SANTA Recap
Connecticut’s inaugural SANTA (Stamford Après-Noël Tiles & Anagrams) was a jolly success. This Friday one-day drew 34 players, owing to its proximity to the holidays and to Albany! Our downtown conference room drew praise for its spaciousness and lighting. We brought in our own festive decorations from home to spruce up the venue. For a warm start, co-organizer Mina Le provided coffee, bagels, and donut holes.
Director César Del Solar ran the tournament using Woogles software, which meant that we could use the QR code on our scorecards to access the pairings and standings online as well as to submit our scores electronically. The tournament raised $170 for Woogles, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides synchronous online gameplay, bot opponents, and position puzzles for free.
Co-director Joshua Sokol-Rubenstein streamed the event on Twitch and helped it all run smoothly.
Edible fun prizes are a hallmark of the Le del Solar tournaments. James Donnelly won a chocolate prize for Flashiest Bingo with LONELILY. Jack Lechner won a chocolate prize for Best Winter Holiday Word with JOLLY.
In Division D, Ben Muschol won $80 for second place (5-2 +368), and Alexander Dering won $130 and a trophy for first place (5.5-1.5 +562).
In Division C, Marla Riff won $80 for second place (4-3 +124), and Judy Cole (Gibsonized!) won $130 and a trophy for first place (6-1 +475).
In Division B, Terry Kang won $80 for second place (5-2 +341), and David Benjamin Firstman won $130 and a trophy for first place (6-1 +245).
In Division A, Bobby DeSimone won $50 for third place (4-3 +153), James Donnelly won $100 for second place (6-1 +273), and Joel Sherman won $150 and a trophy for first place (6-1 +673).
Nine players (and a few family members) celebrated afterward with drinks and dinner at Barcelona Wine Bar.
We were delighted to welcome a brand-new tournament player, Ariel Vogel, to the fold.
SANTA is the new incarnation of MERRY (Montclair Escapade of Rearranging and Rack-balancing at Yuletide), which ran in Montclair, NJ, in January 2020 and December 2023 and online in 2021. When we moved from Montclair to Stamford, we had to change the acronym. Going forward, we hope to run a wintertime SANTA and a summertime SUNNY (S___ U___ Northeast of New York?).
