Survivor contestants are dealt a lot of obstacles when they arrive on the beach. From finding food to building shelter, they're in survival moment from the moment they land. Couple those obstacles with making alliances among total strangers and looking for game advantages, and it'd be easy for anyone to struggle with the game's mentally taxing puzzle challenges.
However, some Survivor contestants have proven to be masters at puzzles, solving them handily to lead their tribes to victory or win individual immunity in moments crucial for their own safety in the game. Among the hundreds of castaways who have appeared on the show, these special Survivor players stand out as the best puzzle solvers.
Sandra Diaz-Twine (Pearl Islands, Heroes Vs. Villains, Game Changers, Winners At War)
Though two-time winner Sandra Diaz-Twine has gotten quite the reputation as a Survivor player who doesn't perform well in challenges, she has proven herself to be excellent at puzzles when tasked with leading her team to victory.
Sandra would be the first to say that the physical aspect of challenges isn't her strong suit, but during her four appearances on the show, she has consistently been a great puzzle solver when her team does have her compete. She continued to prove this most recently in Winners At War, when she worked with Sophie Clarke on the "Draggin the Dragon" puzzle that earned the Dakal tribe immunity.
Chrissy Hofbeck (Heroes Vs. Healers Vs. Hustlers)
Chrissy Hofbeck played one of the best Survivor games for someone who didn't end up winning, and her strength in solving puzzles was largely responsible for her success in season 35.
Not only was Chrissy a challenge beast for the entirety of the game — she won four crucial individual immunity challenges — she was especially skilled in solving puzzles, a strength that allowed her tribe to survive a lot of pre-merge tribal councils and get her far in the game. One of the puzzles she proved crucial in solving was in the "Crossroads" challenge when she helped the Levu tribe complete a confusing signpost puzzle after swimming out for the pieces.
Spencer Bledsoe (Cagayan, Second Chance)
Spencer Bledsoe was placed on the 'Brains' tribe in Survivor: Cagayan for a reason; he was an economics student at Northwestern University who had been a fan of the game since he was a little kid.
Spencer had studied the game so closely, in fact, that when he returned for a second chance in Cambodia, he had the puzzle for the immunity challenge, "Troubled Water" memorized after seeing in on Worlds Apart. This led him to quick victory and proved that he was not only skilled in solving puzzles but also incredibly strategic and an attentive viewer.
Eliza Orlins (Vanuatu, Micronesia)
Eliza Orlins was a pre-law student the first time she competed on Survivor and is now running for DA in Manhattan, New York. She's come a long way since playing the game at only 21 years old but has always demonstrated her smarts both in and out of the realm of Survivor.
Both times Eliza competed, she was frequently given puzzle duty in challenges. She was loud and boisterous and knew exactly how to visualize the final product before it was achieved. Additionally, in Fans vs. Favorites, she was the caller for the "Money Roll" challenge in which her tribemates were tasked with assembling a puzzle, something she excelled in by using her voice and smarts, despite her tribe ultimately losing the reward.
Zeke Smith (Millennials Vs. Gen X, Game Changers)
Zeke Smith was a game-changing Survivor player for a reason -- he was an excellent strategist and dominated any and all puzzles on both seasons 33 and 34.
Because of his puzzle-solving excellence in challenges and the puzzle of living with total strangers, Zeke was labeled as a threat in both of his appearances. However, he was able to use his skills to survive beyond the merge in his back-to-back seasons and win crucial challenges for his tribe by completing difficult 4x4 slide puzzles on his own.
Michele Fitzgerald (Kaoh Rong, Winners At War)
The first time Michele Fitzgerald played Survivor she was placed on the "Beauty" tribe, and everyone underestimated her intelligence until it was proved in moments that really counted and led to her victory over Aubry Bracco and Tai Trang.
Michele solved the same difficult three-tiered puzzle twice to win individual immunity in one of the final stages of the game, proving that she had been a huge threat the entire time that her fellow castaways had overlooked. At the end of both "Gimme Three Steps" challenges, Michele kicked down her tiered puzzle in celebration.
Christian Hubicki (David Vs. Goliath)
Christian Hubicki's profession when he played Survivor was a literal robotics scientist, proving that he was already one of the most intelligent castaways in addition to being one of the most likable Survivor players.
Christian was a huge Survivor fan before his stint on season 37, and he had even studied a lot of theories and strategy behind the many puzzles featured on the show over the past 20 years. This studying led to his success on the show and his ability to help his teammates. He was picked along with Lyrsa to complete the opening challenge of the season, proving his value immediately by quickly completing a difficult, 15-piece cube puzzle that earned his tribe a shelter-making kit.
Sophie Clarke (South Pacific, Winners At War)
When Sophie Clarke returned to compete on Survivor: Winners At War, she had a reputation for being a quiet but cunning strategist who flew under the radar with her brilliant strategy before taking out her biggest allies.
Her ability to make it far in the game and gain the trust of her competitors was largely due to her puzzle-solving skills. She famously completed the complicated spinning flowers puzzle from the "Lei of the Land" challenge in South Pacific, earning individual immunity and reserving her spot at the final tribal council.
Rob Mariano (All-Stars, Redemption Island)
"Boston Rob" Mariano was known as being a lot of things on Survivor: a villain, a husband to his tribemate-turned-wife Amber, a father to their children, and one of the smartest Survivor players ever.
Rob's puzzle-solving skills are often overlooked due to his intense strategy and prominent personality in all his seasons. However, solving puzzles led him to a lot of his success, as he was able to help his tribe avoid tribal council and excel on his own in individual challenges, such as the "Step on Up" immunity challenge where the puzzle pieces were the steps to reach immunity.
Laura Morett (Samoa, Blood Vs. Water)
Laura Morett's Survivor legacy is that she was voted out by her own daughter, but before that happened, she was a challenge beast, primarily excelling in any and all puzzles.
Her daughter Ciera's game-changing move on Survivor was integral to season 27's storyline, but Laura went on to continue to compete incredibly hard in Redemption Island challenges such as "Block It Out" where she had to solve a large Rubik's Cube-like block puzzle before her competitors. She also won the respect of her teammates in her original season, Samoa, due to her performance in puzzle competitions.