternate location for tournaments in 2024 or 2025.

Kocan said the YMCA Board "still tried to figure out, ‘How can we make it work?’ And it just wasn't in the cards."

Neal Simon on Twitter @HornellTribNeal. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Hornell YMCA ends Gus Macker basketball tournament