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People · Australia

Samuel Michael Gaffney

3×3 · top 16.4% of 284,439 all-time · competing since September 2017 · 2017GAFF04

Samuel Michael Gaffney has been competing for 9 years. His best event is the 3×3: a personal-best single of 12.71, set at Queensland Open 2023, puts him in the top 16.4% of the 284,439 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 1,467th in Australia. Across 25 competitions since September 2017, he has put 336 official solves on the record across eleven events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 14% around a typical one; 65% of the 35,811 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 23.43 in September 2017 to 12.71, a 46% improvement. Samuel has entered 25 competitions, more competitions than 98% of everyone who has ever competed.

3×3
best event — top 16.4% of 284,439 all-time
12.71
signature single · Queensland Open 2023
336
official solves on the record
14%
solve-to-solve spread · wider than 65% of the field

Standing, event by event

vs everyone ever ranked
EventPB singlePB averageAll-time standingAustralia
3×312.7115.47
top 16.4%1,467 / 11,709
Megaminx1:16.531:22.00
top 19.6%235 / 1,277
5×51:31.771:49.09
top 28.7%386 / 1,356
4×454.661:05.78
top 30.3%798 / 3,051
Pyraminx7.8211.56
top 34.7%1,837 / 5,993
6×63:00.913:20.32
top 41.5%258 / 641
7×74:59.705:23.10
top 50.5%246 / 523
2×26.268.88
top 53.5%4,265 / 8,567
3×3 one-handed33.1447.03
top 53.7%1,255 / 2,659
Skewb10.6116.63
top 58.6%1,920 / 3,534
Clock20.32—
early days — 1 solve696 / 1,095

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

Brisbane Winter 2017: 23.43Brisbane Winter 2018: 17.88Northside Cube Day 2019: 16.63Koalafication Brisbane 2019: 16.02Gold Coast Spring 2019: 16.62Northside Cube Days 2020: 20.77Brisbane Is Back On 2021: 13.12Northside Duology Part 1 2022: 14.80Brisbane's 20 in 21 in 2022: 16.98Northside Spring Saturday 2022: 14.49Brisbane Summer 2023: 14.40Queensland Open 2023: 12.71QUT Qube Challenge Sunday 2023: 14.05Brisbane Summer 2024: 15.58Cubing in Corinda Sunday 2024: 14.79Queensland Open 2024: 14.72MarsdeNxN 2024: 13.78Brisbane Summer 2025: 14.6412.7123.4316 Sep 20171 Feb 2025

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.

  • Ming Dao Ting — met in 72 rounds, finished ahead 16 times
  • Hao Do — met in 69 rounds, finished ahead 5 times
  • Avery Graham — met in 63 rounds, never finished ahead

Next targets

  • A sub-12 3×3 single — 39,535 people have one; it is 0.71 away.
  • A sub-1:00 Megaminx single — 3,483 people have one; it is 16.53 away.

Targets move as he improves.