Asheville SCRABBLE School

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1 Asheville SCRABBLE School
A course adapted by Jacob Cohen from Everything Scrabble, 3rd. ed. by Joe Edley and John D. Williams, Jr.

2

3 COURSE DESCRIPTION Scoring “Hot Spots” on the board
Move tiles on your rack - find letter combos Learn which tiles to play, which to hold Balance your rack (ideal 4 cons. / 3 vowels) Find “bingos” using all 7 tiles- 50 extra pts Strategy- offense & defense Asheville Scrabble Club (Sun 2-6, Atlanta Bread) Club website- tutorials, study aids, supplies

4 INSTRUCTOR JACOB COHEN
Retired teacher and principal Co-Director of the Asheville Scrabble Club Playing competitively since 2009 Webmeister & statistician of club’s website

5 RECOMMENDED BOOKS Everything Scrabble, 3rd edition by Joe Edley and John D. Williams Jr. ISBN: $16.99 (this course is adapted from this excellent reference) Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players ISBN: $16.99

6 GLOSSARY Alphagram- alphabetic arrangement of letters;
Ex: AIJNORT is alphagram for JANITOR Anagram- word spelled with exact same letters as another word. Ex: KITCHEN, THICKEN Bingo- use all 7 letters on rack; score 50 extra points Bingo-friendly tiles- ERS?, AL?, AERST, CANISTER Blank- indicated as ?, most valuable tile-versatile Block- play word to stop opponent’s possible big score “Challenge!”- announce to check if word is acceptable Closed Board- few or no places to play bingos/hi scores Dump- low-scoring play; gets rid of poor letter combo Endgame- strategic play when fewer than 8 tiles in bag Exchange- use turn to trade in 1-7 tiles; need 7 in bag

7 GLOSSARY Extension- add 2+ letters to a word on board;
(often to TWS); Ex: CON-QUEST, QUEST-ION Fishing- playing off or trading 1-2 tiles looking for bingo “Hold!”- announced when considering a challenge Hook- add letter to front/back of word to make new one; Ex: HARD + Y = HARDY; C + HARD = CHARD Hot Spots- TLS-TLS, DLS-DWS, TLS-DWS, TWS-DLS, DWS-DWS, TWS-TWS; all places for high scores Leave- group of tiles left on rack after play, before draw Open Board- many places to play bingos/hi score plays OSPD- Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, 4th ed. Parallel Play- Ex: M A R L A T E (LATE, MA, AT, & RE all score)

8 GLOSSARY Phoney- unacceptable word (not found in OSPD); may
stay on board if unchallenged; some played deliberately (like bluffing in poker) Power Tiles- ten most valuable- 2 ?s, 4 Ss, J, Q, X, Z Rack Balancing- leaving letters on rack that will help score well on next turn; ideal = 4 cons / 3 vowels Stems- 6 & 7-letter bingo-friendly combos to add 1 letter Ex: SATIRE (add 1 letter to make 70 words); NASTIER (add 1 letter to make 69 words) TWL- Tournament and Club Word List- list of acceptable words (all OSPD, plus about 200 offensive words); not used in schools or by most living room players; no definitions provided

9 Finding “Hot Spots” on the Board
As a novice tournament player, I once asked an expert, “What’s the difference between a novice and an expert?” “The novice finds words on his rack to play on the board.” “The expert finds the best spots on the board, and, then, finds the words on her rack to fit.” “Hot Spots” are what experts find and play.

10 Premium Squares DLS light blue TLS dark blue DWS light red
61 of 225 squares DLS light blue TLS dark blue DWS light red TWS dark red design symmetry by architect/creator, Alfred Butts

11 Premium Squares “Hot Spots”
Parallel Play TLS-TLS DLS-DWS TLS-DWS DLS-TWS DWS-DWS TWS-TWS

12 Parallel Play Look at 8L Your rack includes DEFN
(intersection of row 8 and column L- a Double Letter Score) Your rack includes DEFN

13 Parallel Play play FEND at 8L to score 72 points

14 TLS-TLS columns B, F, J, N rows 2, 6, 10, 14 “Hot Spots” play high
dark blue-dark blue columns B, F, J, N rows 2, 6, 10, 14 “Hot Spots” play high point tiles F, H, J, K, Q, V, W ,X, Y, Z also B, C, M, P

15 TLS-TLS BEBOP 23 pts HONED 21 pts WELCH 29 pts PRETZEL 44 pts
dark blue-dark blue BEBOP 23 pts HONED 21 pts WELCH 29 pts PRETZEL 44 pts

16 DLS-DWS columns C, D, L, M rows 3, 4, 12, 13 2 DLS-DWS possible on
light blue-light red columns C, D, L, M rows 3, 4, 12, 13 2 DLS-DWS possible on same columns and rows

17 DLS-DWS light blue-light red YOWIE 46 pts GRAPH 30 pts EXCITE 51pts

18 2 DLS-DWS NOURISH 30 pts FREEDOM 36 pts JOURNAL 46 pts
light blue-light red NOURISH 30 pts FREEDOM 36 pts JOURNAL 46 pts

19 TLS-DWS columns B, N rows 2, 14 30+ points with F, H, V, W, Y
dark blue-light red columns B, N rows 2, 14 30+ points with F, H, V, W, Y 70+ points with with Q, Z

20 TLS-DWS dark blue-light red BEADY 38 pts PORCH 40 pts KLUTZ 56 pts

21 DLS-TWS columns A, O rows 1, 15 and from TWS at H1, 8A, to TWS at
light blue-dark red columns A, O rows 1, 15 and from TWS at H1, 8A, to TWS at H15, 8O

22 DLS-TWS MARKS 42 pts BUSHEL 45 pts HALF / AH 51 pts QUERY 81 pts
light blue-dark red MARKS 42 pts BUSHEL 45 pts HALF / AH 51 pts QUERY 81 pts

23 DWS-DWS Horizontally 5E to 5K 11E to 11K Vertically E5 to K5
light red-light red Horizontally 5E to 5K 11E to 11K Vertically E5 to K5 E11 to K11 4 x value of tiles!

24 DWS-DWS Can occur as early as 2nd play of game Be careful how you
light red-light red Can occur as early as 2nd play of game Be careful how you place your first word, even if it’s a bingo

25 DWS-DWS Vertically E5 to E11 QUEENLY 76 pts K5 to K11 PETTING 40 pts
light red-light red Vertically E5 to E11 QUEENLY 76 pts K5 to K11 PETTING 40 pts E & T are easy to play thru

26 DWS-DWS Be alert to how an S can be added to your opening play to take
light red-light red Be alert to how an S can be added to your opening play to take advantage of “Hot Spot” box

27 DWS-DWS Horizontally 5E to 5K HOWLING 56 pts 11E to 11K PEASANT 96 pts
light red-light red Horizontally 5E to 5K HOWLING 56 pts 11E to 11K PEASANT 96 pts

28 TWS-TWS columns A , O rows 1, 15 Worth 9 x value of tiles! Typically
dark red-dark red columns A , O rows 1, 15 Worth 9 x value of tiles! Typically pts (includes 50 pt bingo bonus)

29 TWS-TWS board is set up for in 2 locations A8-A15 O1-O8
dark red-dark red board is set up for in 2 locations A8-A15 O1-O8

30 TWS-TWS RELATION 132 pts ADEQUATE 302 pts! Q is on DLS, then 9 x,
dark red-dark red RELATION 132 pts ADEQUATE 302 pts! Q is on DLS, then 9 x, + 50 pts for bingo

31 MOVE TILES ON YOUR RACK Common 2-Letter Combos for most letters
B: BL, BR, MB, RB C: CH, CK, CL, CR, CT, NC, RC, SC D: DG, DL, DR, LD, ND, RD F: FL, FR, LF, RF G: GH, GL, GN, GR, DG, LG, NG, RG H: CH, GH, PH, SH, TH, WH K: KL, KN, CK, LK, NK, RK, SK L: LD, LF, LG, LK, LM, LP, LS, LT, LV BL, CL, DL, FL, GL, KL, PL, RL, SL, TL, WL M: MB, MP, LM, RM, SM N: NC, ND, NG, NK, NS, NT, GN, KN, RN, SN, WN

32 MOVE TILES ON YOUR RACK P: PH, PL, PR, PT, LP, MP, RP, SP
S: SC, SH, SK, SL, SM, SN, SP, ST, SW, LS, NS, PS, RS T: TH, TL, TR, TW, CT, FT, LT, NT, RT, ST V: LV, RV W: WH, WL, WN, WR, SW, TW Common 3-Letter Combos CHR, CKL, GHT, LCH, LTH, NCH, NDL, NGL, NKL, NTH, RCH, RDL, RGL, RST, RTH, SCH, SCR, SHR, SPL, SPR, STR, TCH, THR

33 MOVE TILES ON YOUR RACK Common Prefixes Common Suffixes
ANTE-, ANTI-, AUTO-, BE-, BIO-, BY-, CO-, COM-, CON-, DE-, DIS-, DOWN-, DYS-, EM-, EN-, EPI-, EX-, FOR-, FORE-, IM-, IN-, INTER-, ISO, MEGA-, MID-, MIS-, MONO-, NEO-, NON-, OB-, OFF-, ON-, OUT-, OVER-, PAR-, PER-, POST-, PRE-, PRO-, RE-, SEMI-, SIDE-, SUB-, SUPER-, TELE-, TOP-, TRI-, UN-, UNDER-, UP- Common Suffixes -ABLE, -AGE, -AL, -ALLY, -ANCE, -ARY, -ASE, -DOM, -ENCE, -FUL, -IBLE, -IDE, -IER, -IES, -IEST, -IFY, -ILE, -INE, -ION, -IOUS, -ISE, -ISH, -ISM, -IST, -ITE, -ITIC, -ITY, -IVE, -IZE, -LESS, -LIKE, -LING, -LY, -NESS, -OR, -OSE, -OUS, -ROOM, -SHIP, -SIDE, -SION, -TION

34 TILE ORDER OF USEFULNESS
?(Blank) S E X Z R A H N C D M T I K L P O Y J F B G W U V Q This order shows that blanks are the most useful and the Q is the least useful. Plan your plays and trades accordingly. Hold on to most useful tiles to build bingos. Play off or trade the least useful tiles.

35 UNBALANCED RACK anagrams to: CAN EARN BAD LUCK
RACK MANAGEMENT UNBALANCED RACK anagrams to: CAN EARN BAD LUCK

36 RACK MANAGEMENT collective wisdom from millions of competitive games
Don’t duplicate any letter on rack, except E & S Keep ~ # vowels/cons in leave; ideal rack- 4c/3v Hold as few high-point tiles as possible in leave Learn and use vowel dumps to improve rack Consider exchange if bingo unlikely in 3-4 turns

37 BINGOS 50 extra pts- use all 7 tiles to make 7+ letter words
Key to high scores- experts play 2-3 per game Look for common beginnings- AB, AD, AIR, ANTI, BE, BI, COM, CON, DE, DIS, EM, EN EX, FORE, HAND, HEAD, IM, IN, ISO, MID, MIS, NON, OUT, OVER, POST, PRE, RE, SEA, SUB, TRI, UN, UP

38 BINGOS Look for common endings- ABLE, AGE, AL, ANCE, ANE, ANT,
ARY, ATE, DOM, EAU, ED, EE, ENCE, ENT, ER, EST, FISH, FORM, FUL, GHT, GRAM, HOOD, IA, IAL, IBLE, IC, ICAL, IER, IES, IEST, IFY, ILE, ILY, INE, ING, ION, ISE, ISH, ISM, IST, ITE, ITY, IUM, IVE, IZE, LAND, LESS, LET, LIKE, LOGY, LY, MAN, MEN, MENT, NESS, OID, OSE, OUGH, OUS, OUT, SHIP, SES, SIS, SOME, TURE, WARD, WEED, WISE, WOOD, WORM

39 BINGOS Study high-probability bingo stems
Mnemonics to remember letters to add to stem Club website Bingoes page- excellent resource ASC Co-Director Bill Snoddy’s Bingo Slide Shows

40 STRATEGY Offense Balance your rack; ideal = 4 consonants / 3 vowels
Letters in CANISTER are most bingo-friendly Consider your “leave” as well as your play Premium square combos for big scores Parallel plays for maximum scores Use S and blank preciously; they are most versatile Find your best play, then find a better one Find alternate place to play in case you get blocked Play words with hooks for future plays High probability bingo stems and mnemonics Open up bingo lanes especially when behind Consider playing phoneys End game considerations

41 PHONEYS AND WHEN TO PLAY THEM
Not uncommon in club and tournament play Ethical? comparable to bluffing in poker When you have little to lose- way behind in game When you want to test opponent’s word knowledge When opponent just lost a challenge- gun shy When you have many good plays- risk higher score When you want to improve your leave When you want higher point spread- tournaments Caution- player may challenge own phoney if you, mistakenly, add an S to the phoney to make a new word

42 OPEN BOARD many scoring options S front hook QUIRE
& play vertical word thru TWS play from TWS H1-4 if you have IN, hook to G row 13, build bingo high pt tile at 14J-N ex: JIBED 62 pts DWS-DWS thru E 5G 15 L-O, FLEX 54 pts

43 CLOSED BOARD few scoring options any rows/columns
open for large scores? bingo lane column I if have S for BRINGS lane H1-8 for an ING bingo, opens rows 1-5 TIME or TIMED at F7 for pts Ahead?- keep it closed Behind?- open it up

44 BOARD SUMMARY far ahead? (70+ pts)- close down board, make plays even for fewer pts if you can block opponent far behind? (70+ pts)- keep board open to bingo, and high plays with J, Q, X, Z you and opponent about even? (within about 30 pts) consider openings you give opponent versus your rack leave keep board open if you have bingo-friendly tiles keep board more closed if you have poor letters

45 STRATEGY Defense Avoid placing vowels next to premium squares
Answer opponent’s big play with equal scoring “Shut down” board when ahead Block plays with C and V (no 2-letter words with them) Shut down bingo lanes Avoid opening up “Hot Spots” Consider + & - of challenging a phoney High probability bingo stems and mnemonics- helps you recognize rack and its bingoes or not Consider when to exchange tiles Consider tracking which tiles have been played Watch opponent carefully for behavioral tipoffs End game considerations

46 Club Play & Tournaments
cross-section of America friendship mental challenge fun with words thrill of competition get better with practice

47 WHAT TO EXPECT AT ASHEVILLE SCRABBLE CLUB
Equipment provided: boards, tiles, racks, clocks, score sheets Clocks give = time for both players; quickly becomes automatic We help you with competitive play so you’ll keep playing with us Cheat Sheet, no clock penalty first 3 times; continues until 1st club win Always free challenges vs. players rated 300+ points higher Zyzzyva Word Judge used to decide if a word is acceptable Knowing word’s definition unnecessary; but, helpful to some No dues first 6 months; $20 year thereafter, or $2 per meeting

48 ASHEVILLE SCRABBLE CLUB WEBSITE
Home – News Where We Play Club Players New to our Club? Stats Bingoes Tournaments Study Aids Resources Questions - Contact

49 Collective wisdom from millions of competitive games:
Review Collective wisdom from millions of competitive games: 2s, 3s, & 4s = 75% of plays in competitive Scrabble “Hot spots” = maximum scoring; look for them Instead of rack to board, think board to rack; fit words Play off clunky tiles; keep bingo-friendly tiles-CANISTER Balance your rack (ideally 4 consonants, 3 vowels) Consider your leave as well as your play Blank and S most versatile; use preciously Avoid placing vowels adjacent to premium squares Look for words with front or back hooks = bingo lanes Shut down board when ahead; open up when behind