As originally posted to the crossword-games-pro (CGP) mailing list.
From: jac@doe.carleton.ca (James A. Cherry)
Date: Mon, 24 Nov 1997 18:46:50 -0500 (EST)
Subject: WSC97 final, game 2
Message-id: <199711242346.XAA03087@paraguay.doe.carleton.ca>
Joel: Turn 1 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel ?AIOUVZ 0 ----------------------------- Matt ?EILRSS 0 1|= ' = ' =| 2| - " " - | 8d ZOUAVe$ +54 54 3| - ' ' - | 4|' - ' - '| Nice play, Joel. ZO# 8g (22) might be 5| - - | considered, though ?AIUV is a lousy keep, 6| " " " " | and sim backs this up: ZO# is 11 points 7| ' ' ' ' | worse. Get the points now, and turn 8|= ' - ' =| over tiles to draw the other blank, I 9| ' ' ' ' | say. 10| " " " " | 11| - - | 12|' - ' - '| 13| - ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 1 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel ACEGIIU 54 ----------------------------- -> Matt ?EILRSS 0 1|= ' = ' =| 2| - " " - | d6 SIZzLERS +82 82 3| - ' ' - | 4|' - ' - '| I missed this word in the Montreal 5| - - | tourney one year. It's the highest- 6| " " " " | scoring bingo and is also the correct 7| ' ' ' ' | play. The d5 vs. d6 positions are 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| indistinguishable in simulation. 9| ' ' ' ' | 10| " " " " | 11| - - | 12|' - ' - '| 13| - ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 2 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel ACEGIIU 54 ----------------------------- Matt EIIOTWY 82 1|= ' = ' =| 2| - " " - | g4 GUAIAC$ +13 67 3| - ' ' - | 4|' - ' - '| Lots of interesting choices here. 2000 5| - - | 1-move sims show: 6| " S " " " | 7| ' I ' ' ' | 19.0 c1 GAUCIE# (20) 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| -1.0 10b AULIC (15) 9| ' z ' ' ' | -4.7 10b CILIA (15) 10| " L " " " | -5.7 g4 GUAIAC$ (13) 11| E - - | -5.8 13a GUISE (12) 12|' R ' - '| -6.8 10a ACULEI (16) 13| - S ' ' - | 14| - " " - | I hate G's, so I can see wanting to dump 15|= ' = ' =| the damn thing. ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 2 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel DEEINPT 67 ----------------------------- -> Matt EIIOTWY 82 1|= ' = ' =| 2| - " " - | c2 YOWIE +24 106 3| - ' ' - | 4|' - G ' - '| Best, beating the 7i placement for the 5| - U - | same score by 3.8 in sim. 6| " S " A " " | 7| ' I I ' ' | 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| 9| ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| - S ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 3 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel DEEINPT 67 ----------------------------- Matt HIIQTVY 106 1|= ' = ' =| 2| - Y " " - | h1 ENDITE +32 99 3| O ' ' - | 4|' W - G ' - '| Another big set of choices. 2000 1-move: 5| I - U - | 6| " E S " A " " | 35.8 h1 NEPIT# (30) 7| ' I I ' ' | -1.6 2b TYPED (30) 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| -2.5 2b PYNED# (30) 9| ' z C ' ' | -4.3 d1 PENE# (35) 10| " L " " " | -4.5 h1 ENDITE (32) 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| I'm guessing Joel didn't know NEPIT#. 13| - S ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 3 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel EFIKPTX 99 ----------------------------- -> Matt HIIQTVY 106 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y " N " - | 13b QIS# +24 130 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| Best. Love that SOWPODS! 5| I - U T - | 6| " E S " A E " " | 7| ' I I ' ' | 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| 9| ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| - S ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 4 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel EFIKPTX 99 ----------------------------- Matt EHIOTVY 130 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y " N " - | 14a KIF +47 146 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| Best. 5| I - U T - | 6| " E S " A E " " | 7| ' I I ' ' | 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| 9| ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14| - " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 4 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel AEOPSTX 146 ----------------------------- -> Matt EHIOTVY 130 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y " N " - | b6 HOVE +32 162 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| Interestingly, the counterintuitive HOY 5| I - U T - | b1 (33) wins simulation by 3.7 over HOVE 6| " E S " A E " " | and 5.0 over THOU f5 (34). I don't think 7| ' I I ' ' | I'd have played HOY over the board. I 8|= Z O U A V e ' =| suppose the leave must be strong enough 9| ' z C ' ' | to overcome the position. 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 5 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel AEOPSTX 146 ----------------------------- Matt BEILTTY 162 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y " N " - | 15c SEXPOT +54 200 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| While SEXPOT is a nice-looking play, it 5| I - U T - | fares significantly worse than the simple 6| H E S " A E " " | OX e10 (38) in sim, by a whopping 13.8 7| O ' I I ' ' | points. EXPATS a1 (55), despite its 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| inferior keep (O vs. A), beats SEXPOT by 9| E ' z C ' ' | 1.9 in simulation also. The AEPST keep 10| " L " " " | after OX is extremely strong on this 11| E - - | wide-open board. 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= ' = ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 5 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel ADEPRRR 200 ----------------------------- -> Matt BEILTTY 162 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y " N " - | 2f BENTY# +24 186 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| Also not a good play. BY b2 (33) wins 5| I - U T - | handily in sim, by more than 8 points 6| H E S " A E " " | over BAETYL 6f (25). BITTY 7i (23) 7| O ' I I ' ' | and YBET e3 (25) are 15 worse, and Matt's 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| chosen play is almost 20 points worse 9| E ' z C ' ' | than BY. 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 6 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel ADEPRRR 200 ----------------------------- Matt AIILRTT 186 1|= ' E ' =| 2| - Y B E N T Y - | d1 PARE +35 235 3| O ' D ' - | 4|' W - G I - '| Correct. DRAP# e3 (23) is a nicer keep, 5| I - U T - | but only by 5 points, which isn't enough 6| H E S " A E " " | to make up for the 12 points less the 7| O ' I I ' ' | play scores. 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| 9| E ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 6 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel DMNORRU 235 ----------------------------- -> Matt AIILRTT 186 1|= P E ' =| 2| - Y A B E N T Y - | 11a LITERATI +66 252 3| O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Then again, sometimes you get away with 5| I - U T - | making an inferior play. LITERATI is 6| H E S " A E " " | the only OSPD bingo in that rack, where 7| O ' I I ' ' | TRITICAL#, TRIALIST#, and TRIALITY# 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| don't play. 9| E ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11| E - - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 7 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel DMNORRU 235 ----------------------------- Matt AAEEENS 252 1|= P E ' =| 2| - Y A B E N T Y - | b1 URN +21 256 3| O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Slightly better is URD# b1 (24), which 5| I - U T - | sims 3.0 better than Joel's play. ORD# 6| H E S " A E " " | b1 (24) sims 2.8 worse than URD#, while 7| O ' I I ' ' | ODEUM 1f (25) sims 8.3 worse. 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| 9| E ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11|L I T E R A T I - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 7 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel DGJMMOR 256 ----------------------------- -> Matt AAEEENS 252 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 10c ALAE +14 266 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| The only move that might come close to 5| I - U T - | this is ANSAE j6 (27), but ALAE is right 6| H E S " A E " " | in sim by 1.4. Nice find. 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| 9| E ' z C ' ' | 10| " L " " " | 11|L I T E R A T I - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 8 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel DGJMMOR 256 ----------------------------- Matt CDEEENS 266 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | f5 MM$ +28 284 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Best. GIMMOR# 4g (22) is cute. 5| I - U T - | 6| H E S " A E " " | 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| 9| E ' z C ' ' | 10| " A L A E " " | 11|L I T E R A T I - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 8 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel DGJLOOR 284 ----------------------------- -> Matt CDEEENS 266 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | j8 SCENED# +29 295 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| The top three simulation choices happen 5| I - M U T - | to be CENSED j5 (33), SEC j8 (29) behind 6| H E S M A E " " | by 2.6, and CEDES j4 (30) behind by 4.5. 7| O ' I I ' ' | Matt's play falls behind by 8.4, though 8|= V Z O U A V e ' =| it's not unreasonable to block the easy 9| E ' z C ' ' | bingo line at 12h. 10| " A L A E " " | 11|L I T E R A T I - | 12|' R ' - '| 13| Q I S ' ' - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 9 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel DGJLOOR 284 ----------------------------- Matt BDEFNOW 295 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 13j DOJO +24 308 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Again, I'd not have guessed this, but 5| I - M U T - | DOLOR k10 (24) sims 4.3 better than 6| H E S M A E " " | DOJO. 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 10| " A L A E E " | 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D - | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 9 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel ADGLLNR 308 ----------------------------- -> Matt BDEFNOW 295 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 14k DOWF# +39 334 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| I hear that Mark Nyman, commenting on the 5| I - M U T - | game, wondered aloud if Matt knew BOWNED# 6| H E S M A E " " | 1j (55). Matt makes the second-best 7| O ' I I ' ' | play. 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 10| " A L A E E " | 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | 14|K I F " " - | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 10 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel ADGLLNR 308 ----------------------------- Matt ABEGHNT 334 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 15l GLAD +48 356 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Best. 5| I - M U T - | 6| H E S M A E " " | 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 10| " A L A E E " | 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | 14|K I F " " D O W F | 15|= S E X P O T ' =| ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 10 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel AILNNRR 356 ----------------------------- -> Matt ABEGHNT 334 1|= U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 1a GU# +9 343 3| N O R ' D ' - | Unseen: AIOU LNNRR Bag: OU 4|' W E G I - '| 5| I - M U T - | Matt was in time trouble. Here are how 6| H E S M A E " " | some of Matt's bag-emptiers fare (W-L-T): 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| 12m BAH (21) 10-26-0 (OU win) 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 1j BAH (19) 7-26-3 (OU win) 10| " A L A E E " | 1j BAHT (20) 6-27-3 (OU win) 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 10i BEEGAH# (20) 3-33-0 (OU lose) 12|' R ' E - '| 10i BEENAH# (19) 3-33-0 (OU lose) 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | 10h THENAGE$ (15) 2-34-0 (OU lose) 14|K I F " " D O W F | 1j BHANG (19) 2-34-0 (OU lose) 15|= S E X P O T G L A D| 1g BEENAH# (26) 1-35-0 (OU lose) ----------------------------- 10h BEEGAH# (16) 0-35-1 (OU lose) BAH 12m wins the most games; I believe Nyman suggested THENAGE$, and Maven wanted BEENAH# 1g. It turns out any of BAH 1j, BAH 12m, or BAHT 1j wins for Matt given what's in the bag. However, he needs to know LITERATION to win in a couple of those games! (EON i10 and TOE i10 are two of his needed moves.) I can understand the temptation to let Joel empty the bag, especially under time pressure. Joel: Turn 11 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel AILNNRR 356 ----------------------------- Matt ABEHNTU 343 1|G U P E ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 1g REIN +13 369 3| N O R ' D ' - | Unseen: AEOU BHNT Bag: O 4|' W E G I - '| 5| I - M U T - | Here's how Joel's plays fare (W-L-T): 6| H E S M A E " " | 7| O ' I I ' ' | 12g INNER (15) 7- 1-0 (O win) 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| 1g REIN (13) 4- 3-1 (O win) 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 12f RIN (12) 2- 4-2 (O win) 10| " A L A E E " | 1j NIRL# (10) 2- 6-0 (O win) 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 10i RENAIL (8) 1- 7-0 (O lose) 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | Joel would have to try hard to lose this 14|K I F " " D O W F | game, given that the O was in the bag. 15|= S E X P O T G L A D| INNER loses only if Joel draws the H. ----------------------------- Matt: Turn 11 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Joel ALNOR 369 ----------------------------- -> Matt ABEHNTU 343 1|G U P R E I N ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 3j EATH +20 363 3| N O R ' D ' - | 4|' W E G I - '| Matt's best play is BEENAH# 10i (19). He 5| I - M U T - | needs to block Joel's outplay of RELOAN 6| H E S M A E " " | 10i (8). Under time pressure, or maybe 7| O ' I I ' ' | just looking for an out-in-two (he keeps 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| BUN 12m), he doesn't lose the game -- his 9| E ' z C ' C ' | spread is worse than it would be, but 10| " A L A E E " | that's irrelevant here. 11|L I T E R A T I N - | 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | 14|K I F " " D O W F | 15|= S E X P O T G L A D| ----------------------------- Joel: Turn 12 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o -> Joel ALNOR 369 ----------------------------- Matt BNU 363 1|G U P R E I N ' =| 2| R Y A B E N T Y - | 10i RELOAN +8 377 3| N O R ' D ' E A T H | (BUN) +10 387 4|' W E G I - '| 5| I - M U T - | LATRON# l1 (14) scores more, but it no 6| H E S M A E " " | longer matters. 7| O ' I I ' ' | 8|= V Z O U A V e S ' =| Final score: Joel 387, Matt 363 9| E ' z C ' C ' | 10| " A L A E E " | Joel's efficiency was 95.8% this game, 11|L I T E R A T I N - | while Matt's was 88.8%. 12|' R ' E - '| 13| Q I S ' ' D O J O | 14|K I F " " D O W F | 15|= S E X P O T G L A D| -----------------------------
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