COVID-19 AND THE CHANUKKAH MATCH
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Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the annual Dreidel tournament had been organized and arranged with a whole different set of rules. The tournament would be made up of sixteen people broken into four groups. Each day one person who emerged as the winner from each group would advance to the next day. That means they would eliminate three competitors a day until there was only four people left to battle it out for the Championship and the spoils that went with the title.
Leo Gersh had made it through to the finals and was nervous. He found himself going to the bathroom more than ever. His main rival Hannah Resnick had also made it to the finals, and the truth was he had never won against her playing dreidel. They had played against each other in the past, and Leo knew she knew how to spin the dreidel with panache.
The other two players who made it through to the finals were Will Sponse and Frankie Levis. Leo was also very familiar with Will and Frankie. They were considered by his peers to be pros when it came to spinning. He could never remember watching them lose a game.
The site of the final elimination match was in a classroom. The floor was cleared and the windows were opened, even if it was December.
The rules were basic, you spun the dreidel on your turn. The highest letter was the Gimmel, the next was the Hay, followed by the Shian, and the lowest was the Noon.
In the first spin, it was Hannah versus Will. Her dreidel landed with the Gimmel and Will looked distraught as he ended up with a Shian. Next it was Leo versus Will. Leo watched in amazement as his dreidel spun and spun before landing on a Shian. Will twisted his dreidel and it landed on the Gimmel. Will was still alive in the tournament and Hannah was facing elimination.
The organizers called for a quick break and the players went to different corners for strategy talk and to have a drink.
When they returned it was Hannah versus Frankie. It was obvious from the way he was acting that Frankie could have cared less about being in the tournament, he was happy with the prize pack for just playing. He lost to Hannah and left the room. He had decided to withdraw from the tournament and left the area.
