Survivor‘s 40th season is currently airing every Wednesday on CBS, boasting twenty previous winners duking it out in an unprecedented battle for $2 million in Winners at War. With twenty of the best players of all time, this season promises to deliver top-notch content, and this week’s episode featured two victories by the two left-handed contestants, Denise Stapley and Tyson Apostol.
First, Tyson cleverly deciphered the location of an idol nullifier from the clue presented on Edge, distracting his buddy Boston Rob by pretending to take a leak. Then at the episode’s second tribal council, Denise Stapley expertly blindsided Queen Sandra Diaz-Twine – with her very own idol! These triumphant lefties have been glorified through building a list of ten left-handed contestants, so today we incorporate ten more Survivor southpaws to include in part two! Please note – left-handed Survivor: Fiji contestant Dreamz Herd will be excluded from this list, considered to be the “honorable mention.”
10 Brett Clouser – Survivor: Samoa
Brett Clouser, who made it to day 38 of Survivor: Samoa, is another left-handed Survivor player, alongside his fellow Samoa castmate, Monica Padilla. Although Brett stayed in the shadows (accompanying the other nineteen players in season 19’s “The Russell Hantz Show”) most of the game, he did become a challenge beast by winning three individual immunities in a row.
The Los Angeles native T-shirt designer was only 23 years old when he played Survivor and his calm demeanor was no match to the cutthroat approaches of Samoa’s runner up and Survivor’s most notorious player of all time, Russell Hantz.
9 Monica Padilla – Survivor: Samoa And Survivor: Cambodia
As mentioned above, Monica Padilla played in Samoa with fellow leftie Brett Clouser. She returned for season 31’s second chance season, Survivor: Cambodia, eliminated just before the merge and just before reaching the opportunity to play with another leftie Cambodia cohort, Keith Nale.
An understated Survivor player, Monica also tends to stay in the shadows and gets looked over, which both help and hinder her performance in the game. Since left-handedness is more common in men than it is in women, it’s impressive to see this list split equally between the genders!
8 Missy Byrd – Survivor: Island Of The Idols
Last season, Survivor: Island of the Idols, was the show’s darkest and most controversial season yet, featuring shades of the “Me Too” movement when contestant Dan Spilo was forcibly removed from the game after multiple incidences of inappropriate touching, mainly involving fellow contestant Kelley Kim, who bravely spoke out on the matter, but also involved an incident involving a member of production!
Unfortunately, left-handed contestant Missy Byrd is best known for her crude involvement in the unfortunate incidents surrounding Dan, but her strategic prowess and insane athletic ability are positively worth noting. At just 24 years old, Missy has survived a brain tumor, played competitive college basketball, and is an Air Force veteran, demonstrating her ambitious nature.
7 Missy Payne – Survivor: San Juan Del Sur
That’s right, the two Survivor contestants named Missy both happen to be left-handed! Missy Payne, also known as Baylor’s mom or the “wicked stepmother” as mentioned in Reed’s brutal final tribal speech, was remembered for her staying in the game while still needing crutches, injuring her ankle in the last leg (no pun intended) of the game.
The Survivor: San Juan Del Sur southpaw competed alongside fellow leftie, Keith Nale. The left hand is represented by the Devil and wickedness in some religious folklore, which probably doesn’t sit well with Missy’s devout Christian faith!
6 Pete Yurkowski – Survivor: Philippines
Pete Yurkowski, who was voted out eighth in Survivor: Philippines, is best known for his romantic relationship with fellow Philippines castaway and polarizing fan-favorite, Abi-Maria Gomes. He famously planted a hidden immunity idol clue in RC Saint-Amour’s bag, which ultimately caused her feud with Pete’s lover, Abi-Maria.
Denise Stapley, winner of Survivor: Philippines, is also left-handed, one of three left-handed contestants to win the game. Catch Denise in Survivor: Winners at War, currently airing Wednesdays on CBS.
5 Michael “Mike” Snow – Survivor: Cagayan
Mike Snow’s closest ally throughout Survivor: Cagayan, Corinne Kaplan, also happens to be a leftie, which explains their instantaneous kinship and affectionate feelings for one another. Although Mike was eliminated soon after the merge, his sociability and even-keeled style of playing the game caused fans to have a positive reaction to the “Fans” tribe member.
When asked in the pre-season Survivor profile which Survivor contestant he’s most like, Mike answered Rob Cesternino and Cirie Fields, the latter being another southpaw!
4 Tarzan Smith – Survivor: One World
Tarzan Smith, known for his quirky antics and out-of-this-world viewpoints, seems to fit the bill of the eccentric leftie. As the only southpaw on the cast of Survivor: One World, Tarzan would often find himself as the odd one out, never quite sure how to blend and fit in.
According to Tarzan’s Survivor Fandom page, Jeff Probst says Tarzan has an “ego problem,” claiming he tried telling the medical team how to properly perform a medical examination.
3 Carolyn Rivera – Survivor: Worlds Apart
Carolyn Rivera, known affectionately as “Mama C,” is the only Worlds Apart cast member that’s left-handed. As the runner up, Carolyn did quite well for herself, bumping up the percentage of successful female southpaw Survivor players. Carolyn is sharp, cunning, and thinks outside the box, all typical traits of lefties.
Carolyn’s athletic prowess could partially be credited to her handedness, which helps in one-on-one sports such as tennis, baseball, and boxing. As mentioned in her CBS profile, Carolyn lists softball as her favorite sport, undoubtedly excelling as a batter.
2 Trish Hegarty – Survivor: Cagayan
Known for being Tony Vlacho’s right hand (wo)man, Trish Hegarty was on the straight path to earning herself a seat at the final tribal council of Survivor: Cagayan until her number one ally backstabbed and blindsided her at the final five. Tony was afraid he couldn’t win against Trish, so eliminating the socially threatening southpaw was his only option.
Trish’s emotionally monumental final tribal speech to Tony scolded him for swearing on his dead father’s grave, asking him: “was it worth it to you, for a million dollars, to sacrifice your own father to get you here… was that worth it to you?” Answering “yes” to Trish’s question potentially won Tony the million dollars, advertising his undying commitment to the game in front of the deciding jury. Trish played Cagayan with one other leftie, Brice Johnston (see below).
1 Brice Johnston – Survivor: Cagayan
Even though Brice Johnston was voted out early on day 8 of Survivor: Cagayan, his bubbly personality and can-do spirit hoisted him into the ranks of the Survivor greats, beloved by Rob Cesternino, host of Rob Has A Podcast, and good friends with Survivor: Ghost Island winner, Wendell Holland.
Rob Has A Podcast even gave Brice his very own show called Purple Pants Podcast, named after his moniker “The Purple Pants Badass” which stems from his Cagayan outfit choice that included a pair of ornate purple pants. Philadelphia natives Brice and Wendell joined Survivor superfans to play the ultra-realistic roleplaying version of the reality competition series called Survivor: Philadelphia, found on YouTube.
