Crossword Genius

Most noble of connections garnered by elite regularly (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

loftiest

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'most noble' is the definition.
('lofty' can be similar in meaning to 'noble')

'connections garnered by elite regularly' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'connections' could be 'ties' (tie is a kind of connection) and 'ties' is present in the answer.
'by' could be 'of' and 'of' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

'of' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for loftiest that I've seen before include "Highest" , "haughtier than anyone?" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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