The Philadelphia Inquirer Sudoku National Championship
Encyclopedia
The Philadelphia Inquirer Sudoku National Championship, hosted by puzzle master Will Shortz
, is an annual sudoku
competition run by The Philadelphia Inquirer
and held at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
.
Open to a national and international field of contestants from a wide range of ages and backgrounds, the Championship offers three main skill divisions – advanced, intermediate and expert. In addition to the winners of those three categories, prizes are awarded to many more players who compete in a variety of age groups ranging from under-10 years to 80-and-over.
.
THE 2007 WINNERS
THE 2008 WINNERS
Advanced:
Intermediate:
Beginner:
Advanced:
Intermediate:
Beginner:
Separate 50 dollar prizes were also given in 27 age categories.
Following the tournament, questions were raised by competitors including 2nd place finisher Thomas Snyder
about the performance of Eugene Varshavsky in the tournament. Wearing a hooded sweatshirt during the competition, Varshavsky came nowhere close to his qualifying performance on stage which called into question his abilities as a legitimate sudoku contestant. Following a review of his performance including a retest on similar sudoku puzzles, Varshavsky was disqualified and Chris Narrikkattu, who would have qualified in the same round, was made the third place winner.
Will Shortz
Will Shortz is an American puzzle creator and editor, and currently the crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times.-Early life and education:...
, is an annual sudoku
Sudoku
is a logic-based, combinatorial number-placement puzzle. The objective is to fill a 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 sub-grids that compose the grid contains all of the digits from 1 to 9...
competition run by The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
and held at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
Pennsylvania Convention Center
The Pennsylvania Convention Center is a multi-use public facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which is designed to accommodate conventions, exhibitions, conferences and other events.-History:...
.
Open to a national and international field of contestants from a wide range of ages and backgrounds, the Championship offers three main skill divisions – advanced, intermediate and expert. In addition to the winners of those three categories, prizes are awarded to many more players who compete in a variety of age groups ranging from under-10 years to 80-and-over.
History
The first annual Philadelphia Inquirer Sudoku National Championship event was held on October 20, 2007, and with 857 contestants, set the world record for “most people playing sudoku simultaneously,” and Lauren Choi was the winner! according to Guinness World RecordsGuinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
.
2007
On October 20, 2007 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the oldest participant of the Championship was 87 years old and the youngest was six years old. Players came from as far away as California and as near as Center City, Philadelphia.THE 2007 WINNERS
- Advanced: Thomas SnyderThomas SnyderThomas Snyder is an American puzzle creator and world-champion sudoku solver. He writes a puzzle blog as Dr. Sudoku.-Early life and education:Thomas Snyder grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, New York...
, Palo Alto, CA ($10,000). He finished the final round in 7 minutes, 9 seconds. He was also awarded a spot on the U.S. National Sudoku Team at the 2008 World Sudoku Championship in India. - Intermediate: Ron Osher, Stamford, CT ($5,000).
- Beginner: Lori Desruisseaux, Elverson, PA ($3,000).
2008
On October 25, 2008 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the oldest participant was 88 years old and the youngest was 7 years old. Players came from as far away as Ireland and Canada, and as near as Center City, Philadelphia.THE 2008 WINNERS
Advanced:
- Wei-Hwa HuangWei-Hwa HuangWei-Hwa Huang is an award-winning American puzzler and member of the US Team for the World Puzzle Federation....
, Mountain View, CA ($10,000 prize). He finished the final round in 7 minutes, 39 seconds. He was also awarded a spot on the U.S. National Sudoku Team at the 2009 World Sudoku Championship in Slovakia. - Thomas SnyderThomas SnyderThomas Snyder is an American puzzle creator and world-champion sudoku solver. He writes a puzzle blog as Dr. Sudoku.-Early life and education:Thomas Snyder grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, New York...
, Palo Alto, CA ($2,000). He finished in first place in 2007 and then went on to his second world-championship win. - Tammy McLeod, Los Angeles, CA ($400).
Intermediate:
- Chris Narrikkattu, New York, NY ($5,000), 9:32.
- Vincent DeLuca, Swarthmore, PA ($1,000).
- Brittnay Guld, Philadelphia, PA ($200).
Beginner:
- Lisa J. Haffner, Philadelphia, PA ($3,000), 7:40.
- Lauren Choi, Rockville, MD ($600).
- Stefanie Jasinski, Philadelphia, PA ($150).
2009
The 2009 Philadelphia Inquirer Sudoku National Championship took place Saturday, October 24, 2009 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, PA.Advanced:
- First place - Tammy McLeod, Los Angeles, CA ($10,000 prize) in 7:41 with no mistakes.
- Second place - Thomas SnyderThomas SnyderThomas Snyder is an American puzzle creator and world-champion sudoku solver. He writes a puzzle blog as Dr. Sudoku.-Early life and education:Thomas Snyder grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, New York...
, Palo Alto, CA ($4,000 prize) in 4:14 with three mistakes. Snyder had made a transposition error in his grid costing him the title. - Third place - Chris Narrikkattu, New York, NY ($3,000 prize) after disqualification of Eugene Varshavsky.
- Disqualified - @Eugene Varshavsky, Lawrenceville, NJ - incomplete, with 3 numbers filled in after 8 minutes.
Intermediate:
- First place - Davis Borucki, Columbia, SC ($3,000) in 8:42.
- Second place - Andrea Kanner, Boston, MA ($2,000)
- Third place - Vincent DeLuca, Swarthmore, PA ($1,500)
Beginner:
- First place - Natan Tsyrulnik, Shelton, CT ($1,000) in 8:24.
- Second place - Tori Spofford, West Chester, PA ($500)
- Third place - Rosalie Hooper, Ambler, PA ($300)
Separate 50 dollar prizes were also given in 27 age categories.
Following the tournament, questions were raised by competitors including 2nd place finisher Thomas Snyder
Thomas Snyder
Thomas Snyder is an American puzzle creator and world-champion sudoku solver. He writes a puzzle blog as Dr. Sudoku.-Early life and education:Thomas Snyder grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, New York...
about the performance of Eugene Varshavsky in the tournament. Wearing a hooded sweatshirt during the competition, Varshavsky came nowhere close to his qualifying performance on stage which called into question his abilities as a legitimate sudoku contestant. Following a review of his performance including a retest on similar sudoku puzzles, Varshavsky was disqualified and Chris Narrikkattu, who would have qualified in the same round, was made the third place winner.