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#player1 Tim_O'Hara_Jr Tim O'Hara Jr
#player2 Josh_Greenway Josh Greenway
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: EMW 8G MEW +16 16
#note This is the first of 4 games on the last day of the tournament. Tim, myself and Linsey are all 12-4, but I'm behind on spread, so in order to win, I'm going to have to have a better record than both Tim & Linsey this morngng. I managed a win against Tim yesterday, so I'm thinking if I can draw well, I can get another. I'm super nervous of course, as I feel like even though I've played way more Scrabble than Tim has, that he knows more words than I do, and is a better player. In particular I'm worried about his prediliction for scoring a lot - in my previous win, he kept scoring and scoring, even when he didn't bingo. I'll definitely have to put up points to get the win.
>Josh_Greenway: AABIINP 9E PAIN +14 14
#note Quackle doesn't like my opening play here. For me, the priority was to break up the two pairs of As and Is. Quackle doesn't hate PAIN / P(E) / A(W) - but that leaves more hooks. I don't like holding the B either - but there was no way to play off ABI.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: AIIL 10C ILIA +14 30
>Josh_Greenway: ABCIIRT 11C TIC +28 42
#note Not a super friendly rack, but this play (which quackle lists as it's #2 play) is pretty defensive and scores 28 points. Plus I move one of 2 Is and the C. That B is still hanging around, though
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ENY D10 ..NEY +16 46
#note I don't know if this word is good. I probably held briefly, but there was no reason to challenge... again, since I know Tim knows more words than me, I can only really challenge if I'm sure, or would lose the game if I didn't challenge. The trouble comes if Tim knows that I know that he knows more words than I know.
>Josh_Greenway: AABHIRZ C13 BAH +29 71
#note Quackle wants me to go for BIZ / Z(IT) and I'm not sure why I don't. Maybe I didn't see it? Anyway, I finally move the B and score 29 points on what Quackle thinks is the 4th best play.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ET 15A ET. +18 64
>Josh_Greenway: ABILRTZ 9A BIZ +46 117
#note Quackle agrees this is the best play - I'm not sure why I missed it before - but this now gives me a 53 point lead. Sure, I drop a B into the triple row - but how badly can that hurt me?
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ?AENORT A6 REO.TAiN +77 141
#note This is how much it could hurt me.
>Josh_Greenway: AGLORTT 7D GLOAT +16 133
#note Now I'm down 24 and hold not the greatest rack. I play gloat to close the gap a bit (this only scores 16 so it doesn't do a great job of it), move some tiles (hoping to pick up some more ammunition) but the downside it it really does F all to open things up. I guess I'm still unsure of whether to openthings up or not in a game like this (relatively close) when I know an open board really only benefits me if I get lucky and draw good tiles. Quackle comes up with some cooler plays than this, but it doesn't hate this play (ranks as the 6th best play).
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: DEHY D4 HED.Y +34 175
#note I hold this play for a long time. This is what I mean by Tim scoring a lot in non bingo situations. It's a 32 point play, and I don't know if it's good. It's like a perfect storm for me - if I challenge and am wrong, I fall further behind. If I leave it and it's no good I'll hate myself. I run through -Y extensions for similar stuff... bushy... hilly... I really don't know. I do not challenge, and it's a good word. At least I didn't blow it.
>Josh_Greenway: GORRTVV 5B OV.R +14 147
#note I play OV(E)R (9th best play) instead of OV(E)RT (the best play). I know I absolutely have to move a V, and I need to clean up this rack. Quackle is torn on a few mid scoring plays and a 4 or 5 tiles exchange. Down 42, it seems really unlikely that I'll exchange. So I grab a few points and hope for a good draw from the bag.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: AIIOORS - +0 175
#note Tim exchanges 7 tiles.
>Josh_Greenway: GGIRTUV C3 GU. +19 166
#note This rack is a beast. I probably should of exchanged last turn. I grab 19 points (quackle agrees with the play, but is still thinking about an exchange) and hope for better tiles out of the bag. At least Tim exchanged all 7 last round, so he couldbe looking at a similarly bad rack.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ?AFFMRS J2 AFFiRMS +77 252
#note Tim has drawn a bingo on an exchange-7. I'm down by 85 and still have a clunky rack.
>Josh_Greenway: CEGIRTV 5I V.CE +16 182
#note quackle loves the play V(i)G (top play) but hates this play (not in top 20). It's all about the E. I should not be giving up an E (even though there are still 6 in the bag/on Tim's rack) as I'm going to need to bingo to have any chance of catching up.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: DEOSU M2 DOUSE +21 273
>Josh_Greenway: AAGIRTT F2 GAIT +17 199
#note quackle doesn't hate it, but I'm not opening a line (there are still a couple open). ART is decent leave though. Although at this point I'm definitely thinking that I'm going to lose the game. I'm probably also thinking I deserve to lose - although in retrospect, Tim has drawn SS?? which is always going to be tough to beat. There are still 2 S's in the bag, so maybe I can get lucky?
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: AEIINOQ L1 QI +24 297
>Josh_Greenway: AKLORTW 10H TOW +18 217
#note This does not qualify as a good play, as I'm potentially messing with one of the better lines remaining. The rack continues to be not grat. T(U)RK at L4 would have been a good play to find.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: AEEINOU 11J OI +9 306
>Josh_Greenway: AEKLORX G1 LOX +38 255
#note Quackle likes just OX here more than LOX - I guess AEKLR is a better leave than AEKR? Anyway, the X play puts me within 70. Still going to need to bingo...
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ADEENNU H1 AD +20 326
>Josh_Greenway: ADEIKRR 12H IRK +18 273
#note This is a bad play. It hurts my chance to bingo (though I'm good with the leave) by closing off part of the board, and there are so many better plays. For example, Quackle sees basically a 3 way tie for best move: DARKIE / DAIKER / DARKER all hook the K on the end of OI at L11, and create not only a bottom S hook, but a spot for Tim to play to the triple off the D and open a couple more lines. Instead, I play IRK. One reason I play IRK is it's th word I remember causing a commotion when my Dad played it when I was a kid - one of my first Scrabble memories. Heraing my Dad explain what the word meant, and hearing others say it wasn't a word, but then being wrong when some dictionary was consulted probably contributed to this moment now, where I'm running a game of Scrabble that was played 2000km from my home into a simulator to see all the mistakes I made. Life is a funny thing.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: JNU 13F JUN +13 339
>Josh_Greenway: ADEEERU F13 .EU +12 285
#note This is pretty much the best play I can make with 3 tiles left in the bag - I open a new lane in case Tim shuts down the one at N6. I'm still within a bingo of Tim - I'm really looking for the miracle outplay here. ADEER isn't a bad foundation for a bingo, is it?
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: ELPS 15E P.LSE +21 360
>Josh_Greenway: ADEEENR 14I DENAREE +73 358
>Josh_Greenway: ADEEENR -- -73 285
#note It's useless to think about minimizing spread here - I need a win against Tim, or else he takes a 2 game lead on me (based on spread). SO I just go for a word I'm sure is not a bingo - this never really works howver. And Tim challenges it off.
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: NORS 3E R.. +10 370
>Josh_Greenway: ADEEENR 14I NEARED +20 305
#note I might as well make sure I score 300...
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: NOS 15M SON +14 384
>Tim_O'Hara_Jr: (E) +2 386
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