If you’re stuck on today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, we’ve got the clues and solutions you need.
This guide serves as your coach for the game—offering hints and the final answers for all four categories. To avoid spoilers, stop reading here if you want to solve the puzzle without assistance. You can play the current puzzle by following the link provided in the game.
Difficulty Rating
Today’s puzzle (No. 597) is rated 3 out of 5.
Hints for May 13, 2026
Below is one word from each of the four categories to help you get started:
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Yellow: TRAIN
Green: ROYALS
Blue: MACK
Purple: PARADISE
Full Answers for May 13, 2026
Scroll down for the complete grouping of each category.
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Yellow – Hone one’s skills: EXERCISE, PRACTICE, TRAIN, WORK OUT
Green – Utah teams: JAZZ, MAMMOTH, ROYALS, UTES
Blue – Hall of Fame baseball managers: LEYLAND, MACK, STENGEL, WEAVER
Purple – Starts with a golf scoring term: ACELA, BOGEYMAN, EAGLE-EYED, PARADISE
About Connections: Sports Edition
This daily word game, the first of its kind from The Athletic, challenges players to identify hidden connections among 16 terms on the board. Your goal is to sort the words into four groups of four, each sharing a common theme—without making more than four mistakes. Every puzzle has a unique solution, so watch out for words that might fit into multiple categories.
Category examples include:
– Sports : Fan, Car, Bar, Radio
– U.S. Summer Olympians: Biles, Phelps, Ledecky, Lyles
Each group is color-coded as you solve: yellow (easiest), green (medium), blue (challenging), and purple (tricky).
Who creates the puzzles?
The puzzles are designed by Mark Cooper, a managing editor for college sports at The Athletic, who also previously served as the managing editor for breaking news. New puzzles go live at midnight in your time zone. Good luck, and feel free to share your results in the comments!
