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The Middle Three
People → United States → Preston Nguyen

People · United States

Preston Nguyen

5×5 · top 7.4% of 40,792 all-time · competing since May 2009 · 2009NGUY05

Preston Nguyen has been competing for 17 years. His best event is the 5×5: a personal-best single of 1:03.42, set at CubingUSA Nationals 2017, puts him in the top 7.4% of the 40,792 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 587th in the United States. Until September 2010, no official 5×5 solve in the world had been that fast. Across 23 competitions since May 2009, he has put 820 official solves on the record across ten events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 11% around a typical one, steadier than 81% of the 35,811 competitors with ten or more counted rounds. His 3×3 best has come down from 25.59 in May 2009 to 10.09, a 61% improvement. Preston has entered 23 competitions, more competitions than 97% of everyone who has ever competed.

5×5
best event — top 7.4% of 40,792 all-time
1:03.42
signature single · CubingUSA Nationals 2017
820
official solves on the record
11%
solve-to-solve spread · steadier than 81% of the field

Standing, event by event

vs everyone ever ranked
EventPB singlePB averageAll-time standingUnited States
5×51:03.421:15.39
top 7.4%587 / 9,401
3×310.0912.54
top 7.7%4,256 / 59,724
6×61:54.521:59.49
top 8.9%312 / 4,196
4×438.0647.04
top 9.8%1,470 / 19,072
7×72:58.763:17.26
top 10.3%277 / 3,184
3×3 one-handed16.3719.43
top 11.1%1,453 / 15,683
Pyraminx5.5310.85
top 16.6%4,417 / 28,708
2×24.226.07
top 29.3%11,633 / 40,951
Megaminx1:39.581:50.84
top 34.4%2,438 / 7,841
Square-133.9740.09
top 56.7%3,749 / 6,743

Percentile against all competitors ever ranked in each event, a fairer measure than raw rank, because the pools differ by a factor of ten.

The line so far

Carnegie Mellon Spring 2009: 25.59Cumberland Valley Open 2009: 19.88Toronto Open Summer 2009: 23.69Thankscubing Day 2009: 15.59Carnegie Mellon Fall 2009: 19.11Carnegie Mellon Spring 2010: 15.68Ohio Open 2010: 16.08Toronto Open Summer 2010: 14.50United States National Championships 2011: 14.18Carnegie Mellon Spring 2012: 13.21United States National Championships 2012: 14.25Battle of Appalachia 2012: 10.09Carnegie Mellon Fall 2012: 11.46Carnegie Mellon Spring 2013: 12.06World Rubik's Cube Championship 2013: 11.66US Nationals 2015: 11.73US Nationals 2016: 11.81Michigan Cubing Club Gamma 2016: 10.28CubingUSA Nationals 2017: 13.23Incredible Pencil Mania 2018: 12.70CubingUSA Nationals 2018: 11.66Pittsburgh Open 2018: 10.25CubingUSA Nationals 2023: 11.3610.0925.592 May 200927 Jul 2023

Best single per competition, 3×3. Faster is higher — the axis is the right way up.

The story so far

Competitions

Reading this page: a single is one solve's time · an average is the middle three of five solves, best and worst discarded · a PB is a personal best · a DNF (did not finish) is an attempt with no valid result: a popped piece, an unsolved face, an over-limit memorisation · top X% compares against everyone ever ranked in that event, which is fairer than raw rank because event pools differ tenfold.

The circuit

The people whose scorecards keep turning up next to his.

Next targets

  • A sub-1:00 5×5 single — 2,252 people have one; it is 3.42 away.
  • A sub-10 3×3 single — 21,172 people have one; it is 0.09 away.

Targets move as he improves.