…with Gary Moss

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Every year, for the last eight years, The Escondido Library, in Escondido, California has sponsored a fund raising tournament for their Literacy Project. How great is that!

Yesterday was the day for this year’s competition.

A few of us players from Orange County (about 30 miles away to the north) frequent the Escondido scrabble club, and we have supported the SCRABBLE-THON for the last three years.

Most players at the tournament are ‘kitchen-table’ players, without the skills and word power of club players. Many of the scrabble-thon players are high school age players. For the club players to compete in this kind of an event it is a bit like taking candy from baby. BUT, the special rules at the scrabble-thon are different enought from club and sanctioned tournament rules that the playing field is leveled a little.

This tournament is a double elimination tournament. If you lose two games you are out.

Each game is only 20 minutes long; at the end of 20 minutes the player with the highest score is the winner.

Two-minute sand timers limit the time of each individual turn. (Sand timers are not necessarily exact measurements of time.)

If and when a challenge occurs, a word judge uses the OSPD4 to adjudicate. The amount of time used to adjudicate is a part of the 20 minute game.

If a player is in the lead after 18 minutes and it becomes their turn, they can sit and allow the clock to run out of time, to secure a win.

Matchings and pairings are done according to some exotic formula (created by a committee), as compared to standard sanctioned formulae.

When all the dust settles, trophies are awarded to the top 2 Four-Person teams, 1st Place & 2nd Place, the best finish among the high school students, and the 1st Place & 2nd Place finish among all individual players. Team scores are determined by aggregate total points earned by the players on the team. Individual awards are based upon the number of total WINS.

Seasoned tournament players find many new challenges in adapting to a different style of play. Whereas, in sanctioned tournaments a player may come from behind and bingo out to win on the last play of the game, in this tournament a game may end with more than half of the tiles remaining in the bag and less than 11 total turns having been played. It is often too costly to challenge your opponent’s phoney and loose precious time off the clock. If you are to win, you must secure a large lead, early in the game and control the clock.

Appearantly our Orange County team understands the formula. We have competed three consecutive years and finished 1st, 2nd, and 1st respectively. Members from our team have also consistantly taken top honors. 2010 – Lynn Gunn – 1st Place; 2010 – Gwen Rea – 2nd Place; 2011 – Margie Gordon – 2nd Place; 2012 – Gretchen Cowan – 1st Place

For all photos, CLICK HERE.

Learning is a process. Every process can be represented as a jagged line. Two steps forward; one step back. A lot of learning is trial and error.

Becoming proficient at the game of competitive scrabble requires hundreds to thousands of hours of memorization of words. All that time is filled with learning and digesting information; all that time is filled with moments when some information drifts away, like the leaves falling from the trees in autumn. The loss of vital information is a natural process that coincides with infrequent use and gaps in reviewing.

Did you know that most championship-level scrabble players may still study and review the dictionary and word lists as much as 25 – 50 hours per week? That’s what it takes to stay at the top of the pack.

The marathon runner will run miles everyday to prepare and condition for race day. The professional boxer will spend many months in camp running, jumping rope, and sparring to develop strength for their 12 rounds in the ring.

Students spend 12 years in school followed by more years at college to prepare themselves for the world of work.

During each of these processes lessons are learned, mistakes are made and corrected; the eraser plays a major role.

Some newbie scrabble players are very hesitant to challenge a seasoned player, for fear of being wrong and losing a turn. ( The seasoned player slaps down the word ‘mbira’. The newbie doesn’t know the word and simply accepts the play. The seasoned player then plays ‘qiad’. The newbie accepts the play again.) In fact, ‘mbira’ is acceptable: a African musical instrument; ‘qiad’ is phoney.

When I began playing at clubs and tournaments I did a lot of challenging. I lost many turns when my opponents played strange, but legal, words. I believe that I learned many to most of those words because of my interaction with them.

Sometimes we learn to play the game of scrabble one word at a time.

What percentage of the words in the OWL2 does a club player come into contact with during the course of an entire year of club play?

During a typical game each player makes 17 plays. A typical club plays 4 games in a session and 52 times during a year. Assuming that we are considering both your plays and the plays of your opponents, and knowing that 20% or more of the words played are repeats from game to game, consider this.

17 x 2 (words in a single game) x 4 (games in a session) x 52 (sessions in a year) – 20% =

7,072 – 1,414 = 5,658 words

There are about 155,000 words in the OWL2.

The average player will see only 3.6 percent of the words from the OWL2 in a given year.

However, the frequent winners are those player who know much more than 4 % or 10% or 15%.

The average person on the street know only about 5% of the words in the dictionary. Seasoned scrabble players know 20%+ of the words in the OWL2.

Allow me to help you expand you word knowledge and word power. For as little as $1 a week, you can enroll in my Word List Of The Week Club. I will send you a weekly list as a PDF for you to download, save and/or print. CLICK HERE

Now and then a Beethoven comes along and effortlessly creates symphonies at the age 5.

More often it is the case that people, over time, develop a passion and a skill, attend school or an apprenticeship to obtain knowledge and develop techniques, and then wow the world with their creations.

Last week a lovely 90ish lady called me, after seeing one of my fliers about my 1st Sunday Scrabble Tournaments. She told me about her love for the game of scrabble and informed me that her Sundays were free and that she’d like to play in my tournaments.

“Great!” I replied. “How do you rate yourself as a scrabble player’” I enquired. “Better than aveerage,” was her response.

I went on to describe in detail what she could expect when playing in a competitive scrabble tournament. I asked if she had ever played at scrabble clubs in the past and learned that she nad not.

I asked if she had considered playing in the local scrabble club before attempting tournament play. She related that she had attend the local club on 2 ocassins. She told me that they insisted that she learn the 2-Letter-Word-List in order to improve her game. She then told me that learning that list was much more than she wanted to do.

I then invested 30 minutes of my time in an attemp to clue her into what competitive scrabble was all about. Much more than the words being played; not solely about the memory skills being exercised and strengthened; much more than the strategies being employed to shape cognative victories. When I finished my oration she thanked me for explaining all that.

The next Monday she introduced herself to me at the local scrabble club.

I don’t know whether Millie will ever become a formidable student and player of the game. But I do know that she might be, if she understands and employs the TRICKS that all scrabble mavens have learned and use when playing the game.

When you stop and think about it, you’ll know that all people at the top of their game have paid their dues by learning the specific TRICKS of their TRADES. Scrabble is no different.

I can coach you via my online class: (949) 510-1673

It is a NASPA sanctioned event. For all the details simply
CLICK HERE!
or
Call: (949) 510-1673

You won’t find this bit of wisdom found in any book of rules; you won’t find a best selling ‘HOW TO . . .’ book being so bold as to tell you this truth. But all you have to do is read Aesop’s fable about the boy who cried wolf and you will see that this phenomenon has been happening happily ever after.

Actually, liars start off by being believed: Richard Nixon; Bernie Madoff; Stephen Glass; Baron Munchhausen; and too many others to name here.

Then the liars get caught up in their lies: Richard Nixon; Bernie Madoff; Stephen Glass; Baron Munchhausen; and too many others to name here.

And then, even if and when they speak the truth, most people rarely accept their stories.

Liars create all kinds of confusion and frustration for fact-finders, pursuers-of-truth, and true-believers.

It is no different pertaining to playing scrabble. In fact, a savvy scrabble player can utilize the truth/lie factor in the game to their personal advantage. (Purists of the game may find this tactic distasteful or even consider it to be cheating.)

For those who look at scrabble as a game, with rules, where there is ultimately one winner and one loser, lieing (bluffing) is merely one of the piecees of the game.

The game offers remedies to protect players agains the liar (bluffer) and penalties to reward the player who catches the bluffer in the act.

The most common remedy is ‘the challenge’. If and when your opponent plays a word on the board that look suspicious to you, as the opponent you have the remedy of challenging the play. BUT, you must act in a timely fashion.
• say “HOLD” before your opponent pulls a tile from the tile bag to replenish their rack. (once hold is called, your clock continue to run off time while you decide whether or not you want to ‘challenge’.)
• if you decide that you do not want to challenge just tell your opponent and the game continues.
• if you choose to ‘CHALLENGE’, neutralize the clock and have the play adjudicated.
• if the play is acceptable, your opponent gets the points and you lose a turn.
• if the play is ‘NOT ACCEPTABLE’, your opponent retrieves the tiles from the board and it becomes your turn.
(One turn may not seem like very much, but it can usually shift momentum.)

Once a player wins one or two challenges the opponent usually becomes gun shy and doesn’t challenge again.

When a player has a reputation for playing ‘phoneys’ and then they develop an arsenal of strange looking words, they become a nightmare for their opponents. Which of these words would you challenge: ngwee ____; crwth ____; aalii ____; qwertys ____

It is the job of every scrabble play to play both offence and defence. You must learn which words are acceptable and which are phoneys. Would you challenge ‘sealion’?

In an earlier blog I pointed out that ‘sealion’ is a phoney. The real word in that set of letters is ‘anisole’.

Let me coach you to be the best scrabble player you can be. (949) 510-1673

I can help you and your local charity replicate a scrabble event that has proven to fill the coffers of a local charity in Escondido, California for their Literacy Project. For the last several years, I have been a member of a team of players from Orange County, California who have participated in the SCRABBLE-THON put together by The Escondido Library. More than 150 players pay entry fees and battle head-to-head in this scrabble-like competition. The event is a double-elimination tournament that bends the rules of standard, sanctioned, scrabble competitions. But that’s okay. The special rules are announced early on and the playing field is level. (In fact, in my opinion, novice players have a slight advantage in that the games are limited to 20 minutes. If one player takes an early lead in the game, that player can coast to victory.) But on this day, the primary purpose is all about raising funds for charity.

Above is a picture of my team for 2012. We will be playing in the Scrabble-Thon on Saturday, February 4th. We hope to win again, as we did a few years ago. Our team name reflects the hats that we will wear during the tournament. All of our players can be found regularly at CLUB #350 events in Lake Forest and Costa Mesa, California (CLICK HERE).

Would you like to raise funds for your school? church? synagogue?

Call or email me. Gary: (949) 510-1673 or jftsoi.moss@gmail.com

One of the mavens at the scrabble club added ‘pan’ to the front of ‘virus’, extending it to a TWS for a score of 51 points. The player has an extensive vocabulary and the word seemed plausible. I did not challenge but made a note for myself to check the word after the game had ended. Later on when I looked in the OWL2 I learned that ‘panvirus’ was a phoney. I had made a common mistake that occurs frequently when I am playing a much higher rated player. I become too trusting. I assume that my stronger opponent would never play a phoney. WRONG!

Most players do not play phoneys on purpose (except at the end of the game when they need the points to win).

When I am the stronger of two opposing players I sometimes stretch myself and try to recall some word that I think I know. That sometimes falls short and I end up playing a phoney.

Competitive scrabble players all know that they need to learn all the words and all the ‘non-words’ too. One common newbie error always seems to occur with the rack AEILNOS. The newbie will usually play ‘SEALION’, a mammal seen at zoos and aquariums. WRONG! Sea Lion is two words according to the OWL2. ‘sealion’ is a phoney. The seasoned players know this; and further they know that there is a legal word living in this set of letters: ANISOLE.

Some people become very frustrated when they make mistakes. Some of those people become very negative and think to themselves, “I can’t do this!” Some even abandon the game or their projects.

Other people take a more realistic approach. These people think to themselves, “ I need to do something more, to figure out why I make this kind of mistake.” These people learn from there mistakes and expand their knowledge and abilities.

It is always easiest to participate in life at a level where we make few to no mistakes. We can find a scrabble club weher we are the best. We can choose never to attempt the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzel and stick with the Tuesday puzzel in the Orange County Register. These kinds of choices are less stressful but offer little to no growth.

It is okay to fall down. Learn something from the experience and rejoin the game at a higher level.

Do you remember the bingo in this rack? AEILNOS _________________

Have you ever been in a place where you’ve overheard one person giving bad advice or misinformation to another person?

It happens frequently in regard to giving directions. I’ve had the misfortune of asking for directions from a random person when lost enroute to some destination, having never been there before. Ooops! The fellow meant turn right and wrongfully said turn left. Ooops! The lady said 2100 Main Street and the correct address was 21000 Main Street. These days we’ve become used to using GPS systems and expect them to always be correct. WRONG! Usually correct, not always.

Sometimes an error can be due to a typo. It is especially upsetting when such an error is part of a recipe. The correct recipe calls for 1 tsp Salt, the typo was 5 tsp Salt. Yuch!

And then there is the newbie scrabble player who shows up at club, full of enthusiasm. Wanting to understand and get things ‘right’, the newbie picks a friendly face in the crowd and uses him/her as their go to person.

Wrong!

I’ve been witness to too many friendly types giving out bad scrabble information and poor scrabble advice.

What is a GOOD scrabble source for a newbie? The director or CLICK HERE

There are no laws about providing bad advice. Commercials and politicians lie to us all the time. Infomercials frequently overstate the benefits of and the embellish the value of the products which they sell.

Just like you, not wanting to receive bad or misleading information, you and I owe it to others not to disseminate inaccurate information. Simply say “I don’t know” or “Why don’t you ask the director” or something helpful. Of course, when you do know the answer, provide it clearly.

What are the 9 correct steps to complete your turn when playing scrabble?

IV.G.1. How to Complete a Turn

a. After your opponent’s last play, record the cumulative score. (May be waived if bag is empty.)

b. Position your tiles on the board. You may remove or reposition tiles before starting opponent’s clock.

c. If playing a blank, designate it appropriately. (See Rule IV.F.)

d. Declare the score.

e. Start your opponent’s clock, ending your turn. If opponent’s clock has already been running, the turn ends after step d.

f. Record your cumulative score. (May be waived if bag is empty.) You may NOT pre-record this score.

g. Record your play, if desired.

h. Draw tiles to replenish your rack.

i. Track tiles, if desired.

Link to all the rules: CLICK HERE

Some force has been drawing me to become more philosophical these days. At times I think that I shouldn’t write these thoughts in this blog. But then again, I feel very comfortable, at home, and it seems to me that this is the perfect place for me to express these concepts.

I have come to believe that everything is connected, That includes you to me. That includes the present and the past and the future. Scrabble and farming and the arts are a part of this connection too.

The orange doesn’t appear to have the kinds of choices that we humans have. It’s genome has developed throughout time to be what we know as an orange today. And it has no control over how it will further evolve in the future. We on the otherhand are somewhat orangelike, but with a major twist. Our genome has developed in a direction that permits us the opportunity to steer, a little. We have a growing ability to shape our own destiny as well as that of the orange and others.

As often as an orange may pray, as frequently as an orange may wish, it can never become an apple or a banana, or a real boy. Meanwhile, a growing number of humans have been fiddling with and influencing the direction of evolution in order to cure disease, eliminate hunger, and build memory to, in turn, create more scrabble players.

There will always be some people who are less ambitious and willing to live their lives like an orange, steady and predictable. (There is nothing wrong with oranges. They are a striking color and offer us delicious juice.)

And there will always be other people who are gourmets. These people want to taste every kind of food, not just oranges. Gourmets are not limited to lovers of food. There are gourmets of language (scrabble players fall into this category). There are gourmets of medicine and space exploration and music and movies and architecture and history and futuristic possibilities.

And all the while that we and the oranges are simply being, we are strapped to our planet by gravity and whisking through the galaxies changing, in spite of ourselves.

If it could speak, an orange would say, “I can’t learn all of those words.”

You can be orangelike, if you choose, or you can opt to jump into the game of scrabble by expanding your word knowledge. Be all that you can be and before you know it you may be maven-like. CLICK HERE

I just hate it when I’m sharing scrabble information with newbies and one of them pipes up and declares, “I could never learn 101 2-Letter Words”. It makes me want to turn my back on that person and walk away. Their true response should be, ‘I have no interest in spending my time learning that information’.

We all not only have the capability to learn 101 2-Letter Words, we can do much more than that. Just think back to the time that you spent in school; how many different things did you have to remember every year? every week? every day? A: a lot

When we have to do things for ‘other peoples’ reasons’ those things often become chores and difficult for us because they are not of our own choosing.

When we take on a project of our own, consumed by our own interest and passion, there is usually little to no effort at all spending long hours working on that project. Time moves oh so fast when we are doing the things that we enjoy. Then, when doing CHORES a minute can often seem like an hour.

During the developmental years, some people become fooled by their parents and teachers. Those people are mostly the ‘pleasers‘ of the world who follow all the rules and follow every leader. The pleasers are extremely timid. The pleasers manifest a fear of striking out on their own. At times it may be a strick taskmaster who instills the fear. Some ‘pleasers’ learn their lessons so well that when they grow up they transform into carbon copies of their taskmasters and impose their will upon others.

The good news is that they are some ‘rebels‘ out there. I’m not talking about the people who burn cars after a World Series victory. I’m thinking about those people who march to the beat of a different drummer. (Many of them have been classified as sort of nerdy.) Most of them didn’t do well in traditional school settings. Many of them received poor grades, like Einstein. Many of them dropped out of school when they realized that school had little or nothing to teach them. Many of them went forward to do great things because they knew that they could.

You and I CAN TOO. If you lived your life as a ‘pleaser’ up until now that’s okay. You still have the rest of your life to follow your passions. Write your book; paint your mural; memorize the dictionary; join the Peace Corps; feed the hungry; create your legacy.

When I take on a student, coaching scrabble, I strongly suggest that they find a student of their own. Why? We all learn best by doing and teaching. Teaching others helps reinforce the subject matter within ourselves.

Whatever your passion, pass it forward. You can do most anything.

Check out the ultimate visionary. CLICK HERE