There are a handful of bars around this city which offer trivia at some night of the week. The Brass Taps here on campus; Molly Blooms, McCabe’s and the Jimmy Jazz downtown; and Squirrel Tooth Alice’s on Scottsdale to name a few. There are even themes, whether it’s general, music, sports, entertainment, travel or sex. Something for everyone.

I’d like to think that I’m a pretty good guy as far as trivia is concerned and I’ve been on enough nights at enough bars to know a thing or two about how to win. So if you’re a trivia novice, or a veteran who never wins, read on. Hopefully I can impart some useful advice.

 

Balance

No matter what type of trivia you’re going to, it’s always good to have balance. If you only team up with like-minded people, when questions out of your comfort zone crop up, you will be up the creek. Start inviting new people. If you’re going to general trivia, look around your table and ask yourself, who is the sports person, who is the science person and who is the pop culture person? Can’t name them? Then go find them. Heck, if you don’t know anyone, look around the bar for someone you can steal. Someone sitting alone or someone who looks like they might hate the people they are with.

 

Pare it down

It’s important to have enough people to cover all your bases, but don’t have too many people. Two important reasons why. First, it’s more people to disagree with whoever thinks they have the answer, and arguments can end with the person who is wrong successfully convincing the person who is right. Second, if you win, it’s more people to split your winnings with. You want to maximize your prize per person ratio. It’s no good to win with a large team and not be winning enough prize to make it worthwhile for anyone.

 

Go with your gut

You’re going to get a lot of conflicting answers within the first 10 seconds of a question being asked or a song being played. Ignore them. I’ve learned many times that my gut reaction was the right reaction, and thinking “oh hey maybe that person is right and the answer is Zurich” always ends poorly. It’s never Zurich. Sometimes it is worthwhile to dwell on it and discuss it, but if you can answer a question with any amount of confidence within a heartbeat of hearing it, put some trust into that answer.

 

Get to know the host

Trivia hosts are humans. And a lot of them are lazy humans. You are going to hear repeats of questions and songs, or at the very least, get familiar with their themes or what their interests are. The more you go, the more you’ll learn about the person who is doling out the points and the prizes, and the more you can play that to your advantage. Some of the hosts will even post hints on their Facebook or Twitter feeds the day of. It may seem like a bit much, but it’s only a minute of your time, and it could lead to free beer, hats, candy or whatever else the bar your at is giving away that week.

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