Rensselaer student Tyler Hinman, 20, has won the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, becoming the youngest champion in the 28-year history of the competition.

Hinman, a third-year information technology major from Hebron, Conn., won the title and $4,000 grand prize. He prevailed among 450 competitors. The competition was held in Stamford, Conn., March 11-13.

Hinman said he was “both surprised and not surprised” to win because he knew he had the ability to win but things had to fall his way. “It’s mostly skill and verbal ability, but there was also a little bit of luck involved. A few stumbles by my opponents cleared the way and a couple of seconds made the difference,” he told the Associated Press (AP).

In the final round, Hinman and two other competitors completed their puzzles on stage in front of a crowd of hundreds in a hotel ballroom.

Al Sanders, a 46-year-old engineer from Fort Collins, Colo., finished the puzzle first, but missed the answer “Zolaesque” for the clue “stark and richly detailed, as writing.”

The tournament is the nation’s oldest and largest crossword competition. It was founded in 1978 and is directed by New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz.

“There are a lot of people who are very intelligent who cannot solve crosswords,” Shortz told the AP. “But all good crossword solvers are smart.”

Hinman, who also writes crossword puzzles, was the youngest person ever to publish a puzzle in the New York Times, at age 15. He has one pending at the Los Angeles Times, and has appeared in the Wall Street Journal. Perhaps Rensselaer magazine will someday be on that list.

Originally published in Rensselaer Magazine, Spring 2005
Photo by AP/Wide World Photos

Published April 1, 2005