New game 842 is now available.
The re-run is episode 198; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
Friday, 14 October 2016
Thursday, 13 October 2016
NG 841
New game 841 is now available.
The re-run is episode 198; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
The re-run is episode 198; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
Wednesday, 12 October 2016
NG 840
New game 840 is now available.
The re-run is episode 198; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
The re-run is episode 198; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
Tuesday, 11 October 2016
NG 839
New game 839 is now available.
The re-run is episode 197; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
The re-run is episode 197; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
Monday, 10 October 2016
NG 838
New game 838 is now available.
The re-run is episode 196; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
The re-run is episode 196; its rounds are here and its writeup is here.
Sunday, 9 October 2016
New games back this week
I'll be putting up new games this coming week during the remaining
finals of series two (Monday's will probably be a little late, but I'll
aim to get the others up at the usual 6pm). Meanwhile, here's links to
my earlier writeups for the first quarterfinal (episode 194) and the second quarterfinal (episode 195).
In other news, the mezzacotta Puzzle Competition is on this week. This is run by the people who used to run the CiSRA Puzzle Competition, but no longer under the auspices of CiSRA. Check it out, maybe you'll find something to like there.
In other news, the mezzacotta Puzzle Competition is on this week. This is run by the people who used to run the CiSRA Puzzle Competition, but no longer under the auspices of CiSRA. Check it out, maybe you'll find something to like there.
Thursday, 6 October 2016
Ep 193: James Couti, Andre Sardone (October 5, 2016; originally aired April 27, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
James Coutie gets his turn in the champion's seat, for the last game before the finals. James has just finished his sixth season of lifesaving; he started of with normal lifesaving, then transitioned into teaching it. He says that he mainly teaches the First Aid Awards now (I'm not sure what that is -- there is a UK organisation by that name, but presumably that is not what is meant), but he also does other things like Emergency Response, where he gets to ride jet skis.
Tonight's challenger is Andre Sardone, a roof plumber and Richard informs us that Andre has turned roof plumbing into a more creative endeavour. Andre explains that he has always been good at drawing and painting, but about six years ago he decided to create artworks out of Colorbond steel (his chosen material in roof plumbing). He creates wall-hanging artworks out of it: Like paintings, but instead of painting colours, he cuts shapes and layers them together to create an image. (Unfortunately, Andre's website seems to be under construction at the time of writing this post, but a few older examples of his art can be found elsewhere, such as on this page.)
Andre bolted to an early lead by finding good seven-letter words in the first two rounds whereas James only managed five-letter words. A win in the first numbers round from Andre saw him 19 points ahead at the first break. James rallied a bit in the second third, finding one longer word in round four and then sharing the points in round five. Andre squashed that recovery by solving the second numbers round, though, and was 22 points ahead at the second break. That left James needing to outscore Andre on the last letters round, but his five-letter word was not sufficient to the task. Neither was able to score in the final two rounds, and Andre won, 42 to 13.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
James Coutie gets his turn in the champion's seat, for the last game before the finals. James has just finished his sixth season of lifesaving; he started of with normal lifesaving, then transitioned into teaching it. He says that he mainly teaches the First Aid Awards now (I'm not sure what that is -- there is a UK organisation by that name, but presumably that is not what is meant), but he also does other things like Emergency Response, where he gets to ride jet skis.
Tonight's challenger is Andre Sardone, a roof plumber and Richard informs us that Andre has turned roof plumbing into a more creative endeavour. Andre explains that he has always been good at drawing and painting, but about six years ago he decided to create artworks out of Colorbond steel (his chosen material in roof plumbing). He creates wall-hanging artworks out of it: Like paintings, but instead of painting colours, he cuts shapes and layers them together to create an image. (Unfortunately, Andre's website seems to be under construction at the time of writing this post, but a few older examples of his art can be found elsewhere, such as on this page.)
Andre bolted to an early lead by finding good seven-letter words in the first two rounds whereas James only managed five-letter words. A win in the first numbers round from Andre saw him 19 points ahead at the first break. James rallied a bit in the second third, finding one longer word in round four and then sharing the points in round five. Andre squashed that recovery by solving the second numbers round, though, and was 22 points ahead at the second break. That left James needing to outscore Andre on the last letters round, but his five-letter word was not sufficient to the task. Neither was able to score in the final two rounds, and Andre won, 42 to 13.
Wednesday, 5 October 2016
Ep 192: Kylie Thompson, James Couti (October 4, 2016; originally aired April 26, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the third night for Kylie Thompson, and we find out that she is very much into jewellery making and beading. She likes to get creative when she has some spare time, and make pieces for herself or friends and family. Kylie's mother is also very much into those two activities also, and they've often talked about how they'd love to open a bead cafe where they could have a coffee and teach people how to bead.
Tonight's challenger is James Couti, a paramedic student. That was a change of direction for James; he started out in architecture, since all through years 10, 11, 12 that was what he wanted to do. But then he got involved in lifesaving and decided that he wanted to move into emergency health; thus the paramedic study. James' eventual aim is to get into the air ambulance, but he says that is a long way off.
The game started off quietly enough, with fives and sixes in a couple of shared rounds. James struck first blood with the numbers, solving a target that flummoxed Kylie. Another shared round followed, then he extended his lead to sixteen points when Kylie erred in round five. Kylie pulled back some ground in the next numbers round, and went into the second break a tantalising eleven points behind.
After the break, James handled a fertile mix better to pull away once more, and then chose a difficult numbers mix. Kylie needed to solve it exactly in order to stay in contention, but the target was unreachable and that meant victory for James. Neither could solve the conundrum -- both buzzed in with invalid answers -- and James finished the winner by eleven points, 40 to 29.
I had an excellent game tonight; optimal, even. That included one round where I managed to find a better option than David, so I have finally gained that elusive solo victory -- only the second time that I have done so this series. Not only that, but there were two full monties on offer today so I also (I think) registered my personal high score. All in all, a very enjoyable game for me.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the third night for Kylie Thompson, and we find out that she is very much into jewellery making and beading. She likes to get creative when she has some spare time, and make pieces for herself or friends and family. Kylie's mother is also very much into those two activities also, and they've often talked about how they'd love to open a bead cafe where they could have a coffee and teach people how to bead.
Tonight's challenger is James Couti, a paramedic student. That was a change of direction for James; he started out in architecture, since all through years 10, 11, 12 that was what he wanted to do. But then he got involved in lifesaving and decided that he wanted to move into emergency health; thus the paramedic study. James' eventual aim is to get into the air ambulance, but he says that is a long way off.
The game started off quietly enough, with fives and sixes in a couple of shared rounds. James struck first blood with the numbers, solving a target that flummoxed Kylie. Another shared round followed, then he extended his lead to sixteen points when Kylie erred in round five. Kylie pulled back some ground in the next numbers round, and went into the second break a tantalising eleven points behind.
After the break, James handled a fertile mix better to pull away once more, and then chose a difficult numbers mix. Kylie needed to solve it exactly in order to stay in contention, but the target was unreachable and that meant victory for James. Neither could solve the conundrum -- both buzzed in with invalid answers -- and James finished the winner by eleven points, 40 to 29.
I had an excellent game tonight; optimal, even. That included one round where I managed to find a better option than David, so I have finally gained that elusive solo victory -- only the second time that I have done so this series. Not only that, but there were two full monties on offer today so I also (I think) registered my personal high score. All in all, a very enjoyable game for me.
Monday, 3 October 2016
Ep 191: Kylie Thompson, Lexi Wright (October 3, 2016; originally aired April 25, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
Kylie Thompson is in the champion's seat tonight, and Richard asks where her enthusiasm for teaching comes from. Kylie says that it is her students, and seeing what they can achieve through what she teaches them. She tries to build a really good rapport with them, and this has resulted in her being nicknamed "Nanny K" (after her maiden name of Nankervis); she acquired that during her first year of teaching, and even now after marriage and a name change she still gets called that in the corridors.
Tonight's challenger is Lexi Wright, a student doing a bachelor of science with a focus on genetics and mathematics. She's still in first year, though, so it's a bit early to say how things will go. With respect to genetics, Lexi is interested in research and matters like the Human Genome Project.
The pattern of the game was set in the very first round, where Kylie's five-letter word was one better than Lexi's declaration. So it continued throughout the letters rounds: Kylie always was just one letter longer. Both contestants struggled with the numbers, failing to get within range for the first two numbers rounds, and then in the last numbers round Kylie again was one closer to the target. Neither could solve the conundrum, and Kylie won, 36 to 0.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
Kylie Thompson is in the champion's seat tonight, and Richard asks where her enthusiasm for teaching comes from. Kylie says that it is her students, and seeing what they can achieve through what she teaches them. She tries to build a really good rapport with them, and this has resulted in her being nicknamed "Nanny K" (after her maiden name of Nankervis); she acquired that during her first year of teaching, and even now after marriage and a name change she still gets called that in the corridors.
Tonight's challenger is Lexi Wright, a student doing a bachelor of science with a focus on genetics and mathematics. She's still in first year, though, so it's a bit early to say how things will go. With respect to genetics, Lexi is interested in research and matters like the Human Genome Project.
The pattern of the game was set in the very first round, where Kylie's five-letter word was one better than Lexi's declaration. So it continued throughout the letters rounds: Kylie always was just one letter longer. Both contestants struggled with the numbers, failing to get within range for the first two numbers rounds, and then in the last numbers round Kylie again was one closer to the target. Neither could solve the conundrum, and Kylie won, 36 to 0.
Sunday, 2 October 2016
Weekly summary: Episodes 186 to 190
I had a vastly more consistent week this time, always being close to David and Lily even if I only managed to equal them once. That's always something to be happy about, though! I've had a pretty good run this series, although I think it's safe to say I would not have done nearly as well at the time of airing. Keeping this blog going has unquestionably improved my game.
Tony went all the way, taking the top spot as he had seemed likely to do, and pushing Greg off the leaderboard. Robyn won on Thursday, but then lost to Kylie; there's not enough games left before the finals for Kylie to get onto the leaderboard, so the top eight for the finals are now determined.
Only one full monty was available this time, a sharp decline after the five from last week. A numbers round proved to be too tough for Lily on Tuesday, and the rareness of that demonstrates just how very good she is. There was also an impossible target on Thursday, but there's not much to be said about that.
I feel decent about my letters performance this week, but I did drop a couple more numbers maxima than I should have -- I just have to spot those better options within time. I did solve all five conundrums within time, although Gillian did just beat me to the answer on Wednesday.
Contestants sorted by average score:
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Me | 76 | 84 | 63 | 73 | 66 |
| Champion | 51 | 36 | 46 | 21 | 7 |
| Challenger | 20 | 15 | 31 | 38 | 35 |
| David + Lily | 77 | 84 | 77 | 75 | 77 |
| Me (solo) | 76 | 84 | 73 | 73 | 73 |
Tony went all the way, taking the top spot as he had seemed likely to do, and pushing Greg off the leaderboard. Robyn won on Thursday, but then lost to Kylie; there's not enough games left before the finals for Kylie to get onto the leaderboard, so the top eight for the finals are now determined.
| Tony Loui | 52 | 83 | 44 | 62 | 49 | 52 | 342 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamara McMahon | 54 | 64 | 63 | 52 | 54 | 48 | 335 |
| Barry Harridge | 75 | 51 | 45 | 54 | 39 | 59 | 323 |
| Matthew Thomason | 46 | 64 | 49 | 44 | 52 | 65 | 310 |
| Victor Tung | 44 | 29 | 51 | 43 | 47 | 42 | 256 |
| Oli Bryant | 71 | 46 | 60 | 55 | 54 | 32 | 318 |
| Richard Hartley | 56 | 53 | 57 | 42 | 42 | 32 | 282 |
| Jack Dell | 59 | 73 | 40 | 50 | 36 | 258 |
Only one full monty was available this time, a sharp decline after the five from last week. A numbers round proved to be too tough for Lily on Tuesday, and the rareness of that demonstrates just how very good she is. There was also an impossible target on Thursday, but there's not much to be said about that.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full Monties | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Missed Full Monties | 0 | |||||
| Tough Numbers | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Impossible Numbers | 1 | 1 |
I feel decent about my letters performance this week, but I did drop a couple more numbers maxima than I should have -- I just have to spot those better options within time. I did solve all five conundrums within time, although Gillian did just beat me to the answer on Wednesday.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maximums: L | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| N | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| C | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Contestants sorted by average score:
| Total | Games | Average | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kylie Thompson* | 58 | 1 | 58.00 |
| Tony Loui | 342 | 6 | 57.00 |
| Tamara McMahon | 335 | 6 | 55.83 |
| Barry Harridge | 323 | 6 | 53.83 |
| Oli Bryant | 318 | 6 | 53.00 |
| Peter Kougi | 52 | 1 | 52.00 |
| Matthew Thomason | 310 | 6 | 51.67 |
| Jack Dell | 258 | 5 | 51.60 |
| Rohan Long | 153 | 3 | 51.00 |
| Jason Dunn | 102 | 2 | 51.00 |
| Colwyn Buckland | 51 | 1 | 51.00 |
| Brian Morgan | 151 | 3 | 50.33 |
| Luke Brattoni | 149 | 3 | 49.67 |
| Mel Cox | 149 | 3 | 49.67 |
| Rob Hunt | 99 | 2 | 49.50 |
| Raf Goodens | 98 | 2 | 49.00 |
| Gary Beer | 49 | 1 | 49.00 |
| Ryan Turk | 48 | 1 | 48.00 |
| Jeremy Rosen | 95 | 2 | 47.50 |
| Richard Hartley | 282 | 6 | 47.00 |
| Samuel Hastings | 186 | 4 | 46.50 |
| Daniel Drumm | 92 | 2 | 46.00 |
| Tom Fooks | 133 | 3 | 44.33 |
| Jonathan Goodman | 44 | 1 | 44.00 |
| Robyn Lee | 86 | 2 | 43.00 |
| Victor Tung | 256 | 6 | 42.67 |
| Greg Beers | 211 | 5 | 42.20 |
| Kannan Sethuraman | 210 | 5 | 42.00 |
| Kathryn James | 123 | 3 | 41.00 |
| Jodi Knight | 82 | 2 | 41.00 |
| Avi Chanales | 163 | 4 | 40.75 |
| Margaret Frangos | 79 | 2 | 39.50 |
| Peter Stephenson | 78 | 2 | 39.00 |
| Paula Messer | 77 | 2 | 38.50 |
| Brett Chaiyawat | 188 | 5 | 37.60 |
| Janine Huan | 37 | 1 | 37.00 |
| Had Thomas | 37 | 1 | 37.00 |
| Aram Kalyanasundaram | 36 | 1 | 36.00 |
| Luke Warden | 72 | 2 | 36.00 |
| Pat Sincock | 71 | 2 | 35.50 |
| David Waddell | 71 | 2 | 35.50 |
| Damien Chua | 35 | 1 | 35.00 |
| Ralph Lurie | 35 | 1 | 35.00 |
| Helen Hewitt | 34 | 1 | 34.00 |
| Jayden Spudvilas-Powell | 34 | 1 | 34.00 |
| Michael Bakker | 66 | 2 | 33.00 |
| Nathan Boadle | 33 | 1 | 33.00 |
| Alison Crowe | 33 | 1 | 33.00 |
| Chris Cincotta | 32 | 1 | 32.00 |
| Everson Kandare | 32 | 1 | 32.00 |
| Cameron Ling | 32 | 1 | 32.00 |
| Neil McInnes | 32 | 1 | 32.00 |
| Ben Ripley | 32 | 1 | 32.00 |
| Felix Johnson | 95 | 3 | 31.67 |
| Mike Vitale | 63 | 2 | 31.50 |
| Howard Smith | 62 | 2 | 31.00 |
| John Marsiglio | 31 | 1 | 31.00 |
| Gillian Stevens | 31 | 1 | 31.00 |
| Alex Ford | 30 | 1 | 30.00 |
| Bryce Lawrence | 30 | 1 | 30.00 |
| Jon Avotins | 29 | 1 | 29.00 |
| Matt Pitcher | 29 | 1 | 29.00 |
| Kapil Chauhan | 28 | 1 | 28.00 |
| Tim Shiel | 28 | 1 | 28.00 |
| Graham Smith | 55 | 2 | 27.50 |
| Phillip Gao | 27 | 1 | 27.00 |
| Anna Gunn | 27 | 1 | 27.00 |
| David Gunn | 27 | 1 | 27.00 |
| Glen Chandler | 26 | 1 | 26.00 |
| Steve Simmons | 25 | 1 | 25.00 |
| Nicky Henderson | 24 | 1 | 24.00 |
| Preeti Goel | 23 | 1 | 23.00 |
| Louise Kuchmar | 23 | 1 | 23.00 |
| Vikas Ahuja | 22 | 1 | 22.00 |
| Daniel Goff | 21 | 1 | 21.00 |
| Laurence Guttman | 21 | 1 | 21.00 |
| Richard King | 21 | 1 | 21.00 |
| Mark Povey | 21 | 1 | 21.00 |
| Rob Carter | 20 | 1 | 20.00 |
| Rosemary Stafford | 20 | 1 | 20.00 |
| Nicky Betts | 19 | 1 | 19.00 |
| Liam Murphy | 18 | 1 | 18.00 |
| Basil Theophilos | 18 | 1 | 18.00 |
| Jenni Bradford | 17 | 1 | 17.00 |
| Seb Dworkin | 17 | 1 | 17.00 |
| Frank Rice | 15 | 1 | 15.00 |
| Vanessa Rule | 15 | 1 | 15.00 |
| Dane Watkins | 15 | 1 | 15.00 |
| Dan Boxshall | 14 | 1 | 14.00 |
| Cathy Henry | 14 | 1 | 14.00 |
| Susan Bee | 13 | 1 | 13.00 |
| Mali Konda | 13 | 1 | 13.00 |
| Rhys McCaig | 13 | 1 | 13.00 |
| Matthew Ball | 12 | 1 | 12.00 |
| Matt Bolton | 12 | 1 | 12.00 |
| Kym Logan | 6 | 1 | 6.00 |
Ep 190: Robyn Lee, Kylie Thompson (September 30, 2016; originally aired April 22, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
Robyn Lee takes her turn in the champion's seat, and we find out that for a year and a half she used to play guitar in an eighteen-piece all-girl big band called Connie Lansberg and the Sisters of Sass. Huh, that became quite short when written out; the chat seemed a bit longer than that.
Tonight's challenger is Kylie Thompson, a secondary school teacher with an Honours degree in astrophysics. And she has a star named after her! Her husband organised that for her 21st birthday, and it is called "Kylie's Celestial Utopia". (Richard suggests that very few people would have a star named after them, but the star registry claims over two million people have done so.)
The contestants started with a nice pair of sevens, then shared the next round. Then the momentum swung heavily in Kylie's favour: She solved the numbers round, found a longer word in round four, and Robyn miscounted her declaration in round five. Another good numbers round for Kylie pushed her almost to a winning margin; when no full monty was available in the last letters round her victory was assured. Robyn ended up solving the conundrum, but Kylie had a comfortable win, 58 to 28.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
Robyn Lee takes her turn in the champion's seat, and we find out that for a year and a half she used to play guitar in an eighteen-piece all-girl big band called Connie Lansberg and the Sisters of Sass. Huh, that became quite short when written out; the chat seemed a bit longer than that.
Tonight's challenger is Kylie Thompson, a secondary school teacher with an Honours degree in astrophysics. And she has a star named after her! Her husband organised that for her 21st birthday, and it is called "Kylie's Celestial Utopia". (Richard suggests that very few people would have a star named after them, but the star registry claims over two million people have done so.)
The contestants started with a nice pair of sevens, then shared the next round. Then the momentum swung heavily in Kylie's favour: She solved the numbers round, found a longer word in round four, and Robyn miscounted her declaration in round five. Another good numbers round for Kylie pushed her almost to a winning margin; when no full monty was available in the last letters round her victory was assured. Robyn ended up solving the conundrum, but Kylie had a comfortable win, 58 to 28.
Ep 189: Daniel Goff, Robyn Lee (September 29, 2016; originally aired April 21, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
We have two new contestants tonight, after Tony Loui's successful retirement last night. First up, taking the champion's position, is Daniel Goff, a retiree who worked in the Texas education system. Daniel describes himself during that time as a jack-of-all-trades; he worked a lot with creating multiple choice questions (and answers!) for mathematics, reading, writing, science, and social studies. Quite the range! Then he also worked with the teachers, teaching them the way that they scored compositions -- they felt like that method of scoring was very educational for the child in learning how to improve. (I admit that I don't quite follow what he means here; "scoring a composition" sounds like a film or music activity, but he might just be referring to marking an essay.)
Taking up the challenger's position is Robyn Lee, an automotive engineering student. Another engineer (after Gillian yesterday)! I hope she got a chance to chat with Gillian during the downtime of the filming. Richard asks about Robyn's motivation; she responds that she has a big interest in motorsports, particularly Formula 1, which she sees as the pinnacle of automotive technologies -- a blend of technology and sport. Robyn would love to one day work in a Formula 1 team, engineering racing parts and maybe also being involved in the race weekends themselves.
Robyn started with the better word in round one, then the next three rounds were shared. A slightly risky option from her in round five brought reward, and then she ran away with the game, scoring thirty unanswered points in the second half. Daniel had a couple of invalid answers which did not help his cause, including the conundrum at the end where he buzzed in with an eight-letter answer. Robyn was not able to solve it, but had done more than enough to win, 58 to 21.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
We have two new contestants tonight, after Tony Loui's successful retirement last night. First up, taking the champion's position, is Daniel Goff, a retiree who worked in the Texas education system. Daniel describes himself during that time as a jack-of-all-trades; he worked a lot with creating multiple choice questions (and answers!) for mathematics, reading, writing, science, and social studies. Quite the range! Then he also worked with the teachers, teaching them the way that they scored compositions -- they felt like that method of scoring was very educational for the child in learning how to improve. (I admit that I don't quite follow what he means here; "scoring a composition" sounds like a film or music activity, but he might just be referring to marking an essay.)
Taking up the challenger's position is Robyn Lee, an automotive engineering student. Another engineer (after Gillian yesterday)! I hope she got a chance to chat with Gillian during the downtime of the filming. Richard asks about Robyn's motivation; she responds that she has a big interest in motorsports, particularly Formula 1, which she sees as the pinnacle of automotive technologies -- a blend of technology and sport. Robyn would love to one day work in a Formula 1 team, engineering racing parts and maybe also being involved in the race weekends themselves.
Robyn started with the better word in round one, then the next three rounds were shared. A slightly risky option from her in round five brought reward, and then she ran away with the game, scoring thirty unanswered points in the second half. Daniel had a couple of invalid answers which did not help his cause, including the conundrum at the end where he buzzed in with an eight-letter answer. Robyn was not able to solve it, but had done more than enough to win, 58 to 21.
Saturday, 1 October 2016
Ep 188: Tony Loui, Gillian Stevens (September 28, 2016; originally aired April 20, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the sixth and final night for Tony, at least until the finals. He's already guaranteed at least sixth position, while a win would mean at least fourth position; if he wins with 46 points or more then he takes first place on the leaderboard. But first, there's the pre-game chat to get through. Richard starts by mentioning that Tony has found a couple of nine-letter words so far, then segues through that to a golfing 'hole in one'. (At the time, there had been at attempt to refer to nine-letter words as a 'hole in one', but the term did not catch on in the same way that 'full monty' did.) Tony, it turns out, has scored a hole in one on a par three at a golf course about three years ago. An impressive achievement!
Standing between Tony and successful retirement is Gillian Stevens, a mechanical engineer. Richard asks about Gillian's motivation for that career choice, and Gillian responds to general merriment that she thinks it was a boy. Then, more seriously, she says that her school went on one of those excursions where you can choose your career, and she saw a working model of an internal combustion engine. It looked interesting, and she thought, "I want to build that". Richard asks if she has fulfilled that dream; Gillian sighs as she admits that she is not in automotive engineering, but rather works on somewhat larger systems. She says "marine systems", which I take to mean boats (or ships, if you prefer), or perhaps oil rigs.
The contestants shared the points in the first two letter rounds, then a difficult numbers round gave Tony a chance to take the lead. His calculation seemed like it would be sound, but apparently he made an error (he did not say what), so the scores remained tied going into the first break. The points were again shared in round four, but then an invalid answer from Gillian in round five finally separated the contestants. That seemed to be the catalyst for Tony, as he romped home with good number results and a long word in the last letters round. Gillian ended up solving the conundrum, but Tony comprehensively won, 52 to 31.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the sixth and final night for Tony, at least until the finals. He's already guaranteed at least sixth position, while a win would mean at least fourth position; if he wins with 46 points or more then he takes first place on the leaderboard. But first, there's the pre-game chat to get through. Richard starts by mentioning that Tony has found a couple of nine-letter words so far, then segues through that to a golfing 'hole in one'. (At the time, there had been at attempt to refer to nine-letter words as a 'hole in one', but the term did not catch on in the same way that 'full monty' did.) Tony, it turns out, has scored a hole in one on a par three at a golf course about three years ago. An impressive achievement!
Standing between Tony and successful retirement is Gillian Stevens, a mechanical engineer. Richard asks about Gillian's motivation for that career choice, and Gillian responds to general merriment that she thinks it was a boy. Then, more seriously, she says that her school went on one of those excursions where you can choose your career, and she saw a working model of an internal combustion engine. It looked interesting, and she thought, "I want to build that". Richard asks if she has fulfilled that dream; Gillian sighs as she admits that she is not in automotive engineering, but rather works on somewhat larger systems. She says "marine systems", which I take to mean boats (or ships, if you prefer), or perhaps oil rigs.
The contestants shared the points in the first two letter rounds, then a difficult numbers round gave Tony a chance to take the lead. His calculation seemed like it would be sound, but apparently he made an error (he did not say what), so the scores remained tied going into the first break. The points were again shared in round four, but then an invalid answer from Gillian in round five finally separated the contestants. That seemed to be the catalyst for Tony, as he romped home with good number results and a long word in the last letters round. Gillian ended up solving the conundrum, but Tony comprehensively won, 52 to 31.
Ep 187: Tony Loui, Mark Povey (September 27, 2016; originally aired April 19, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's Tony Loui's fifth night, and Richard wheels out the question about strategy. Tony manages to give more of an answer than most contestants do, which is a nice change. With the letters, he tries to make the longest he can from the first five or six letters so that he has a four- or five-letter word, then builds from that. For the numbers, he tries to make it simple by using the biggest number first and get the closest that he can, and then adjust. That's certainly an approach that I advocate, and it works quite often.
Tonight's challenger is Mark Povey, a storeman who served in the Royal Australian Navy for twenty-one years. Richard asks about highlights of Mark's career in the navy; Mark does not get very specific, but does mention that he was on the ground for six months doing services with the United Nations in Mogadishu. Aside from that, just a lot of time spent away from home, and that is when his fondness for crosswords, particularly David's cryptics, blossomed. He has yet to finish one, but hopes to do so one day.
Things started out poorly for Tony, as he duplicated a letter in the first letters round. Mark capitalised on that swing by finding a good word in the second round, building a 13 point lead after just two rounds. But Tony rallied in the numbers, scoring points to narrow the gap to six. A shared round followed in the letters, then Tony levelled the scores in round five. The second numbers round was too difficult for both contestants, so they were tied going into the second break.
It looked like we were heading for a nailbiter of a finish, but Tony blew the game wide open by finding a full monty in the last letters game. Mark was still in with a chance, but the numbers were not cooperative for him and instead Tony extended his lead. The conundrum also turned out to be too hard for the contestants, so it was round seven that decided it all. Tony won by 49 points to 21, a winning margin that does not reflect most of the game.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's Tony Loui's fifth night, and Richard wheels out the question about strategy. Tony manages to give more of an answer than most contestants do, which is a nice change. With the letters, he tries to make the longest he can from the first five or six letters so that he has a four- or five-letter word, then builds from that. For the numbers, he tries to make it simple by using the biggest number first and get the closest that he can, and then adjust. That's certainly an approach that I advocate, and it works quite often.
Tonight's challenger is Mark Povey, a storeman who served in the Royal Australian Navy for twenty-one years. Richard asks about highlights of Mark's career in the navy; Mark does not get very specific, but does mention that he was on the ground for six months doing services with the United Nations in Mogadishu. Aside from that, just a lot of time spent away from home, and that is when his fondness for crosswords, particularly David's cryptics, blossomed. He has yet to finish one, but hopes to do so one day.
Things started out poorly for Tony, as he duplicated a letter in the first letters round. Mark capitalised on that swing by finding a good word in the second round, building a 13 point lead after just two rounds. But Tony rallied in the numbers, scoring points to narrow the gap to six. A shared round followed in the letters, then Tony levelled the scores in round five. The second numbers round was too difficult for both contestants, so they were tied going into the second break.
It looked like we were heading for a nailbiter of a finish, but Tony blew the game wide open by finding a full monty in the last letters game. Mark was still in with a chance, but the numbers were not cooperative for him and instead Tony extended his lead. The conundrum also turned out to be too hard for the contestants, so it was round seven that decided it all. Tony won by 49 points to 21, a winning margin that does not reflect most of the game.
Ep 186: Tony Loui, Steve Simmons (September 26, 2016; originally aired April 18, 2011)
Rounds: Here.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the crucial fourth night for Tony Loui; a win here will surely put him into the finals. In the pre-game chat, it is revealed that Tony has a prior interaction with both David and the Macquarie dictionary: About three years ago he entered a weekend cryptic crossword competition in the Sydney Morning Herald. He describes himself as "lucky enough" to get it right, and then lucky to be drawn out first. So he won a third edition Macquarie dictionary from solving a David Astle cryptic crossword.
Tonight's challenger is Steve Simmons, an English teacher who teaches Academic English. That is for international students wishing to study at Australian universities (or other tertiary institutions). And, huh, that's all the chat we have with Steve -- seems a bit short.
A miserly mix limited both contestants to fives in the first round, but thereafter the words went Tony's way. Steve was unable to find longer than five (with the exception of one invalid answer); the numbers provided little scope for gain, and Tony was safe going into the last numbers round. The conundrum ended up being too difficult for both contestants, and Tony finished the victor, 62 to 25.
Disclaimer: I watched this episode when it first aired, and although I did not recall any of it I cannot rule out memory being a factor.
It's the crucial fourth night for Tony Loui; a win here will surely put him into the finals. In the pre-game chat, it is revealed that Tony has a prior interaction with both David and the Macquarie dictionary: About three years ago he entered a weekend cryptic crossword competition in the Sydney Morning Herald. He describes himself as "lucky enough" to get it right, and then lucky to be drawn out first. So he won a third edition Macquarie dictionary from solving a David Astle cryptic crossword.
Tonight's challenger is Steve Simmons, an English teacher who teaches Academic English. That is for international students wishing to study at Australian universities (or other tertiary institutions). And, huh, that's all the chat we have with Steve -- seems a bit short.
A miserly mix limited both contestants to fives in the first round, but thereafter the words went Tony's way. Steve was unable to find longer than five (with the exception of one invalid answer); the numbers provided little scope for gain, and Tony was safe going into the last numbers round. The conundrum ended up being too difficult for both contestants, and Tony finished the victor, 62 to 25.
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