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#player1 Jack_Overby Jack Overby
#player2 Thomas_Reinke Thomas Reinke
>Jack_Overby: ACEGRSS -G +0 0
#note For all the marbles. Let the games begin!
This seemed right, but looks like one of the SCAG 14-pointers is about 1% better.
>Thomas_Reinke: IIIII -IIIII +0 0
#note Copycat.
>Jack_Overby: ACEIRSS -S +0 0
#note Again, looks like making a dinky play beats an exchange. This is about 4% worse than 8H IS 4. Keeping ACERSS again would have been better. I guess I didn't want to go to the same well, and get denied, twice, so I went to the adjacent well, which has slightly murkier, more lead-filled water.
>Thomas_Reinke: DEIIIRS -II +0 0
#note Wow... a six-pass final?
>Jack_Overby: ACEIIRS 8H AI +4 4
#note Hello, Mr. I, good seeing you again. Not. Anyways, to avoid scoring -9 in the championshp game, which would have just killed my score per game average, I decided to play off a few letters this time. Of the non-exchanges, this is best.
>Thomas_Reinke: DEEEIRS 9F SEEDIER +68 68
#note Finally, we hit double digits.
>Jack_Overby: CEEILRS K6 CEL.RIES +70 74
#note Game = on
>Thomas_Reinke: DOVW 12H VOW.D +32 100
>Jack_Overby: ?AEFITV H12 .IVE +30 104
#note Yes, I saw FESTIVAl. I just didn't like it. I played VIVE over VIVA in the hopes of hitting a bingo at 15A. Apparently this is 3% worse than FESTIVAl (58 to 61), but it's the best non-bingo.
>Thomas_Reinke: ABINQ F4 NIQAB. +37 137
>Jack_Overby: ?AAFTWZ 7E F.TWA +24 128
#note 2nd to 5D WAIF 20, yet better than 13F WAIF 24.
>Thomas_Reinke: AGM G11 GAM +29 166
>Jack_Overby: ?AEELSZ 5B rEAL.ZES +82 210
#note Apparently 8K LAZES 48 is a bit better.
>Thomas_Reinke: OORTU 4H OUTRO +17 183
>Jack_Overby: ABNNNUX 13E UN..X +39 249
#note Almost just slapped down BOX for 40, but thankfully took a few extra seconds to find this. It's 8% better than the runner-up, D2 UNBAN 14.
>Thomas_Reinke: EO J11 O.E +24 207
>Jack_Overby: ABIJNNU D1 JNAN. +40 289
#note 3L JIN 29 is best, which makes sense, as I have the N, while only 4 hooking tiles remain (KNS?).
>Thomas_Reinke: ?ACLORT 15A ChLORAT. +80 287
#note Just when I thought I was pulling ahead...
>Jack_Overby: BHIIRSU 3L HUB +21 310
#note I liked setting up the case S, but apparently this sucks, lagging almost 7% behind G5 ZIT 23. BHIRSU is deceptively strong; it hits 7s with B/E/F/N/T, and even bingos through the R in column B with A, E or F.
>Thomas_Reinke: LOTY 1D .OLTY +45 332
#note Remember back when I called UNqINSED the second lowest moment in my tourney? No? Well, I did. Anyways, here's rock bottom:
>Jack_Overby: FIIKPRS O1 FISK +57 367
>Jack_Overby: FIIKPRS -- -57 310
#note My all-time worst Scrabble moment. This here is titled "How to reduce your odds of winning a tournament by over 40% with just one phoney". C3 KIEF 36 is 64%. O1 FISK 0 is 23%. Thomas held for about a minute, giving me time to draw replacement tiles (EIRU), before rightfully slapping it off. As the computer screen flashed red, I uttered an actual 4-letter word starting with F and ending in K. (Ouch^ouch)! That's ouch to the power of ouch, factorial.
>Thomas_Reinke: AY 2N AY +18 350
>Jack_Overby: FIIKPRS 1L KIF +23 333
#note Even this sucks, lagging 3% behind the same C3 KIEF as before (28 to 31). Whereas a mere minute ago, I had solid control of the game, I'll need a bequest from the Gods of Entropy to save me now.
>Thomas_Reinke: DOR C3 DO.R +18 368
#note Smart to partially block that E, though that still leaves me potential for a B5 bingo, should I draw an E.
>Jack_Overby: EGIMPRS 5L GIMP +16 349
#note A nice draw, and I'm back in the game. This sims best, and was, in my opinion, a sharp play, opening up two reasonable bingo lines, B5 and O5, one of which I hope to hit. Will I?
>Thomas_Reinke: EEP O5 .EEP +24 392
#note Nope. Missed 'em both. Oh well...
>Jack_Overby: EGIIRST B8 TIGERIS. +74 423
#note Guess I'll have to settle for this.
>Thomas_Reinke: AHNNOTU - +0 392
#note Thomas held. He had an unusual dilemma here. He was about 78 points ahead of Charles on spread, and had overheard that his bro had won his last game over Doug. He had a feeling that, by challenging rather than playing something like A7 NAH, the subsequent loss in spread would drop him to 3rd. In the end, with the heart of a lion and the spirit of a champion, he decided to make a desperation challenge, in an effort to snatch the Cup away from me. Alas, TIGERISH is indeed good, and he lost his turn.
>Jack_Overby: D J11 ...D +12 435
#note And I played out, clinching the tournament. Thomas' spread ended at +435, next to... +437 for brother Charles. Cost him 2nd, indeed, his challenge did. Ah well. In it to win it, right?
>Jack_Overby: (AHNNOTU) +20 455
#note And thus was the table ran. From the absolute low of FISK* several minutes before, I had achieved glory at last! The thrill of laying down TIGERISh is one I will not soon forget. Thanks to Thomas for being a good sport afterwards, despite what must have been quite a rough loss from his end. But hey, at least he didn't have to lug that big 30-point Arden Trophy around the subways of downtown Chicago, unlike some of us.
All in all, the tourney was quite a ride. Not half bad for a 1600 player!
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