Tournament-style 24 Challenge® events—featuring the same 24® game Single- and Double-Digit editions that are incorporated into First In Math Skill Sets—take place in schools and districts all around the country. Enjoy this story about a former champion.
STATEN ISLAND, NY—Matt DiRusso has been playing the 24® game since grade school, and won multiple New York City contests in 2001 and 2002. “You might think that 12 years is a long time for me to be bragging about adolescent victories, but it helps me explain why I am positive that this game shaped my math skills for life,” says DiRusso.
Matthew DiRusso receiving his diploma from the College of Staten Island, and as an 11-year old (inset).
DiRusso was his sixth-grade champion, the Public School 232 champion, and District 27 champion in NYC, going undefeated in his tournament bouts. “In the beginning I played several hours a day, then less and less as I mastered the game, because I could solve the cards so quickly.”
“My most memorable victory was a card I had never seen before. The last card on the table was a 3-point card and to this day I remember the solution, 72÷3=24. I remember how shocked my teacher’s face was when I shouted the solution just as she was going to flip the card and call it a stalemate.”
Some students accused him of memorizing the cards. “I didn't memorize the cards at all; what ended up happening was truly amazing. I began to see the product of the digits without even thinking, and would be able to blurt out an answer faster than my competitor almost every time.”
DiRusso still struggles to explain the exact mechanics. “If you take a card with the numbers 6 - 3 - 4 - 8 as an example, I automatically ‘see’ in my head the solution 8 x 3 = 24*. This approach is key to success at the 24 game, and I believe I adopted this operating system at a young age and was able to carry it forward and build on it.”
“I kept playing as the years went by, and as a result developed even more mental-math skills,” says DiRusso. “I am good at calculating and making estimates and my number-grouping skills help me easily recall phone numbers, account numbers, router passwords and so on.”
Today, DiRusso is an auditor. “I use my math skills every day at work. I am currently working toward my CPA and am considering law school, even though numbers may be where I belong.”
DiRusso says he has no doubt that he owes his outstanding math skills to the 24 game. “My father was good at math and set a wonderful example for me, but I am positive it was the 24 game that unleashed my potential. I am thankful I was introduced to this game because I believed it shaped my brain.”
There is, however, one problem. “I'm very passionate about the 24 game and I love to play, but I have no one left to share it with—friends don’t want to play with me any more because I always win!”
*(Here is the full solution: 8 ÷ 4 = 2, 2 + 6 = 8, 8 x 3 = 24. There are several others for this card, can you find them all?)
Click here for more information on the 24 Challenge® at 24game.com