Teams did really good on all the rounds this week, particularly the A to Z round, which saw high scores for nearly every team as well as the handouts, which teams did great on. It was also really fun to see all the lucky charms people brought with them for bonus points. Some of them were legitimately cool, like the silver dollar with the eagle landing on the moon, while others were decidedly less cool, like those smelly lucky socks you brought in. And c’mon, is that really your lucky penny or did you just find it in your pocket and make up a good story about it? Regardless, it was fun to see so many teams racking up bonus points this week.

At the end of the night it was our third place team that came out victorious thanks to a smart (read: small) wager on the final question. Interestingly, all three teams gave the same wrong answer to the question, but with their wager, team We Believe We Can Fly took home the cash, which was split three ways last night thanks to the great turnout.

Here’s the winning team with their winnings — or almost their winnings actually. Somehow I ended up one dollar short when paying them out, but they were gracious in accepting their slightly decreased pot.

See you all next week!

This week’s dozen teams did great on the bingo round, and scores were pretty high… at least for until the Name That Tune round. Whenever we have a Name That Tune game, the round seems to separate the wheat from the chafe so to speak. Last night’s round, which focused on all songs from the 80s, was pretty tough for everybody. Everybody but the The Unthinkables, who dominated the round, correctly identifying nearly every song as well as nailing the bonus points.

And The Unkthinkables were able to hold on to that lead all the way to finals, where they were also the only team to correctly answer the final question, giving them the win and this week’s sizable cash prize. Here they are, mostly in the dark and out of focus thanks to my phone’s flash not going off.

And here are the top teams in our standings game so far:

The Old Fashioneds: 10
Not a Banana Baton: 8
Unthinkables: 5
Golden Snitch: 4
High Five City: 3

See you all next week!

Last week’s winners — and the winners of last quarter’s standings game, The Old Fashioneds, may have had the lead going into the final question, but they weren’t able to hold on for a victory. Instead, Not a Banana Baton — that’s a palindrome by the way — took home the dough, and even managed to do so after splitting their team into two since they had 8 players last night and we cap teams at 6.

Like usual, there was the requisite hooting and hollering last night, and also like usual, a fair amount of debate over the answers to a few questions. It wouldn’t be Pub Quiz without a little bit of friendly arguing with the Quizmaster. Anyway, here’s the winning team, sort of. My phone was majorly sucking last night and after three failed attempts, I decided to let the winning team off the hook for the picture. Here’s the best version I got:

And here are the top 5 teams in the standings after 2 weeks:

The Old Fashioneds: 7
Not a Banana Baton: 7
High Five City: 3
Skin Jobs: 3
Golden Snitch: 2

See you all next week!

We had over 60 players last night, which I think is a record during my tenure as Quizmaster at Big Time, and we had a blast, answering questions about Hobbits, tornadoes and Kevin James movies. Though it was a pretty close game throughout, it was The Old Fashioneds, last season’s standings game winners, who came out victorious after correctly answering the night’s final question. They are a tough team, consistently performing well, though they are not unstoppable. They did take home a sizable cash prize for their efforts last night, however. Here’s proof:

I hope the awesome turnout continues into the new year. We’ll see ya next week!

I’m not sure what it says about our regulars, however, that they are more adept at identifying divas than they are TIME’s people of the year, but I suppose Kim Kardashian does get a lot more press these days than say, Corazon Aquino.

Team Malibu Stacey played a great game, really pulling ahead during round two, moving them from second way into first place, and after a smart wager, and after all the teams got the final question wrong, they were able to come out victorious, taking home the cash prize and bragging rights for the week.

Here they are:

There were a few new teams and a few of our regular teams that battled it out last night, including The Old Fashioneds, who extended last week’s win into this week, beating out Jean Shorts and the Boozemellows, who are named after an actual delicacy — marshmellows made with booze, in this case, Kahlua, and they were mighty delicious. Thanks for sharing your boozemellows, Boozemellows. Hint: Sharing alcohol-infused baked goods is always a good idea on quiz night. Need proof: Boozemellows made it to the final question, and even though they didn’t win, they took second — and made the QuizMaster’s belly very happy.

Here are the Old Fashioneds, enjoying their dough:

See you all next week!

The Bingo round was difficult this week, with all but one team bunched up close in the points. Blatz the Shlitz Out of ‘Em took a commanding lead that lasted until the end of the game, where they faced off against Jean Shorts and the Old Fashioneds for the cash prize.

We also had a first this week: After wagering and reading the final question — someone shouted out the answer. I wasn’t sure if it was a quizzer or some unknowing bar patron coming out of the bathroom, but thankfully we had the other question to fall back on. Perhaps I’ll have to start reminding teams NOT shout out the answers to the final question. Sheesh. Anyway, it was still a blast as usual. Here’s The Old Fashioneds enjoying their win — and their dough.

And here are the Top 6 teams in our standings game:

The Old Fashioneds: 17
Jean Shorts: 13
Golden Snitch: 10
Beer Names: 8
I Just Quizzed in my Pants: 6
Gothic Castle: 6

Teams did pretty well answering questions about the PC Revolution and other topics, providing insight on hackers, Occupy Wall Street-ers and mega-grossing Pixar flicks. Teams were also excited to have the A to Z round for our second game this week, as we haven’t had that one in a while, and well, every answer has an automatic clue, which I think teams like.

Heading into the final question it was a close match, with Jean Shorts, It’s Like a Forest in My Pants and Make the Pregnant Lady Drink are hoping to win – though each team knew they’d already end up leaving with some cash. Two of the three teams got the final question correct, with the third, coming oh so close. But in the end it was Make the Pregnant Lady Drink who took home top prize, and no, the pregnant lady didn’t end up drinking. Here they are enjoying their victory:

Honorable mention to team MS Boss, who came in fourth, who came up with the most creative team name for a week focused on the PC Revolution.

I’ll see you next week – and I’ll also have an updating standings list to share.

A dozen teams signed up and it was a competitive bunch, with teams flexing their trivia muscles on questions about Bernie Madoff, Suze Orman and the presidents who appear on currency. Round two proved a little tougher, however, with many more blank stares, and the chance for some of the trailing teams to catch up, some of which did.

Going into the final question we had a tie for second, which made things extra exciting. To top it off, all three teams got the final question correct, which I’m not sure has happened since my reign as QuizMaster began at Big Time. Putting everything on the line by going all-in on the final question was Got Hops, whose big wager paid off, and in turn paying them off by taking down the pot and this week’s bragging rights. Here they are basking in the afterglow of their victory:

And here are the current team leaders in our standings game:

The Old Fashioneds: 12
Golden Snitch: 8
Jean Shorts: 8
Gothic Castle: 5
Turk-duckens: 5
French Broncos: 4
Got Hops: 4
Oods: 4
These Modern Socks: 4
Face Taint: 3
Frugal Fruitbats: 3
I Just Quizzed in my Pants: 3

In the end, it was The Golden Snitch, Team Ball and Chain and Oods who made the final question, though all answered it incorrectly. If only there were a Dolorean parked out front to take the teams back in time to choose the other category. But Oods came out on top, taking down the pot, seen here being spread among the team’s members:

Here are the top 10 teams with regards to standings this season. It’s been a little tricky to track teams that change their names each week, so if you think I’ve erred just bug me at next week’s quiz:

10: The Old Fashioneds
7: The Golden Snitch
7: Jean Shorts
5: Turk-Duckens
4: French Broncos
4: Gothic Castle
4: Oods
4: These Modern Socks
3: Face Taint
3: I Just Quizzed in My Pants

See you all next week!