UKPA Open Sudoku and Puzzle Tournaments 29-30 March, 2014

[puzzlemad]

The instruction booklets are now available for the puzzle rounds of the tournaments. I hope to have the Sudoku instruction booklets ready within the next week.
If anyone else would like to take part we can still take a few more entries. Please contact me on liane@ukpuzzles.org . Further information about the event can be found at http://www.ukpuzzles.org/ukopen_2014.php .
If anyone has any queries please post here and I'll check regularly. Please identify the round/puzzle in your query.
I won't be able to respond to any queries over next weekend as I'll be in Hungary taking part in the 24 hour competition.

You will notice on the schedule that there is a screen test and a couple of "fun" team rounds. More information will be given about these at the event.

[Ekaterin]

Does the Screen Test mean that we need to bring a laptop?
Eva.

[GarethMoore]

You won't need a laptop - it just means that puzzles will be on the projection screen.

[puzzlemad]

As Gareth says, the puzzles will be shown on a projector screen - each puzzle will be shown for a limited period of time and you will have a short time between each puzzle to write the answer down before the next is shown.

[puzzlemad]

Sudoku instructions are out. File is too large (I presume) for upload here, so I've emailed out to all contestants. Hopefully you will have received it. If not, can you let me know.
Liane

[PuzzleScot]

Sudoku instructions are out. File is too large (I presume) for upload here, so I've emailed out to all contestants. Hopefully you will have received it. If not, can you let me know.
Liane

The Contest page now has a link to download the Sudoku Instructions.

[GarethMoore]

The file is large because it contains giant (but fuzzy) full-colour bitmaps. You can fix this by changing the PDF image compression options, so I've fixed this in the attached version, which is much smaller, and I've also corrected the Trio Sudoku example which was in fact for a Little Killer Trio Sudoku.

Sudoku instruction book v2.pdf

Sudoku instruction book

(2.93 MiB) Downloaded 1513 times

[Magoo]

Thanks Gareth. I was about to point out a 'missing instruction' in the Trio!

I am minded to ask the organisers if non-maths-graduates are allowed to bring a calculator to help with the Product Killer multiplications?

[PuzzleScot]

I've fixed this in the attached version

Thanks Gareth - I've also updated the web page to link to this.

[emma]

I am minded to ask the organisers if non-maths-graduates are allowed to bring a calculator to help with the Product Killer multiplications?

Define "non-maths-graduates". (It might be harder than you think!)

[puzzlemad]

I am minded to ask the organisers if non-maths-graduates are allowed to bring a calculator to help with the Product Killer multiplications?

'Fraid not. It has to be the same for everyone.

[GarethMoore]

I am minded to ask the organisers if non-maths-graduates are allowed to bring a calculator to help with the Product Killer multiplications?

I'm rubbish at mental arithmetic, but product-based puzzles are often easier than summation ones, in my experience. If you try some product puzzles you'll see how much more is obvious than you might realise - more so than in regular killer sudoku, in fact, I find. Also, the examples don't necessarily match the competition puzzle difficulties.

[Magoo]

I can believe that the logic is easier, but I still think the arithmetic is harder. I was really joking about there being different rules for different competitors. And even I can probably get by without a calculator, which is clearly a better way for the competition as a whole. Also I take Gareth's implicit point that practice is better than aids, but I wouldn't know where to source (Jigsaw) Product Killer examples within the next week... and I couldn't possibly define a maths graduate or a non-maths graduate or a non-maths-graduate. So - looking forward to the fun.

[GarethMoore]

Just to clarify, it's not a jigsaw product killer - it's a regular killer sudoku but with product operations, as in the instructions booklet.

The arithmetic is pretty easy - you can trivially see if a number is divisible by 2 or 5 for example, whereas with adding you need to mess about and see whether you can use a certain number or not in the given total. There's no such faffing in product puzzles. You can also easily test for division by 3, come to think of it. Anyway, once you divide by a solved factor (e.g. 5) the number left is often 54 or 56 or something where you can see immediately which two single-digit numbers multiply to make it, or at least something pretty manageable. I find the little bits of actual division you need to do require considerably less writing than the tables of possible summation digits I usually end up making!

Mind you, I agree these look nasty.

Anyway, just for you Mark(!), I've put another example online: http://www.garethmoore.co.uk/2014/03/pr ... er-sudoku/

[puzzlemad]

Quick clarification on the linked round.
I have printed the puzzles onto an A3 sheet in order to make it easier when transferring the information.
You will get 40 points for each correctly answered puzzle whether or not you have completed the round.
In addition, if you solve a puzzle with a valid solution that is not part of the final solution, then you will receive half marks for that puzzle - however, you won't be able to complete the full round.

There will be bonus points available on the puzzle rounds for anyone finishing any of the rounds early.

Team rounds - both are optimisers:
First one will be a Scrabble round - Place some of the given words onto the board to create a valid game with the highest possible score.
Second one will be a Flags round - Place some of the given flags onto the grid to create rectangles of colours. The larger rectangles will receive higher marks, minus points for non-rectangular regions.

- Oh, can anyone let me know if they have any colour blindness issues for this round so that I can arrange to mark the flags with a colour description.

[drsteve]

A question concerning the Chess Pieces round

In the puzzle "King Me", do all of the words have to be located AND the missing one identified or does one need to only identify the missing one? Just a little wary of 20% of the points potentially being available for a guess...

[GarethMoore]

In "Build a maze", round 2, is marking in the solution path to the maze sufficient? This isn't shown in the example, but if you draw the solution path but don't mark all walls is that still valid? Obviously only so long as the actual solution is correctly and unambiguously shown?

[puzzlemad]

A question concerning the Chess Pieces round

In the puzzle "King Me", do all of the words have to be located AND the missing one identified or does one need to only identify the missing one? Just a little wary of 20% of the points potentially being available for a guess...

Yes, all words will need to be located and the missing one identified.

[puzzlemad]

In "Build a maze", round 2, is marking in the solution path to the maze sufficient? This isn't shown in the example, but if you draw the solution path but don't mark all walls is that still valid? Obviously only so long as the actual solution is correctly and unambiguously shown?

Yes, marking the solution path will be sufficient - as you say if it is correct and unamiguous.

[david mcneill]

Good luck to everybody organising and competing in the tournaments over the weekend. Sorry I can't be with you.

[PuzzleScot]

Not long back, and so much to say.

Firstly, wow! What a hotel. Rooms, food, service, and everything about the place is properly at least 4-star level.
I think every WPC/WSC visitor is going to be blown away by how high we've set the mark on what's achievable and affordable.

Thanks to Liane for organising the event - You can tell an awful lot of time has gone into that. Well done!!

Thanks also to everyone who attended - Everyone clearly really enjoyed the experience, including several new names and faces...

Last, and by no means least, a huge huge thanks to the puzzle authors, without whom this wouldn't have been possible. Fantastic puzzles, all of them! Very much appreciated indeed.

We have to decide what we will do with the puzzles now - it's possible we could knock up an online 'contest', so people who didn't attend can get to see how they would have done, and of course to enjoy the puzzles in the same way we all did
(So no public spoilers in the meantime chaps!)

[drsteve]

Let me add my congratulations and thanks to all of the organisers, especially Liane. No spoilers, but I think everyone will enjoy the puzzles in whatever form they are reproduced.

And the hotel was great, especially the food.

[puzzlemad]

What a fantastic weekend was had by all. The venue was superb as was all the company for the weekend. We had a truly international contingency, with overseas competitors from Belgium, Ireland and Canada taking part in addition to the UK competitors.
The Sudoku tournament was won by Vincent Bertrand who’d travelled from Belgium to be with us and he took the award for the best International Competitor. We are going to get a perpetual trophy for this award for next year. The top UK competitors were Tom Collyer, Neil Zussman and Mark Goodliffe (who took the award for Best Over 45) with Heather Golding closely on their heels taking the award for Best Lady. Emmi Matsunaga put in a sterling performance to take the Best Newcomer award – I’m sure some practice on the variants will see her shoot up the leader board in future events – watch out Vincent and Tom!
The Puzzle tournament started on the Saturday evening and those competing in just the Sudoku tournament were encouraged to join in the first round as an introduction to puzzling, then that was followed by a fun team round with Easter Eggs on offer for the winning team – I believe that at least one of those hasn’t survived till Easter – Heather!
As British Summer Time kicked, everyone “lost” an hours vital sleep – don’t think it affected the drinking time and the Puzzle tournament continued on Sunday. Neil Zussman took an early unassailable lead to become the Puzzle Tournament Champion and in fact only failed to answer six puzzles in total during the tournament – a fantastic performance. Tom Collyer took the runner up position, with Steve Barge closely on his heels in third. Best International Competitor went to Vincent Bertrand, Best Over 45 to Alan O’Donnell. Top Lady award was closely contended with Eva Myers taking that. Best Newcomer went to David Cook.
I’d like to add my personal thanks to all the puzzle authors: Andrey Bogdanov; Gareth Moore; Alex Robinson; Prasanna Seshadri; Gabriele Simionata; Tawan Sunathvanichkul; Matej Uher and Nikola Zivanovic, without whom we couldn’t have put on such a great event. Their puzzles were fantastic and appreciated by all. Thanks also to all the competitors for coming along and having a great time. This event is certainly growing and I’m looking forward to organising next years.

[puzzlemad]

Sudoku Results.PNG (23.16 KiB) Viewed 33615 times

Puzzle Results.PNG (29.58 KiB) Viewed 33615 times

[Magoo]

Great fun! Many thanks to Liane, the puzzle constructors, and all who helped with organising, and indeed to all the competitors. I hope to see you all again soon.