September 2011: Vol. 3, No. 9 - North American Scrabble Players ...

N A 

S 

P 

A 

NASPA Bulletin 

The monthly news bulletin of the North American SCRABBLE ® Players Association 

September 2011: Vol. 3, No. 9 

Humans Play Quackle 

by Chris Cree 

This has been a very busy month for 

NASPA with some exciting developments to 

announce. 

First, I had the opportunity to meet with 

the head of marketing at MENSA. We have 

discussed and are presently ironing out an 

agreement for reciprocal member benefits 

between our two organizations. In addition, 

we are looking into a reciprocal advertising 

agreement. Both entities will be able to reach 

a market that they might not have been able 

to before. 

Second, we are having our first teleconference 

with the new Advisory Board this evening. 

This will be an introduction of the new 

members — Kate Fukawa-Connelly (Kittery, 

ME), Siri Tillekeratne (Calgary, AB), 

Jan Cardia (Wilmington, DE) and Shelley 

Ubeika (Mississauga, ON) as well as some 

discussion of recent issues and issues going 

forward. John Chew and I are excited to be 

working with these fine people. 

I have just returned from playing in the 

Toronto International SCRABBLE Open 

(TISO), a Collins event. On hand were defending 

NSC and former World Champion 

Nigel Richards (MYS), Leslie Charles (TTO) 

and Amy Byrne (GBR) from Scotland and 

former Canadian, National and World 

Champion Adam Logan (Ottawa, ON), in 

addition to some of the great names in North 

American Collins play – Nathan Benedict 

(Tucson, AZ), Geoff Thevenot (Austin, TX), 

Sam Kantimathi (Sacramento, CA), Robert 

Linn (Potomac, MD) and Dielle Saldanha 

(Richmond, BC) among others. There 

was also a five-year-old computer program 

named Quackle developed by NASPA’s John 

O’Laughlin (Cambridge, MA) and Jason 

Katz-Brown (JPN) playing in its first rated 

event. 

The format was an interesting one. A 21- 

game round robin where all players got to 

play Quackle, followed by five positioning 

rounds. After those 26 rounds, the humans 

divided up $5,350 in cash prizes, and their 

leader advanced to face Quackle in a $500 

best-of-four (spread tiebreaker) challenge 

match, projected in a neighboring theatre for 

the also-rans and curious spectators. 

These five players beat the computer: first 

Shan Abbasi (Mississauga, ON), then Jeremy 

Hildebrand (Ottawa, ON), Adam Logan, 

Nathan Benedict and finally Nigel Richards. 

Because the computer was paired with op- 

World SCRABBLE Champion Adam Logan (Ottawa, ON) playing in the final rounds against 

first-time computer player Quackle at the 2011 Toronto Open. Photo: John Chew 

ponents in increasing order of strength, suspense 

grew early on to see who would be the 

first to defeat the computer player, then to 

see how astronomical its initial rating would 

be (2232, dropping to 2224 after the final 

rounds). 

Adam Logan topped Nigel Richards in 

round 26 to win the TISO, the $3,000 top 

prize and land a seat in the challenge match. 

Geoff Thevenot finished third. 

In the challenge match, Quackle doubleblanked 

Adam in the first two games and 

built a hefty 2–0 +236 lead. In round 3, 

Adam drew both of the blanks and put a major 

hurt on “the duck”. In the deciding round 

4, a split blank game, Adam came out on top, 

but by 28 too few points of point spread. So, 

Quackle was determined to be the winner. 

Some interesting notes were that with 

three tiles left in the bag in game 4, Adam 

smartly played 2. However, in a 1 out of 3 

scenario, he drew a J and a D and left a critical 

A for Quackle. It appeared that Adam had 

an easy out in 2 starting by playing JA(R) for 

27 from the top middle triple. The blank R 

was from a Quackle bingo going across on 

row 3 – rETIFORM. With less than a minute 

of time left on his clock, Adam noticed 

that playing the J and A would give Quackle, 

whose A one tile draw gave it ADEKPRS, 

HUMANS PLAY continued on p. 2 

Know the Rules 

by Dallas Johnson 

The game is over: what now? The tile bag 

is empty and you have three tiles on your 

rack. You make an “out” play using those 

three tiles, announce the score of the play, 

and neutralize the clock, ending the game. 

You and your opponent agree on a final score 

of 432–312 in your favor. You then begin 

to complete a tally slip for the game. Meanwhile, 

your opponent decides to square the 

tiles on the board to save time. What should 

you do? 

Rule V.D. of the NASPA Official Tournament 

Rules provides, in part: “Both players 

should avoid touching the clock or any 

played tiles until all required scorecards/tally 

slips have been signed or initialed.” 

Because the tally slip has not yet been 

completed and signed, you should instruct 

your opponent not to disturb the tiles on 

the board or reset the game clock until the 

tally slip has been completed and signed by 

both of you. Call the director to intervene, 

if necessary. 

It is a natural instinct to get the game area 

ready for the next game, look up unknown 

words, or “postmortem” a game once it has 

been played to conclusion. But players 

should remember that completing and signing 

the tally slip should be handled as soon 

as a final score is agreed upon. Doing the paperwork 

before analyzing plays, squaring the 

board, or resetting the clock helps ensure that 

any discrepancies are resolved appropriately, 

without reference to prohibited items such as 

calculators and anagramming tools. Submitting 

paperwork as promptly as possible also 

helps the director to keep the tournament 

running smoothly.

2 NASPA Bulletin, September 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 

Humans Play 

from HUMANS PLAY QUACKLE, p. 1 

PARK(A)DES/DE/ET/SI. He made a subsequent 

play that won, but not by enough. 

Neither the human nor computer player is 

truly equipped to factor spread into the decision 

making equation on each move. We 

tend to think about spread as we plan our 

endgame. Would you play a bingo for 78 

opening a triple-triple possibility when there 

was a much safer play for 70 that was not 

as volatile? If both blanks were still out? At 

tile 85? Your opponent had just played one 

letter? You needed to win and win by 59 to 

win the event? 

There is an entirely different level of thinking 

that would be required if spread became 

even more important than it is — in a tournament 

or should it one day be incorporated 

into the ratings equation. 

Food for thought and discussion. 

Subscribe to NASPA’s discussion group, 

naspa-pro. Send a blank email to naspa-prosubscribe@yahoogroups.com 

You will receive an 

email asking you to confirm. Hit “reply” and 

“send” and you will be good to go. 

Any and all official announcements from the 

Association will be posted to naspa-pro. 

Mystery Word 

by John Chew 

Last month’s mystery words were BLOW- 

PIPE and BULLWHIP, which are the only 

two eight-letter words which share the five 

letters BILPW, and are memorable for appearing 

together in the opening sequence of 

the classic movie Raiders of the Lost Ark. 

This month’s word is a five-letter word for 

a marsupial. 

MYSTERY WORD continued on p. 3 

Newly Certified 

Club and Tournament 

Directors 

by the Club/Director Committee 

The NASPA Club/Director Committee 

congratulates Christopher Ross (Clendenin, 

WV) on graduating his apprenticeship to 

become a fully certified tournament director, 

and welcomes Eric Tran (Calgary, AB) 

to the apprenticeship program. 

If you are interested in becoming a director 

too, please consult the Directors section 

of our website. 

Late in the 2011 Toronto Open: a reporter watches World Champions Richards and Logan play 

at Board 1, while organizer Tony Leah plays Chris Cree in the foreground. 

2011 Toronto International SCRABBLE Open organizer Tony Leah presents 

winner Adam Logan with the $3,000 top prize 

NASPA in the News 

by the Bulletin Committee 

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported 

in its obituaries section on the death of local 

player and director Melissa Pike after a long 

battle with pancreatic cancer. 

BBC Radio 4 asked Michael Thelen about 

the probability of a recent news item involving 

a man who had the opening rack JANI- 

TOR twice in his life. 

NJ.com reported on the death in a traffic 

accident on September 5 of NASPA tournament 

director Dave Cullen, of East Windsor, 

NJ. 

Mark Abadi wrote a humorous column 

in the Daily Tar Heel, intertwining concerns 

about the economy with sound SCRABBLE 

advice. 

Daniel Shapiro was credited in an article 

on the ten most useful SCRABBLE words 

that appeared in CMC Forum. 

On September 13, Vocabulary.com ran an 

excerpt from Stefan Fatsis’ (Washington DC) 

classic book Word Freak, in celebration of its 

new tenth-anniversary edition. The excerpt 

told the story of how Michael Cresta (Saugus, 

MA) and Wayne Yorra (Sharon, MA) set 

the 1,320-point record for points scored in a 

club game. 

Richmond News ran a story on Dean and 

Dielle Saldanha’s preparations for the World 

SCRABBLE Championship. 

On September 15, the Florida Times- 

Union’s Jacksonville.com website ran a feature 

on an informal club attended by Jeff 

Cooley. 

On September 16, Stefan Fatsis reviewed 

Meg Wolitzer’s new YA book, The Fingertips 

of Duncan Dorfman, in a New York Times 

NASPA News continued on p. 4

NASPA Bulletin, August 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 

Canadian Committee 

Elections 

by John Robertson 

As always at this time of year, the annual 

nomination period for two of the six seats 

on NASPA’s Canadian Committee (CC) will 

begin on September 1. This period extends 

to October 15. 

The CC is comprised of six members who 

determine policies that pertain specifically to 

NASPA’s Canadian players. The CC creates 

policies to determine, among other things, 

the qualification process for the Canadian 

National SCRABBLE Championship, and 

the Canadian teams for various international 

SCRABBLE events. Members each 

serve staggered three-year terms, with two 

members’ terms expiring on December 31 of 

each year. This year the terms of David Boys 

(Dorval, QC) and Siri Tillekeratne (Calgary, 

AB) both expire. David Boys had indicated 

he will be taking a hiatus from the CC and 

therefore won’t run for reëlection. 

The two vacant seats are filled by a November 

election in which all Canadian NASPA 

members may vote online or by paper ballot. 

(Last year 70 Canadians cast ballots in which 

John Robertson (Cambridge, ON) and Jeff 

Parsons (Logy Bay, NL) were both reelected.) 

If you wish to nominate someone for election 

or enter the electoral process yourself, 

please contact the CC through the email link 

on the NASPA website. 

This article, which also ran last month, is 

being rerun to remind Canadian members of 

the nomination process. As we go to press, four 

candidates have been nominated for the two 

seats: Lisa Kessler (Toronto, ON), Mad Palazzo 

(Richmond Hill, ON), Carl Madden (Brantford, 

ON) and the incumbent Siri Tillekeratne. 

NATIONAL 

SCRABBLE 

CHAMPIONSHIP 

N S C 

1 1 3 

ORLANDO 2012 

The top players in Toronto, dining over 350 metres above ground level. 

Winners of the Fall Word Fest, the inaugural event of the 2011-2012 Toronto 

School SCRABBLE season, posing with their medals and prizes 

® 

2012 NSC News 

by the Championship Committee 

We’ll be making a special announcement 

in the next issue of the Bulletin about early 

registration for next year’s National SCRAB- 

BLE Championship, which takes place on 

August 11–15 at the Royal Pacific Resort. 

Stay tuned! 

Mystery Word Clue 2 

from MYSTERY WORDS, p. 2 

The mystery word has a face value of fourteen 

points. 


New at our Website 

by the Web Committee 

New this month at the NASPA website 

is an updated version of the NASPA Membership 

Card, including your profile photo, 

phone number and email address. 

Also new, and intended primarily for the 

club and tournament directors who have 

been asking for it, but not restricted just to 

them, is a business card customized for each 

member, giving full contact information 

from their membership profile. 

Take a look at both of them online at 

NASPA Member Services. 

We have also extended fine-grain profile 

information access controls to extend to 

birthdates. As with other personal information, 

it is not shared with the public, and 

you can grant permission to share it with directors, 

players or vendors. (We keep track 

of birthdates so that we can offer age or 

birthday-related promotions, more easily tell 

apart people with similar names, and identify 

our members to the media in the customary 

“name, age, occupation” style.)


Fall Word Fest Grade 5/6 Winners Zakk and 

Sophie, with organizer Vera Bigall 

Sharing Information 

by Connie Creed 

Most NASPA membership renewals will 

be coming up at the end of the year. Now 

might be a good time to change your privacy 

settings and share your contact information 

with directors. Before every tourney it seems 

that there are always players that I need to 

contact and it requires an act of congress 

or John Chew to get the job done. If you 

chose to share your contact info with directors 

only, your privacy will not be abused. 

Just last week (Aug 28), I had to cancel a 

tourney at the last minute due to extreme 

weather conditions on the east coast, Hurricane 

Irene. Had I not had the contact info 

for all the registrants, there would have been 

some mighty angry players who showed up 

at Dover Downs to find out it was called 

off. That was an extreme case, but as Forrest 

Gump once said “it happens”. Updates, last 

minute changes, the unforeseen can occur 

and we need to reach you. If you have your 

settings at “no contact”, please reconsider. It 

will make our life easier and it will be in your 

best interest too. 

Advisory Board News 

by the Advisory Board 

The NASPA Advisory Board (AB) convened 

for its monthly teleconference on September 

29th. A number of issues of ongoing 

concern were discussed, but no rulings were 

issued. It will convene next on October 25th, 

again by conference call. 

If you have concerns that you would like 

brought to the attention of the AB, please 

contact your elected representative, or the 

board at large through its general mailing list 

at naspa-advisoryboard@yahoogroups.com. 

Meanwhile in Toronto 

by John Chew 

Also helping to kick off the fall SCRAB- 

BLE season in Toronto were five other events 

sharing space with the Toronto International 

SCRABBLE Open and Human vs. Computer 

Showdown. The most photogenic of these 

by far was the Fall Word Fest, a three-round 

event for local students in Grades 5–8 wanting 

to practice for the district and citywide 

finals. 

There were also the Toronto SCRABBLE 

Club’s usual events: the Leah Katz Memorial 

SCRABBLE Tournament, the early bird for 

the Michael Wise Memorial SCRABBLE 

Tournament, named for a player with an 

insatiable appetite for tournament games, 

won by Mark Edelson (Toronto, ON); the 

MWMST itself, named for one of the founding 

fathers of organizes SCRABBLE play in 

North America and held in support of his 

memorial fund at the Princess Margaret 

(cancer research) Hospital, divisions won 

by Geoffrey Newman (Brampton, ON), 

Kevin Turner (Mississauga, ON) and Mike 

McClennan (Toronto, ON); a pairs tournament, 

won by Newman and the author; 

and a speed tournament with three-minute 

clocks, won by Adam Logan (Ottawa, ON). 

NASPA News 

from NASPA IN THE NEWS, p. 2 

Sunday Book Review article entitled “How 

to Win at Scrabble in a Parallel Universe.” 

His verdict? “Wolitzer gets the Scrabble 

right.” 

On the same day, Wolitzer herself had an 

article published in the New York Times, entitled 

“Words with Strangers.” 

On September 16, West Virginia Public 

Broadcasting aired an interview with Brad 

Mills (Charleston, WV) about his upcoming 

tournament. 

On September 17, the Wall Street Journal 

also gave a favorable review of The Finger 

of Duncan listed the Toronto International 

Scrabble Open as #4 on its list of things to 

do on the September 24-25 weekend. 


from MYSTERY WORD, p. 3 

You can change the middle letter of the 

word to one of two other vowels to make unrelated 

words. 


In Memoriam 


We were saddened to learn through the 

media of the passing of two NASPA directors 

of note. 

Melissa Pike (Worcester, MA) succumbed 

to a lengthy battle with pancreatic cancer; 

Dave Cullen (East Windsor, NJ) died as the 

result of a traffic accident. We mourn their 

loss. 

Top Active Players 

The following are the top 50 active rated 

human members in the NASPA (TWL) 

tournament rating system, as of September 

1, 2011. 

Nigel Richards, Adam Logan, David Gibson 

1. 2154 Richards, Nigel (MYS) 

2. 2082 Logan, Adam (ON) 

3. 2075 Gibson, David (SC) 

4. 2036 Matsumoto, Kenji (HI) 

5. 2032 Wiegand, Dave (OR) 

6. 2030 Appel, Scott (NJ) 

7. 2029 Cappelletto, Brian (IL) 

8. 2009 Mallick, Joey (ME) 

9. 2007 Johnson, Carl (OR) 

10. 2005 Day, Jesse (CA) 

11. 2000 Swift, Orry (TX) 

12. 1991 Bowman, Brian (KY) 

12. 1991 Leong, James (BC) 

14. 1983 Weinstein, Ian (FL) 

15. 1980 Edley, Joe (NY) 

16. 1979 Tiekert, Ron (FL) 

17. 1977 Brockmeier, Doug (FL) 

18. 1970 Berofsky, Evan (ON) 

19. 1967 Kramer, Jim (MN) 

20. 1963 Sherman, Joel (NY) 

21. 1959 Armstrong, Peter (WI) 

22. 1958 Cohen, Laurie (AZ) 

22. 1958 O’Laughlin, John (MA) 

24. 1948 Nemitrmansuk, Pakorn (THA) 

25. 1946 Wright, Trey (CA) 

26. 1940 Thevenot, Geoff (TX) 

27. 1936 Walton, Noah (OR) 

28. 1935 Bassett-Bouchard, Conrad (CA) 

28. 1935 Cree, Chris (TX) 

30. 1934 Fukawa-Connelly, Kate (ME) 

31. 1932 Jackson, Scott (MN) 

32. 1931 Stern, Rafi (WA) 

33. 1928 Okosagah, Sammy (MD) 

33. 1928 Peltier, Nigel (OR) 

35. 1924 Meyer, Nick (CA) 

36. 1921 Benedict, Nathan (AZ) 

37. 1920 Luebkemann, John (VA) 

38. 1919 Macneil, Rod (MA) 

39. 1918 Idalski, Jason (MI) 

40. 1911 Dackman, Joe (NV) 

41. 1906 Robinsky, Rob (MN) 

41. 1906 Tran, Eric (AB) 

43. 1901 Mancine, Dominick (CO) 

44. 1895 Daniel, Robin Pollock (ON) 

45. 1884 Mead, Jeremiah (MA) 

46. 1883 Bednarz, Jason (MD) 

47. 1882 Koenig, David (MD) 

48. 1879 Armstrong, Chuck (MI) 

49. 1877 Lerman, Jerry (CA) 

50. 1876 Frentz, Mike (WA) 

TOP PLAYERS continued on p. 5

NASPA Bulletin, August 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 5 

Top Players 

from TOP ACTIVE PLAYERS, p. 4 

The following are the top 20 active rated 

members in the NASPA (CSW) rating system, 

as of September 1, 2011. 

Nigel Richards, 

Philip Nelkon, Nathan Benedict 

1. 2155 Richards, Nigel (MYS) 

2. 2080 Nelkon, Philip (GBR) 

3. 2056 Benedict, Nathan (AZ) 

4. 2042 Cappelletto, Brian (IL) 

5. 2037 May, Chris (AUS) 

6. 2028 Nemitrmansuk, Pakorn (THA) 

7. 2019 Wiegand, Dave (OR) 

8. 2014 Eldar, David (AUS) 

9. 2009 Boys, David (QC) 

10. 1998 Logan, Adam (ON) 

11. 1962 Thevenot, Geoff (TX) 

12. 1956 Adamson, Tim (MN) 

13. 1950 O’Laughlin, John (MA) 

14. 1945 Whitmarsh, Bradley (MA) 

15. 1935 Wapnick, Joel (QC) 


16. 1932 Cohen, Laurie (AZ) 

18. 1925 Johnson, Carl (OR) 

19. 1916 Kenas, Mark (WI) 

20. 1907 Leah, Tony (ON) 

Monthly Leaders 

by the Ratings and Recognition Committee 

This section lists the players with the best 

results in August 2011. 

Brian Bowman, Scott Pianowski, Jack Overby 

Most Rated Wins 


2. 29 Stock, Joyce (OH) 

3. 27 Abriano, Gerianne (NY) 

3. 27 Blyler, Bob (FL) 


Most Games Played 

1. 52 Pianowski, Scott (MI) 

1. 52 Fiszbein, Jeff (MI) 

1. 52 Stock, Joyce (OH) 

4. 46 Blyler, Bob (FL) 

5. 45 Rau, Terry Kang (NY) 

5. 45 Clinchy, Evans (MA) 


5. 45 Huber, Cecilia (OH) 


5. 45 Le, Cecilia (MA) 

5. 45 Matthews, Jesse (BC) 

5. 45 Ubeika, Shelley (ON) 

5. 45 Melvin, Cheryl (MI) 

5. 45 Ubeika, Jason (ON) 

5. 45 Saldanha, Dielle (BC) 

Most Games Undefeated 

1. 8 Slaughter, Amy (NC) 

1. 8 Rogers, George (FL) 

3. 7 Randall, Brandon (CT) 

3. 7 Zitzman, Brandon (KY) 

5. 6 Stevens, Mary Aline (CA) 

Biggest Rating Gains 

1. +596 = 1540 Overby, Jack (MN) 

2. +450 = 1559 Rao, Suhas (NC) 

3. +219 = 832 Heller, Jacqueline (CA) 

4. +204 = 1719 Spence, Richard (AZ) 

5. +192 = 1400 Melvin, Cheryl (MI) 

Highest Initial Rating 

1. 1331 Proulx, Kim (BC) 

2. 1141 Sayavesa, Chalomrit (THA) 

3. 900 Slaughter, Amy (NC) 

4. 779 Rourke, Evan (NY) 

5. 657 Bond, Hal (ON) 

Recent Results 

by the Ratings and Recognition Committee 

This section lists all players who finished 

in the top three places in their division in a 

rated tournament ending in August 2011, 

together with their wins, losses, cumulative 

spread, old and new ratings. Out-of-state 

winners are identified with their home state 

(or province). 

Daniel Stock, Nigel Richards, Steve Glass 

2011 NSC Early Bird: August 5 

Invitational for directors and staff only 

(8 players) 

4-0 +332 1752 1782 Stock, Daniel (OH) 

3-1 +34 1818 1821 Keller, Jason (NJ) 

2-2 +134 1438 1443 Crotty, Lila (LA) 

2011 NSC Lunch Bird: August 6–10 

First-ever NSC lunch tournament 

Division A (6 players) 

5-0 +377 1819 1843 Glass, Steve (FL) 

3-2 +369 1725 1722 Winter (TX) 

3-2 -65 1640 1644 Early, Michael (TX) 

Division B (6 players) 

4-1 +145 1335 1369 Shuman, Bruce (NC) 

3-2 +40 1402 1406 Newhouse, Judy (TX) 

2-3 +5 1237 1236 Meredith, David (KY) 

Division C (6 players) 

4-1 +319 1261 1269 Pepper, Bryan (TX) 

4-1 +72 1021 1040 Lieberman, Hannah (NC) 

3-2 +75 919 938 Horowitz, Dan (DE) 

Peter Barkman, Nick Meyer, Max Panitch 

Norwalk, CT: August 13 


8-0 +600 1571 1659 Barkman, Peter (NY) 

5-3 +74 1296 1370 Beaton, Andrew (NY) 

4-4 +205 1434 1437 Gable, Sue (NY) 


8-0 +1081 1275 1322 Randall, Brandon 

6-2 +307 1103 1131 Wood, Betsey (MA) 

5-3 +96 1019 1048 Malaby, Andrew (MA) 


Youth tournament 

(6 players) 

4-0 +580 569 676 Tilliss, Jared (NY) 

3-1 +119 688 710 Tilliss, Seth (NY) 

2-2 +333 684 679 Rowland, Amy 


Youth tournament 

(3 players) 

3-1 +386 710 723 Tilliss, Seth (NY) 

3-1 -26 679 679 Rowland, Amy 

2-2 -160 676 663 Tilliss, Jared (NY) 

Berkeley, CA: August 14 

Monthly one-day event 

2011 NSC: August 6–10 


National SCRABBLE Championship, Dallas, TX 4-2 +372 1922 1924 Meyer, Nick 

Division 1 (108 players) 

4-2 -174 1813 1826 Schonbrun, Lester 

22-9 +1532 2140 2154 Richards, Nigel (MYS) 3-3 +103 1719 1722 Ward, Bruce 

22-9 +1186 1970 2036 Matsumoto, Kenji (HI) Division B (6 players) 

22-9 +1028 1845 1988 Bowman, Brian (KY) 6-0 +474 1552 1644 Stevens, Mary Aline 


3-3 +91 1537 1542 Rosenberg, Kevin E 

25-6 +2207 1515 1719 Spence, Richard (AZ) 3-3 +11 1559 1562 Frodyma, KC 

23-8 +1430 1701 1777 Canik, Matt (TX) Division C (8 players) 

21-10 +1323 1565 1682 Citron, Daniel (NY) 5-1 +185 1376 1431 Whitman, Alan 


4-2 +195 1284 1318 Diener, Pat 

26-5 +3424 1109 1636 Rao, Suhas (NC) 4-2 +143 1449 1463 Julian, Vicky 

23-8 +1710 1337 1478 Randolph, Jason (TX) Division D (8 players) 

21-10 +1742 1309 1435 Lean, Mike (DC) 5-1 +476 1068 1093 Smith, Peter 


5-1 +19 670 761 Zuckerberg, Judy 

21-9 +746 839 1019 Forrester, Randy (NM) 4-2 +167 1045 1048 Morley, Maggie 

21-10 +951 950 1048 Stock, Joyce (OH) 

20-11 +818 974 1058 Davis, Elizabeth (OH) MORE RESULTS continued on p. 6


More Results 

from RECENT RESULTS, p. 6 

Guelph, ON: August 14 



4-2 +326 1792 1799 Panitch, Max 

4-2 +282 1721 1730 Nanavati, Jim 

4-2 +218 1854 1855 Leah, Tony 


5-1 +196 1142 1219 Ozorio, Sophia 

4-1 +473 1406 1421 Ubeika, Shelley 

3-3 +121 1281 1280 Blake, Daniel (NY) 


4-2 +301 1070 1067 Petrie, Shauna 

4-2 +216 952 973 Spanier, Crayne 

3-3 +230 667 690 Smylie, Tara 

Jeremy Hall, Chris Cree, Jarett Myskiw 

Bayside Queens, NY: August 20 



7-2 +164 1655 1687 Hall, Jeremy 

6-3 +399 1571 1596 Avrin, Paul 

5-4 +146 1483 1501 Mendoza, Froilan (NJ) 


6-3 +554 1298 1313 Chen, Woody 

6-3 +178 1177 1246 Tsigos, Chris 

6-3 +69 1259 1283 Rodriguez, Alex 


7-2 +238 1081 1097 Abriano, Gerianne 

6-3 +169 845 876 Newman, Barbara 

5-4 +121 705 767 Abrams, Shaunette 

Dallas, TX: August 20 



5-1 +672 1923 1935 Cree, Chris 

4-2 +440 1751 1765 Dick-Onuoha, Sam 

4-2 -132 1725 1740 Burlant, Jim 


4-1 +159 1088 1142 Sanchez, Pat 

4-2 +342 1183 1215 Sallah, Ebrahima 

3-3 -3 1122 1137 Saia, David 


4-2 +360 932 946 Bratcher, Nancy 

4-2 +346 733 769 Oppenlander, Patricia 

4-2 +285 955 962 Hidalgo, Regenia 

Bob Blyler, Jason Idalski, Kate Fukawa-Connelly 

Tampa Bay (Pinellas Park), FL: August 20 

(7 players) 

6-2 +800 1207 1229 Blyler, Bob 

6-2 +570 1259 1274 Fisher, Jan 

5-3 +403 1493 1464 Huber, Stefan 

Independence, OH: August 20–21 


7-0 +438 1902 1945 Idalski, Jason (MI) 

4-3 +116 1988 1972 Bowman, Brian (KY) 

4-3 -168 1782 1785 Stock, Daniel 


6-1 +485 1496 1520 Swint, Flossie 

5-2 +90 1102 1167 Konicki, Walter 

5-2 +74 1140 1196 Johnson, Dallas 


5-2 +73 998 1020 Huber, Cecilia 

5-2 +55 905 939 Rosenthal, Kevin 

4-3 +234 1048 1045 Stock, Joyce 

Utica (New Hartford), NY: August 20–21 


10-4 +881 1922 1934 Fukawa-Connelly, Kate (ME) 

9-5 -63 1833 1850 Le, Cecilia (MA) 

6-8 +53 1590 1591 Rau, Terry Kang 


10-4 +987 1471 1499 Drumm, Heather 

9-5 +77 1260 1323 OConnor, Matthew 

7-7 +146 1478 1443 Horn, Judy (MA) 

Utica, NY CSW: August 20–21 

(4 players) 

10-4 +1257 1816 1857 Clinchy, Evans (MA) 

8-6 +508 1992 1950 OLaughlin, John (MA) 

6-8 -642 1515 1531 Cheras, John (MA) 

Independence, OH: August 21 


6-1 +497 1630 1720 Alexander, Dorcas (PA) 

6-1 +456 1972 1991 Bowman, Brian (KY) 

5-2 +218 1785 1808 Stock, Daniel 


5-2 +414 1349 1396 Smith, Gerry 

4-3 +166 1373 1391 Stafford, Mike 

4-3 +61 1520 1520 Swint, Flossie 


5-2 +490 1271 1287 Scouloukas, Dean 

5-2 +354 1252 1270 Oblander, Terry 

5-2 +242 1224 1247 Joseph, Diane 

Division D (8 players) 

7-0 +714 823 912 Zitzman, Brandon (KY) 

5-2 +236 800 826 Angrist, Stanley (PA) 

4-3 +210 684 714 Conley, Patricia (PA) 


5-1 +321 1406 1424 Newhouse, Judy 

5-1 +143 1266 1303 Solis, Ruben 

3-3 +338 1470 1439 Roeder, Oliver 

Evans Clinchy, Dorcas Alexander, Geoff Thevenot 

Durham, NC: August 27 


7-1 +688 1683 1726 Bernardina, Matthew 

6-2 +376 1854 1853 Fischer, Ryan 

5-3 +416 1655 1661 McKeown, Rahn 


6-2 +389 1245 1270 Lieberman, Noah 

5-3 +154 1102 1130 Price, Richard 

5-3 +138 1183 1197 Bianca, Linda (SC) 


6-2 +155 1029 1049 Klionsky, David 

5-2 +561 890 912 Salgado, Erik 

5-2 +173 1039 1048 Hoang, Andy 


8-0 +835 0 900 Slaughter, Amy 

5-3 +126 424 476 Grinnell, Mary 

5-3 -64 500 539 Salgado, Midori 

Fort Lauderdale, FL: August 27 


7-1 +403 1958 1979 Tiekert, Ron 

6-2 +323 1843 1858 Greenspan, Randy 

5-3 +306 1766 1778 Kahn, Robert 


8-0 +1004 1290 1373 Rogers, George 

5-3 -159 1194 1214 Riff, Marla 

4-3 +224 1229 1228 Blyler, Bob 


6-2 +188 748 796 Souza, Marilena 

5-2 +129 770 805 Berger, Fred 

5-3 +121 723 764 Osbourne, Rex 

Linden, MI: August 27 


6-1 +391 1622 1698 Fiszbein, Jeff 

Ron Tiekert, Jeff Fiszbein, Arie Sinke 


4-3 +248 1689 1697 Grob, Steve 


6-1 +341 1347 1432 Melvin, Cheryl 

5-2 +266 1391 1427 Stafford, Mike (OH) 

4-3 +297 1518 1518 Ravichandran, Carol 


5-2 +269 1115 1131 Washburn, Kathleen 

4-3 +133 1171 1161 Kidd, Danny 

Edmonton, AB: August 20 


5-1 +110 1589 1606 Myskiw, Jarett (MB) 

4-2 +4 1302 1331 Guilbault, Brian 

3-2 +237 1548 1541 Larocque, Matthew Austin, TX: August 27 



5-1 +356 1050 1059 Guilbault, Ed 

5-1 +567 1928 1940 Thevenot, Geoff 

5-1 +190 1104 1126 Morris, Maureen 4-2 +145 1700 1715 Riblet, Doug 

4-2 +149 1017 1021 Ridge, Geraldine 3-3 +109 1777 1769 Canik, Matt 

MORE RESULTS continued on p. 7

NASPA Bulletin, August 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 7 

More Results 

from RECENT RESULTS, p. 7 

4-3 +5 1178 1172 Sutherland, Margaret 

4-3 +5 500 641 Henney, Stephen 

Stratford, ON: August 27 


7-1 +514 1709 1778 Sinke, Arie 

6-2 +358 1799 1817 Panitch, Max 

5-3 -112 1592 1621 Dunlop, Glenn 


7-1 +513 1515 1563 Ozorio, Steve 

5-3 +28 1283 1321 Rodriguez, Alex (NY) 

4-4 +67 1487 1476 Lobo, Yvonne 


7-1 +554 1219 1269 Ozorio, Sophia 

5-3 +230 1134 1157 Ross, Don 

4-4 +163 1067 1076 Petrie, Shauna 


7-1 +455 1008 1042 Brown, Allan 

6-2 +238 901 932 Krook, Dave 

6-2 +81 806 855 Mallory, Catherine 

Vancouver, BC: August 27–28 

(28 players) 

12-2 +1153 1967 1991 Leong, James 

10-4 +1137 1763 1776 Schellenberg, Mark 

10-4 +565 1804 1822 Williams, Chris 

Linden, MI: August 28 

(16 players) 

6-1 +289 1859 1879 Armstrong, Chuck 


5-2 +397 1600 1623 Smith, Jason J 

Upcoming Tournaments 

by the Tournament Committee 

OCTOBER 1, BERLIN, NJ: Sat: 10:00 

AM, 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: $59. Registration 

fee incl. continental BK. and LUN. 

RSVP to Wayne Ollick, 117 Washington 

Ave., Berlin, N.J.08009. 6 rounds of round 

robin plus 1 round KOTH, in groups of 8 

or more. Bud Duble Senior Center, 33 Cooper 

Folly Road, Atco, NJ. CT. Herb Lewis, 

, Wayne Ollick, 

or Betty McDaniel, 

856-728-9446. HA. 

OCTOBER 1, CAMBRIDGE, ON, 

CAN: Sat: 9:00 AM, 7 RDS. LUN. incl. 

in entry fee. DIVS. of 16 players. “Boxed 

Fours” format. Limited to the first 80 entrants. 

Calvary Pentecostal Assembly, 127 

Hespeler Road, Cambridge, ON. CT. John 

Robertson, 17 Fourth Avenue, Cambridge, 

Ontario N1S 2C9, 519-621-6432, . 

HA. 

OCTOBER 2, BERKELEY, CA: Sun: 

Noon, 6 RDS. EF: $30. Entry fee incl. buffet 

LUN. The Viceroy Indian Restaurant, 21 

Shattuck Square, Berkeley, CA 94704. CT. 

Pat Diener. HA. 

OCTOBER 2, LAGUNA WOODS, CA: 

Sun: ? EF: $45. Late Fee $10, after Fri before 

event. Modified round robin. Prizes: 

1st $90; 2nd $50 in every group of 8. Laguna 

Woods Village, Clubhouse 5, Rm 1, 

26252 Punta Alta, Laguna Woods, California 

92637. CT. Gary Moss, (949) 510-1673, 

. HA. 

OCTOBER 2, PHILADELPHIA, PA: 

Sun: 11:00 AM, 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: $50. 

$10 entry fee for 1st time tourney players 

only. DIV. sizes and cutoffs will be 

determined at the Director’s discretion. 

Collins DIV. will be offered. University of 

Pennsylvania - Houston Hal, Hall of Flags, 

3417 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA. CT. 

Connie Creed, 233 South 6th Street, #2502, 

Philadelphia, PA 19106, 215-238-1880, 

. HA. 

OCTOBER 5, LCT - AKRON, OH: 

Wed: 6:00 PM, 4 RDS. Free event. Typically 

paired with 3 rounds of modified 

Swiss and 1 round of KOTH, minimizing 

repeats as much as possible. The Highland 

Square Apartments, Party Room (1st Floor - 

Room 101), 733 W. Market Street, Akron, 

OH 44303. CT. Dallas Johnson, 330-676- 

1723, . HA. 

OCTOBER 8-9, ORLANDO, FL: Sat: 

9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 6 RDS. 

R-R/K-H. EF: $80. Check-in at 8:00 a.m. 

DIVS. of approx. 14, based on attendance. 

Holiday Inn Express, 8686 Palm Parkway, 

Orlando, FL 32836. HP: RM.Rate $79/ 

night, BK. incl. NO HIDDEN RESORT 

FEES. Ask for Scrabble tournament rate, 

or book online: http://www.hiexpress.com/ 

hotels/us/en/orlando/mcopp/hoteldetail?for 

mErrorCode=1013572125698580880. CT. 

Art Moore, 407-733-2095, . 

HA. 

OCTOBER 9, GUELPH, ON, CAN: 

Sun: 2:30 PM, 6 RDS. EF: $30 (CAN). 

DIVS. of 6-11 players set at director’s discretion. 

Register by 11:30 AM on day of 

tournament. Food purchase strongly encouraged. 

Squirrel Tooth Alice’s, 649 Scottsdale 

Drive, Unit 5, Guelph, ON. CT. Andy 

Saunders, 82 Clairfields Drive West, Guelph, 

ON, N1G 5H8, (416) 668-7500, . HA. 

OCTOBER 12-16, CALGARY, AB, 

CAN: Western Canadian Scrabble Championship. 

Early Bird: Wed: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. 

R-R/K-H. 3 equal-sized Divs based on the 

latest ratings. EF: $50 (CAN)/$50 (US). 

Early Bird 2: Thu: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. 3 Divs. 

divided at 1500 & 1100 ratings. No playups 

except to even out Divs. EF: $50 (CAN)/$50 

(US). Main Event: Fri: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sat: 


from MYSTERY WORD, p. 4 

The mystery word refers to a kind of 

dasyure. What is it? Answer to appear next 

issue.The mystery word has a face value of 

14 points. 

9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 5 RDS. R- 

R/K-H. 4 Divs. Divided at 1600, 1300 and 

1000 ratings. 100 pt. playup permitted. EF: 

Div. 1: $110 (CAN)/$110 (US), Div. 2: $90 

(CAN)/$90 (US), Div. 3: $70 (CAN)/$70 

(US), Div. 4: $50 (CAN)/$50 (US). Radisson 

Hotel, 2120 16 Ave. NE, Calgary, Alberta, 

Canada, (403) 291 4666, toll free 1 800 

333 3333. HP: $124 + tax, single/double. 

CT. Siri Tillekeratne, 16 Cedarwood Pl. SW, 

Calgary, Alberta,T2W 3G6, Canada, (403) 

281 2459, . HA. The Director 

reserves the right to make adjustments to 

avoid extreme DIV. size or pairing discrepancies. 

OCTOBER 13-16, LAKE GEORGE, 

NY: Early Bird: Thu: Noon, 8 RDS. EF: $50. 

8 fully-rated games; format determined by 

number of entries (Pay at Door Only). 

Registration from 11:00 a.m. - Noon. 

Early Bird 2: Fri: Noon, 5 RDS. EF: $35. 

5 fully-rated games; format determined 

by number of entries (Pay at Door Only). 

Registration from 11:00 a.m. - Noon. 

Main Event: Fri: 8:00 PM, 3 RDS. Sat: 


EF: $85. Commuter fee: $15. COMM. fee 

applies if not on the hotel package. Registration 

from 7 - 8 p.m. on FRI. The Tiki 

Resort, 2 Canada Street, Lake George, NY. 

HP: RM.rates are: $126/person double occupancy; 

$177/person single occupancy; $106/ 

person triple occupancy. Package incl. all taxes 

and gratuities, two deluxe continental BK. 

(incl. toast), and a full-buffet DIN. on SAT. 

night. CT. Annette Tedesco, 41 Ferry Lane, 

Stillwater, NY 12170-1350, 518-664-1619, 

, John Robertson or 

Ross Brown. HA. 

OCTOBER 15, DALLAS, TX: Sat: 10:30 

AM, 6 RDS. EF: $30. Round robin groups 

(with director discretion predicated upon 

mix of field). LUN. after 2 games. Walkins 

o.k. Crowne Plaza Suites - Dallas Park 

Cntrl., 7800 Alpha Rd, Dallas, TX 75240. 

CT. Chris Cree, 3708 Bryn Mawr Dr., Dallas, 

TX 75225, 214-701-4681, or Carla Cree, 3708 Bryn Mawr 

Dr., Dallas, TX 75225, 214-701-4681, . HA. 

OCTOBER 22, FORT LAUDERDALE, 

FL: Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. EF: $35. Add $5 

late fee after October 10, 2011. Round 

robin pairings - 2 to 4 DIVS., determined 

by number of entrants. Fort Lauderdale 

Bridge Club, Holiday Park, Fort Lauderdale, 

FL 33304. CT. Tim Wise, 954-942-6319, 

. HA. 

OCTOBER 22, NORWALK, CT: Sat: 

9:00 AM, 8 RDS. EF: $60. Reduced entry 

fee of $40 for first-time players. Main 

Event 2: Sat: 9:00 AM, 4 RDS. EF: $20. 

Youth DIV. (restricted to players under 18 

as of January 1, 2011). Main Event 3: Sat: 

STILL MORE RESULTS continued on p. 7


Still More Results 

from MORE RESULTS, p. 7 

2:00 PM, 4 RDS. EF: $20. Youth DIV. (restricted 

to players under 18 as of January 

1, 2011). Chess Club of Fairfield County, 

710 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT, 06850, 

203-644-3037. CT. Cornelia Guest, 203- 

on SUN. $315 sgl; $177.50 pp dbl; $132.50 

pp trpl. CT. Connie Creed, 215-238-1880 

(H), 215-837-3037 (C), . HA. 

OCTOBER 28-30, SAN FRANCISCO, 

CA: 4th Annual California Open. Fri: 8 

RDS. Sat: 8 RDS. Sun: 4 RDS. EF: $100. 

NOVEMBER 5, PITTSBURGH, PA: 

Sat: 9:00 AM, 6 RDS. EF: $25. Entry fee 

incl. LUN. Limited to 24 players. Mount 

Lebanon Library, Meeting Room A, 16 Castle 

Shannon Blvd. (Lower Level), Pittsburgh, 

PA. CT. M.W. Schroeder, or Stan Angrist, sangrist@verizon.net, 

244-5324, . Commuter fee: $25. This is an OPEN tournament 

. HA. 

HA. 

with 1 DIV. Pairing system TBD. NOVEMBER 5-6, NACOGDOCHES, 

OCTOBER 22, ROCKY RIVER, OH: 

Sat: 9:30 AM, 7 RDS. R-R/8. EF: $31. Entry 

fee increases to $36 if payment and entry 

form received after Oct. 10 but by Oct. 

20. $41 cash only at the door (subject to 

availability). $1 from each entry will be 

donated to cross-tables.com; the rest will 

be returned as prizes. West Shore Unitarian 

Universalist Church, 20401 Hilliard Blvd., 

Rocky River, OH. CT. Daniel Stock, 3614 

Kings Mill Run, Rocky River OH 44116, 

(440) 356-7366, or 

Joyce Stock, 3614 Kings Mill Run, Rocky 

River OH 44116, (440) 356-7366. HA. 

OCTOBER 22, YORK, PA: Sat: 9:30 

AM, 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: $60. Entry fee 

incl. LUN. Registration begins at 8 a.m. 

4 DIVS.: ratings cut-offs based on attendance 

(we will attempt to have no more 

than a 250 point rating spread for DIVS.). 

Registrations received after October 17 

are not guaranteed a spot. B.P.O. Elks 

Lodge #213, 223 N. George Street, York, PA 

17401. CT. Don Hake, 18 S. George Street 

#44, York, PA 17401, 717-764-0792, . 

HA. 

OCTOBER 22-23, ASHEVILLE, NC: 

Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 6 RDS. 

EF: Div. 1: $100, Div. 2 and lower: $80. 

DIV. One for those rated 1700 and higher, 

play up if within 100 points. Four lower 

DIVS. at directorsí discretion. Pairing system: 

Modified Round Robin with KOH & 

Gibson rule. Senior Opportunity Center, 36 

Grove Street Asheville, NC 28801. CT. Bill 

Snoddy, 828-252-8154, or JoAnn Goddard, 828-252- 

4895, . HA. 

OCTOBER 23, ELK HORN, IA: Sun: 

9:00 AM, 8 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: $25. Town 

Hall, 4212 Main St., Elk Horn, Iowa 51531- 

8018, (712) 764-5512. CT. Kirk Troutman, 

H: 402-592-3951 or C: 402-216-5571, 

. HA. 

Entries must be received by October 15. 

Parc 55 Hotel, 55 Cyril Magnin St., San 

Francisco, CA, 419-392-8000. HP: Scrabble 

tournament rate of $139/night. More info 

to come. CT. Ed DeGuzman, 415-335- 

6926, or Chris Patrick 

Morgan, 415-573-5926, . HA. 

OCTOBER 29, AUSTIN, TX: Sat: 

10:30 AM, 6 RDS. EF: $20. In addition 

to TWL DIVS.(s), a Collins DIV. will be 

offered provided that there are at least 4 

players in the Collins DIV. 10 point challenge 

penalty will be used in Collins DIV. 

Salvation Army Corps Community Center, 

1001 Cumberland Road, Austin TX 78704. 

HP: 512-442-3212. CT. Geoff Thevenot, 

or Jean McArthur. 

HA. 

OCTOBER 29, SOUTH LYON, MI: 

Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. EF: $50. Entry fee 

increases to $55 if paid after 10/22. $60 

cash only at the door. Registration begins 

at 8:30. South Lyon United Methodist 

Church, 640 S. Lafayette Street, South 

Lyon, MI 48178. CT. Jef Fiszbein, 10092 

Pembrooke Circle, South Lyon, MI 48178- 

8521, (248) 310-4257, . HA. 

OCTOBER 29, TAMPA BAY (PINEL- 

LAS PARK), FL: Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. 

R-R. EF: $30. Registration 08:40-08:55; 

eight games start at 09:00; DIVS. of 6-8. 

The Auditorium, 7690 59th St N, Pinellas 

Park FL 33781. CT. JC Green, (727) 278- 

2030, . HA. 

OCTOBER 29-30, BATON ROUGE, 

LA: Sat: 11:00 AM, 7 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 

5 RDS. R-R/K-H. Gibson rule applies. EF: 

$70/$60/$50. 3 DIVS. rated split at 1500 

and 1100 approx., with the option to add 

another DIV. depending on the number 

of competitors. Baton Rouge Bridge 

Club, 3033 Old Forge Rd. Baton Rouge LA 

TX: The Old Town Showdown. Sat: 11:00 

AM, 7 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 5 RDS. EF: 

$75. $20 late fee applies after October 

21, 2011. Walk-ins accepted only if space 

available. Sat, 9:30 ñ 10:30 am, Mandatory 

Check-In. Rounds 1-7 played straight 

through (bring snacks). The Old University 

Building, 515 N. Mound Street, Nacogdoches, 

Texas 75961. CT. Brent D. Beal, 920 

Millard Dr., Nacogdoches, TX 75965, 225- 

802-7015, or Judy 

Newhouse, . HA. 

NOVEMBER 6, BERKELEY, CA: Sun: 

Noon, 6 RDS. EF: $30. Entry fee inclues 

buffet LUN. The Viceroy Indian Restaurant, 

21 Shattuck Square, Berkeley, CA 94704. 

CT. Chris Patrick Morgan, . HA. 

NOVEMBER 6, LAGUNA WOODS, 

CA: Sun: ? EF: $45. Late Fee $10, after Fri 

before event. Modified round robin. Prizes: 

1st $90; 2nd $50 in every group of 8. 

Laguna Woods Village, Clubhouse 5, Rm 1, 


92637. CT. Gary Moss, (949) 510-1673, 

. HA. 

NOVEMBER 6, PHILADELPHIA, PA: 

Sun: 11:00 AM, 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. equal 

DIVS., Collins DIV. if enough interest. EF: 

$50. TBD - Philadelphia. CT. Connie Creed, 

233 South 6th Street, #2502, Philadelphia, 

PA 19106, 215-238-1880, . 

HA. 

NOVEMBER 6, TORONTO, ON, 

CAN: at Great Canadian Game Show. Sun: 

11:00 AM, 6 RDS. One open DIV., Chew 

pairings. EF: $30 (CAN). Players must pay 

additional entry fee to enter the game show 

($12/day with coupon from show website, 

as of 2010). International Centre, 6900 Airport 

Rd, Mississauga ON. CT. John Chew, 

9 Fulton Avenue, Toronto ON M4K 1X6, 

(416) 876ñ7675, . HA. 

NOVEMBER 8, LCT - INDEPEN- 

OCTOBER 28-30, CAMBRIDGE, 70808. HP: Hotel information: Comfort DENCE, OH: Tue: 6:00 PM, 4 RDS. EF: 

MD: Early Bird: Fri: Noon, 5 RDS. EF: 

$30. Main Event: Fri: 8:00 PM, 3 RDS. Sat: 


EF: $110. Modified RR plus 2 KOTH. 

Collins DIV. offered ($125 entry fee). 

Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay Golf Resort, 

100 Heron Blvd. at Route 50 ï Cambridge, 

Maryland, 410-901-1234. HP: 3 Day, 2 

Night Hotel Package incl. 2 bottles of water 

per day, miniature golf, use of fitness center, 

volleyball, use of tennis courts, indoor pool, 

resort shuttle, all taxes & fees and Lite LUN. 

Suites University, 3045 Valley Creek Road, 

Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (225) 923- 

3377. Mention Scrabble to get the special 

RM.rate of $69. CT. Mike Waugh, 40285 

Abby James Rd, Prairieville, LA 70769, 225- 

252-4352, or 

Annette McCaffery. HA. 

NOVEMBER 5, BRANTFORD, ON, 

CAN: Sat: 10:00 AM. Royal Canadian Legion, 

Branch 90, 21 Oak Street, Brantford, 

Ontario. CT. Glenn Dunlop, (519) 752 

2242. HA. 

$4. Sponsored by NASPA Club #164 (Independence, 

OH). Pay at the door. Angie’s 

Pizza, 6932 Hillside Road, Indepenence, 

OH 44131. CT. Christopher Sheppard, 

. HA. 

NOVEMBER 11-13, EMERALD CITY 

(SEATTLE), WA: Fri: 9:30 AM, 8 RDS. Sat: 


Mod.Swiss/R-R/K-H. Three DIV. separated 

at 1100 and 1600, with unlimited playup. 

separate open Collins DIV. EF: Div. 1: 

MORE TOURNEYS continued on p. 9

NASPA Bulletin, August 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 

More Tourneys 

andysthoughts.com>. HA. 

from UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS, p. 8 NOVEMBER 13, ROCKY RIVER, OH: 

$110, Div. 2: $90, Div. 3: $75, Div. C: $110. The 2011 Stockjobber Open. Sun: 9:30 AM, 

Commuter fee: $20. Must register and pay 7 RDS. PRZ: $100%. One DIV. Arrive no 

by Noon Nov 9th. $15 Late fee after Oct later than 9:15 to hold your place. Maximum 

26th. Pay by Aug 11th to enter drawing 

of 16 players. Pairing method based 

for full refund of entry fee. Collins/CSW on number of entries. Home of Joyce and 

DIV. will be rated by both NASPA and Dan Stock, 3614 Kings Mill Run, Rocky 

WESPA. Seatac Holiday Inn, 17338 International 

River, OH 44116, 440-356-7366. HP: The 

Blvd, Seatac WA 98188, (800) 860- venue is NOT handicapped accessible (it is a 

7715 or (206) 248-1000. HP: $79 for one private residence with two steps at the door, 

King or two Double beds. CT. Lynn Dreyer and the hallways/restrooms are not up to 

(Director), 253-579-3004 or Mark Peltier commercial code). CT. Daniel Stock, 3614 

(Registration), P.O. Box 9069, Seattle WA Kings Mill Run, Rocky River, OH 44116, 

98109, 206-784-9706, . HA. 

NOVEMBER 18-20, ESSEX, VT: 6th 

NOVEMBER 12, BAYSIDE QUEENS, Annual Green Mountain Challenge. Details 

NY: Sat: 9:00 AM, 9 RDS. EF: $64. Entry 

TBA. Essex Resort and Spa, 70 Essex Way, 

fee incl. player participation fee, deli Essex Junction, VT 05452. CT. Sherrie Saint 

LUN., coffee & tea all day, RM.rental & John, . HA. 

prizes. ADRIA Hotel & Confrence Center, NOVEMBER 19, APEX, NC: Sat: 9:30 

221-17 Northern Blvd, Bayside Queens, NY, AM, 8 RDS. One Open DIV. - Quads, 

1-800-27-ADRIA. CT. Ginger White, 631- Modified Swiss, KotH. EF: $50. All Fun and 

399-2579, . HA. Games, 958 US Hwy 64 Apex, NC 27523. 

NOVEMBER 12, CHICAGO, IL: Sat: CT. Katie Bernardina, 7501 Cove Point Dr. 

10:30 AM, 8 RDS. R-R/8+KOTH. EF: $50. Apt 20 Raleigh, NC 27613, or Ryan Fischer, . 

CT. Marty Gabriel, 2941 Whitetail Drive, 

HA. 

Charleston IL 61920, (H) 217-348-9230 NOVEMBER 19, DALLAS, TX: Sat: 

(C) 217-508-9035, . HA. 

groups (with director discretion predicated 

NOVEMBER 12, EDMONTON, 

upon mix of field). LUN. after 2 games. 

AB, CAN: Sat: 9:30 AM, 6 RDS. R-R/K- Walk-ins o.k. Crowne Plaza Suites - Dallas 

H. EF: $30 (CAN). Entry fee payable to 

Park Cntrl., 7800 Alpha Rd, Dallas, TX 

Edmonton Scrabble Club; send cheque 75240. CT. Chris Cree, 3708 Bryn Mawr 

to Huguette Settle, 112 Clareview Road Dr., Dallas, TX 75225, 214-701-4681, 

NW, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5A or Carla Cree, 

3Y3. Register as early as possible but no 3708 Bryn Mawr Dr., Dallas, TX 75225, 

later than the THU. before the tournament. 

214-701-4681, . HA. 

Stanley A. Milner Library, Centen- 

NOVEMBER 19, FORT LAUDER- 

nial Room, 7 Sir Winston Churchill Square, DALE, FL: Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. EF: $35. 

Edmonton, AB. CT. Huguette Settle, 112 Add $5 late fee after November 7, 2011. 

Clareview Road NW, Edmonton, Alberta, Round robin pairings - 2 to 4 DIVS., 

Canada T5A 3Y3, 780.476.8019, . HA. 

Lauderdale Bridge Club, Holiday Park, Fort 

NOVEMBER 12-13, BRANDON, MB, Lauderdale, FL 33304. CT. Tim Wise, 954- 

CAN: Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sun: 9:00 AM, 942-6319, . HA. 

4 RDS. EF: $65 (CAN). Entry fee increases NOVEMBER 19, LINDEN, MI: Faux 

to $65 after November 10. Entry fee incl. Fenthion. Sat: 9:00 AM, 7 RDS. R-R/8. EF: 

coffee breaks and SUN. LUN. Assiniboine $40. Entry fee increases to $45 after 11/9 

Adult Collegiate, 725 Rosser Ave, Brandon, and before 11/19. $50 cash only at the 

MB. HP: See flyer for hotel suggestions. Free door. Loose Senior Center, 707 N Bridge 

parking on Rosser Ave and at all city meters Street, Linden, MI. CT. Margaret Sutherland, 

on the weekend. CT. Amy Knight, 811 15th 

c/o Red Dragon Hobbies, PO Box 399, 

Street, Brandon, MB R7A 4W9, 204-728- Otisville, MI 48463, 810-653-0152, . 

3271, or Carol Enns. 

HA. 

HA. 

NOVEMBER 19, MILLBURN, NJ: Sat: 

NOVEMBER 13, GUELPH, ON, CAN: 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: $45. 3 or 4 DIVS. 

Sun: 2:30 PM, 6 RDS. EF: $30 (CAN). depending on number of entrants. The 

DIVS. of 6-11 players set at director’s discretion. 

Millburn Library, 200 Glen Avenue, Mill- 

Register by 11:30 AM on day of burn, NJ. CT. Seth Mandel, or Don Carson. HA. 

Squirrel Tooth Alice’s, 649 Scott- 

NOVEMBER 19, OSHAWA, ON, 

sdale Drive, Unit 5, Guelph, ON. CT. Andy CAN: Sat: 9:30 AM, 7 RDS. Sat: 9:30 AM, 

Saunders, 82 Clairfields Drive West, Guelph, 7 RDS. EF: $75 (CAN)/$75 (US). Entry 

ON, N1G 5H8, (416) 668-7500,

NASPA Bulletin, September 2011, Vol. 3, No. 9 

More Tourneys 

Challenge Contest 9 Submissions Wanted 

from UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS, p. 9 by the Bulletin Committee 


Thomas Tremont, 630-469-2282, 

or Don Rathberger. HA. 

NOVEMBER 26-27, TCC - KINGSTON, 

ON, CAN: Toronto v. Montreal. R-R/Mod.R- 

R. EF: $20 (CAN). Game schedule & DIVS.: 

3 DIVS., 12 games, modified round robin. 

Game #1 begins 1pm SAT., 11/26; # games 

each day TBD by vote. Confederation Place 

Hotel, 237 Ontario St, Kingston ON, 888 825- 

4656. HP: Rooms held until Nov. 11; no deadline 

on guaranteed RM rate of $89/night. Contact 

hotel 613 549-6300 and mention Scrabble 

This month’s challenge is to construct the 

highest-scoring solitaire game as follows. 

Each play’s score must be evenly divisible 

by ten. As usual, every play must be able to 

withstand a OTCWL2+LL challenge. You 

do not need to use up all the tiles, and any 

left in the bag should not be deducted from 

your final score. In the sample solution, the 

words played — DECILE (20), DIGITAL 

(20), INTENSE (70), DECIMATE (80) 

and VANDYKED (230) score a total of 420 

points. 

Greetings to all! Do you have a great 

photograph from a recent tournament, an 

interesting SCRABBLE-related story, an unbelievable 

phoney, a mind-boggling bingo, 

a cartoon, a photograph, or a really great 

scoring combination that you would like 

to share? Email us at the Bulletin at info@ 

scrabbleplayers.org, and you may find yourself 

front and center of the next issue! We 

want to hear from you! 

tournament. http://www.confederationplace. 

com/. CT. Lisa Kessler, or 

Sary Karanofsky, . 

HA. 

DECEMBER 3-4, AUSTIN, TX: Sat: 


EF: $80/$60/$50/$40. Fixed DIV. sizes of 

14 by rating; bottom two DIVS. may be 

smaller or larger than 14, or combined 

at director’s discretion. Collins DIV. 

will be offered if at least six players sign 

up for it ($80 entry fee). Visual Innovations, 

8500 Shoal Creek Blvd., Austin TX 

78757. CT. Geoff Thevenot, 512-921-9169, 

or Jean McArthur, 

512-293-2360, . HA. 

DECEMBER 3-4, FORT LAUDER- 

DALE, FL: Sat: 9:00 AM, 8 RDS. Sun: 9:00 

AM, 8 RDS. R-R/K-H. EF: Div. 1: $100, 

Div. 2-4: $80. $25 late fee after November 

19, 2011. Entry due November 19, 2011. 

16 games. 4 DIVS. Fort Lauderdale Bridge 

Club, Holiday Park, Fort Lauderdale, FL 

33304. HP: Contact Tim Wise (call 954- 

942-6319 or email wise9778@gmail.com) 

for a list of hotels close to Holiday Park. 

CT. Tim Wise, 954-942-6319, . HA. 

DECEMBER 4, BERKELEY, CA: Sun: 

Noon, 6 RDS. EF: $30. Entry fee incl. buffet 

LUN. The Viceroy Indian Restaurant, 21 

Shattuck Square, Berkeley, CA 94704. CT. 

Ed DeGuzman. HA. 

DECEMBER 4, LAGUNA WOODS, 

CA: Sun: ? EF: $45. Late Fee $10, after Fri 

before event. Modified round robin. Prizes: 

1st $90; 2nd $50 in every group of 8. 

Laguna Woods Village, Clubhouse 5, Rm 1, 


92637. CT. Gary Moss, (949) 510-1673, 

. HA. 

DECEMBER 4, PHILADELPHIA, PA: 

Sun: 11:00 AM, 7 RDS. R-R/K-H. equal 

DIVS., Collins DIV. if enough interest. EF: 

$50. TBD - Philadelphia. CT. Connie Creed, 

233 South 6th Street, #2502, Philadelphia, 

PA 19106, 215-238-1880, . 

HA. 

DECEMBER 7, LCT - AKRON, OH: 

6:00 PM, 4 RDS. CT. Dallas Johnson, 330- 

676-1723, . HA. 

To enter the contest, enter your game 

into Quackle (assigning alternate moves to 

each player), and save and upload a .gcg file 

through NASPA Member Services, before 

midnight EDT on the evening of October 

22nd. The winning solution will be published 

in the next issue of the Bulletin, and 

the winner will receive a year’s membership 

renewal. Ties will be broken in favour of the 

solution which is received first. 

We asked last month for the highest-scoring 

solitaire game each of whose main words 

is a lexical 4-4 compound. The winning submission 

below used 16 words to score 2,158 

points and gets Tony Rasch (for the second 

month in a row) a year’s NASPA membership 

renewal. 

Game Position 


The position showed below occurred in 

the last round of the finals on September 

25th, 2011 at the Human Computer Showdown 

between Adam Logan (human) and 

Quacke (Computer) in Toronto, ON, in a a 

tournament game rated in the NASPA CSW 

rating system. Adam held AEEINTU and a 

382–349 lead over Quackle, but needed to 

widen that to a 60-point lead to claim the 

prize. What did he do? What would you have 

done? What should Adam have done? 

Last month’s answer to the position from 

the NSC tournament was for Nigel Richards 

to play TuG-H-RIKS as a double-double 

through the H at 5h. 

Copyright ©2011 NASPA. SCRABBLE® 

is a trademark of Hasbro, Inc. in the United 

States and Canada, and of Mattel, Inc. elsewhere. 

The NASPA Bulletin is available 

exclusively to NASPA members online during 

the first week of publication, and can 

be publicly down loaded from http://www. 

scrabbleplayers.org in later weeks. Comments 

concerning and submissions to the Bulletin 

may be emailed to info@scrabbleplayers.org. 

The NASPA Bulletin is designed, typeset (in 

Adobe Garamond 10/10.5 with heads in Gill 

Sans) and edited by John Chew and Kristen 

Pederson Chew of Poslfit Press; graphic design 

by Alice Ching-Chew. *

September 2011: Vol. 3, No. 9 - North American Scrabble Players ...

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?