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#player1 Joshua_Sokol Joshua Sokol
#player2 Chris_Kulig Chris Kulig
>Joshua_Sokol: EIIMRUU -IUU +0 0
#note 30-40% chance of a bingo nexdt turn
>Chris_Kulig: IIII -IIII +0 0
>Joshua_Sokol: DEILMOR H4 MOLDIER +76 76
>Chris_Kulig: AALRSTZ 9C LAZAR.TS +70 70
>Joshua_Sokol: ACGGOTT 10D TAG +28 104
#note This position was really weird. My best equity was pretty obviously 10D GAG, because GT is probably worse than TT as a leave, but also because GAG scores 2 more points. The problem with that is reoverlaps. I have no reoverlapping potential with COTT. Leaving that hotspot open is very volatile, so I would want to be able to use it next turn if Chris cannot. TAG accomplished that, as my G reunderlaps ZA forming (ZA)G, and I can play GOT at the very least for 38. Even better is that 8A might be taken next turn but that won't block my setup. Hopefully he doesn't have a P or S, or worse, and X!
>Chris_Kulig: AGR 11E GAR +38 108
#note was easy to say "I should have played 8A GOAT or 4H (M)AGGOT last turn" when this came down, but he might have had something equally painful or worse if I hadn't taken TAG.
>Joshua_Sokol: BCEGIOT 5G B.OGIE +18 122
#note D4 ICEBO(AT) is a nice tupik. That scores more than anything else and also blocks the triple spot, definitely a better play than mine. Tough word to see, but I have to try harder to see things like this. I was very absorbed by the idea of playing GE(M)OTIC through the M in MOLDIER, but I didn't like its chances of being valid. GENOMIC is good, but not GEMOTIC*! Good thing I didn't try it.
I also realized soon after I hit my clock that I wanted to play this one spot more left. Oops. Transfixed again.
>Chris_Kulig: EKUY 4L YEUK +42 150
>Joshua_Sokol: BCDEHIT O1 HIC.ED +48 170
#note Having no spot for BITCHED, having made possibly two mistakes in a row, definitely one, I decide to play this plausible phony. I thought there was maybe a 10% chance at best that it was valid, but it was a tough challenge for Chris to make as this is a 6, not some 8 or 7 that he knows cold. I could also just play HIC(K) or 8J ITCHED but I missed the latter and preferred this a bunch to the former.
>Chris_Kulig: AEEJ 8A AJEE +42 192
>Joshua_Sokol: BIQSSTU 12A QUITS +62 232
#note I always draw well against Chris. BSQUITS!
>Chris_Kulig: AILNNSU 13A INN +23 215
>Joshua_Sokol: AAABESV 3K ABA +22 254
#note OK maybe not that well.
>Chris_Kulig: CLOP 2H CLOP +14 229
#note This move was odd. I felt like I was in good shape after this.
>Joshua_Sokol: ADEFNSV B10 FA..S +32 286
#note not a huge fan of getting rid of my S here, but I have to maintain my lead somehow. Alternatively I should havfe played 6F VE(L)D and keep FAUNS for next turn. Ready to play defense here.
>Chris_Kulig: ?EELORR J7 RE.OLvER +61 290
#note really wishing I had kept the S now, FAUNS was definitely a mistake. VE(L)D even allowed me to draw into FA(QI)RS A10 sometimes, although there was in fact only one R in the remaining pool.
>Joshua_Sokol: DEEINOV 8J .NVIED +42 328
>Chris_Kulig: DFINU 13G FIN.D +14 304
#note I think he tried to play I13 FUN here, forming UR*. Then switched to this.
>Joshua_Sokol: AEHIOTX N1 OX +41 369
#note FINED seemed like a very weird play. It was possible he was trying to protect the S hook on RESOLVER, but then he wouldn't have first wanted to play I13 FUN, since that partially blocks the hook. Also, creating a hotspot at H12 that goes straight down to the triple is not really a good idea if you're trying to go for a word hooking RESOLVER. He might have the blank here instead of the S, which would make sense since normally FIN(E)D makes no sense, unless he had no better way to play off tiles. He has a U, mind U.
If I had a play that totally blocked RESOLVERS and maintained my lead I would have gone for it, but I didn't.
I could play N1 OX here (better than AX or EX because of the leave), but then I would be leaving H12 open for business. It's really easy to score 30 points down there.
This is when it becomes a trapping game. I WANT Chris to play down to H15, so that I no longer have to deal with the threat of a bingo on that triple. S? being out there so late is definitely concerning to me. 12G EX makes a lot of sense immediately, for only 1 fewer point, but actually long-term I want to defend the board, and the best way to do that is to get Chris to defend it for me. If he leaves the spot open I should be able to draw into something next turn. MNNPRSVW all give me a play there, so next turn might still be another puzzle, but I think I made the right play. I'm still doing poorly against a bingo in the next two turns.
>Chris_Kulig: NOUW H12 W.NO +33 337
#note And he still has his U, which gives me a decent amount of leverage to prevent a bingo coming down in the next few turns, or even plain outrunning one. Hopefully he's even duplicated the U, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is, though, how far knowing only one of your opponents' letters can get you. It should definitely have an impact on your thought process.
>Joshua_Sokol: AEHIITT 11J .AITH +16 385
#note I'm not so far ahead that I'm winning every game Chris doesn't manage a bingo in. If I play something like 11J (L)ITHIA, I'd much rather be 10, even 5 points more ahead than where I'm at. That has great outrunning potential, even after a bingo, since it sets up places for me to score next turn. If Chris hits a bingo to the A at A8 or something, I still might be able to win after drawing a big play of my own down the O column or the N column. He would have 4 tiles left and it would be close. But if instead he has a big play now and scores 40-50, the game is tied and I have tempo in the endgame. After my play of LAITH, he can play 4 tiles and leave one in the bag, which is not good. If he has a W(H) play and scores 38-46, the game is almost tied and he might still have ?S on his rack. The reason LAITH might be better than LITHIA is simply because it's an obscure 5 that doesn't take an S. He might try to hook it or even challenge. Since I am worried about bad case scenarios, an edge like that, playing an obscure word, might make all the difference. Although, the extra draw at the blank or S is definitely a plus of playing 5 vs 4 tiles at this stage. Quackle finds (R)ATITE 14J for 15, going all out offensive and still blocking all the lanes I want to block. 11J (L)ITAI is championship player's choice, keeping the H for scoring, and accomplishing basically the same thing as LAITH. I am OK with my play given that he has a U, but would you play anything else? (R)ETIA 14J, (v)ITTAE 12J, all of these plays are interesting and worth analyzing further.
>Chris_Kulig: ORTUW N10 T.ROW +26 363
#note Chris held LAITH for a while, but didn't pull the trigger. Smartly, but he didn't like his chances. THROW has an anagram that scores 12 more points here, luckily Chris didn't know/see it here, but I did, and really hoped he would hit his clock ASAP!
>Joshua_Sokol: EEIOPST 15L PESO +39 424
#note The S! Lucky to draw my 3rd S of the game to counter both of his blanks. I somehow didn't consider POISE for 3 fewer. That allows me to threaten far more outs than PESO does. And PISO actually does best, keeping the double E for
>Chris_Kulig: ?EMNUUY 7M MY +22 385
#note M7 M(I)NU(T)Es is very cute, and is his best play by 6 points over this.
>Joshua_Sokol: EITV 6F VI.E +21 445
#note MY was actually worse than Quackle made it out to be. Chris missed M(I)NU(T)Es last turn, but he still has it next turn, and he's likely to miss it again. He is extremely low on time at this point, so it's best to slowplay him with this, even though it's technically a 12-point blunder.
>Chris_Kulig: ?ENUU 7D NU +6 391
#note out of time, he went over on this turn.
>Joshua_Sokol: T 11B .T +5 450
>Joshua_Sokol: (EU?) +4 454
#note final 454-381 due to overtime. At least we had a good game this time!
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