The New York Times’ Connections : Sports Edition for December 18th (#451) presents a new daily challenge for puzzle enthusiasts. This edition, published through The Athletic, tests players’ knowledge across various sports categories. The puzzle requires identifying four groups of four words linked by a common theme.
Puzzle Overview
Connections : Sports Edition differs from the main NYT Games puzzles. It’s accessible via The Athletic’s app or directly online, but not through the standard NYT Games platform. The difficulty varies, often relying on specialized sports knowledge.
Hints for Today’s Categories
The puzzle is broken down into four difficulty levels, color-coded for clarity:
- Yellow (Easiest): The theme revolves around a specific state’s teams.
- Green: This group focuses on a particular equestrian discipline.
- Blue: The words relate to players featured in a recent major golf event.
- Purple (Hardest): These terms share a connection to the letter “T” in a sporting context.
Solutions Revealed
Here’s the breakdown of today’s categories and their corresponding answers:
- Yellow: The theme is teams from Wisconsin. The words are Badger, Brewer, Buck, and Packer.
- Green: The theme is equestrian sports. The solutions are polo, rodeo, steeplechase, and thoroughbred racing.
- Blue: The theme is golfers who played in this year’s Ryder Cup. The solutions are English, Fleetwood, Henley, and Rose.
- Purple: The theme is words associated with the letter “T” in sports. The solutions are short-sleeve shirt, tackle, technical, and timeout.
Difficulty and Strategies
The puzzle’s difficulty depends on individual sports knowledge. Some players excel in specific areas (e.g., Formula 1, hockey, regional teams), while others struggle with broader categories. The Connections puzzle often favors those with diverse sports trivia.
Ultimately, the puzzle reinforces how much sports knowledge can vary between individuals, and how that impacts puzzle-solving success.
