Round 12



What a difference one round makes. At least for one player. Table

1 again has Russell Byers (GBR) in his favorite seat (facing me) and

his opponent (facing out, the seat the loser of the past three games

always seems to sit in), Joe Edley squaring off. Edley, 

resplendent in his gray LL Bean Worlds PolarTec pullover versus

one of those by-now famous red shirts! 



Table 2 has Allan Saldanha vs Mark Nyman (both GBR). Allan's mom, 

Margarite Saldanha just brought me up the challenge BEDAMNED. She

said she didn't mean to be rude. :)



The judges just got two separate slips at the very same time:

TOCO# and KOTO#$.



Table 3 has the Feltster (USA) against David Acton (GBR). In the last

round, when I went up to Acton and Nyman, I caught them just at they

shook hands. By Mark's face, I decided he'd just lost. He'd actually

won! I mentioned to them that I could hardly tell who won and who

lost. Nyman said, and I paraphrase, "Of course you can't, we're

British." :)



The North American Joels are now at Tables 5 and 6. Sherman (USA) is

playing Gitonga Nderitu (KEN), and Wapnick (CAN) has Jeff Grant (NZ)

Charnwit Sukhumrattanaporn (THI) beat David Webb (GBR).

The score was 498-379. Charwit played: VIOLATE (88), REsAWING (95), and

bREAKING (101). He also played AVOUCH. Now that is sure strange.  Webb

played DEASHES. Webb also played FUJI, NEEM, HECTOR.

Their last racks were NNVIZRT for Webb and MAXERU for Charnwit.

Due to clever play on Charnwit's side, he stuck Webb with VIZ.

Quite a 30 point prize at the end. DAvid says, "He had the temerity

to taunt me by playing two phonies: YOUsING and VAWED." He

got away with neither, but got the win anyway. Webb is 7-5. He was

fine until two rounds ago when he was 7-3.



Table 1's winner was Joe Edley (USA) over Russell Byers (GBR).

Russell says it was a bit of a struggle this time. Joe played

FaINTED and two plays later Russell played SENARII. Then Russell

played ZEX on the triple!!!! 57 points! We need sowpods for that word,

too. Forgive me for getting off the track! . On Russell's

final rack he has PARELLE, which was unplayable. If it had gotten

down, he would have at least gotten closer to Edley's score. As

Russell remembers, Joe had 420 and he had 340. It was Russell's worst

game so far at the tournament. If the law of averages holds out, he

might be in for worse luck yet. But we hope not. His sister is now up

to 7 wins.  His teammate, Penny Downer (GBR) won her game against

Steve Gruzd (ZAF). She made: MISRATINg through an R and an I on the

board (for only 60!). After playing LURK, his leave was UP? and then

he picked JOVV. Talk about the luck of the draw..... Afterwards,

he says the game was remarkably less interesting.  He tried to set

up an out play of POOVe, which was then to be followed by JUVe

off the e in POOVe. But, she smartly blocked that open e, 

with YAW, and it was all over. She had 417 and he had 347. 

Steve is now 7-5.



Adam Logan (CAN) lost to Randy Hersom (USA). At the end of the 

game, he needed the last A, or the last I, or the last U, or one 

of the two blanks, but couldn't get any of them.  The score was 

460-379 after Randy went out with STeAMIlY and caught Adam

with CGJLQT. OUCH!



Robin Pollock Daniel (CAN) is smiling now. She was down. He (John

Holgate--her second Aussie in a row) had everything. He

bingoed with TRAYnED, VALOROUS, and IGNEOUs. She had zilch. Seacond

to last turn, Robin bingoed with RESECTION to the bottom triple for

the win. 431-425. That play alone earned her 83 points. She also

made this play off of his blank s from IGNEOUs. She also had an E

in that lane. A marvelous play.



Nyman beat out Saldanha by 6! 428-422. Mark played GASTRIN. Saldanha

played GUNFIRE, WILINESS, and DENTURE. It looks like Mark just made

many high-point smaller plays. ZARF (36), YEP (42), and KAPHS for 49.



I just met Paul Feser and Adrian Mannella! Great fun. Local average

players kinda like me. They have come to see the event from the

stands, so to say. Adrian, who works nearby, is also here with

Teresa Schaefer. They all members of the 171 Washington, DC, Scrabble

club. The club averages 15 players per week. The delegation from

Ghana and one player from the Israeli team, Paloma, visited the 

club this past Tuesday. So, they are all buddies. I caught Paul 

sitting beside Michael Ofori, the president of the Ghanaian club.