a weblog of wordplay by Eric Harshbarger
Scrabble Playing (Redux (Redux))
This past weekend I resumed my competitive Scrabble playing. This is the second time I have returned to the "circuit". My interest in competive Scrabble seems to wax and wane in about three and a half year phases, and about five weeks ago, I suddenly decided it would be fun to play the game again.So for five weeks I did a crash session of re-reviewing my 3-, 4-, 5-, 7-, and 8-letter words. I have not yet gotten to the probability depth that I have achieved in the past (when I knew pretty much all of the 7s and most of the 8s), but I did get about 9000 deep in both of those categories in about a month and a half, and that was good enough for me to not embarrass myself at a 20 game tournament in Alpharetta, Georgia.
During the weekend I managed to A) not drop in rating after a 3.5 year abscene and, B) actually climb up in rating above 1700 again (barely, had I lost or tied one more game, I would not have broken 1700).
I was a little rusty, yes, but I was pleased that I did not misdraw any tiles during play, I tracked the tiles of most of my games perfectly, and I was very sharp on all of the words that I had had time to review.
I averaged a score of 397.0 points per game. This is a bit low; I like to get about 420 per game. But I was a bit unlucky on blank tile pulls (only 18 blanks in 20 games), and my bingo average was not up to what I hope for. Here are the 38 bingoes I laid down during the 20 games:
UN(H)AIREd OVER(W)IdE MANGOES tHEO(R)ISE PE(R)ILUNE AIDLESS FISSIOn PEAVIES TAN(DO)ORIS aPATITE NITRIDS FER(N)INST NOOSERs ELYSiAN (W)AGERErS C(L)AVIERS THROA(T)ED OUT(L)INES DEN(T)ALIA GIA(R)DIAS ANEURIN ALFREDO WIGEONS ENTHRAL VARIANC(E) G(R)OUTIER PRURi(E)NT LEAFAGE EROTIzE(D) PLETHOR(A) NUTLETS ANTECED(E) cOWIEST P(A)GeANTS PLINThS REFUTES DRAGEES EGOISTSWhen things go well for me at a tournament, and I'm at my prime in studying, I usually get about 2.25 bingoes per game.
But, it was fun, my rating improved, I resumed old friendships, and I will definitely continue in this current "Scrabble phase" (who knows how long it may last?)
-- Eric
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