2012 - The Year in Scrabble
It's that time of year, for the summary of 2012, the year that was in Scrabble.
Record: 79-40-1 (66.25%). TWL 39-14, CSW 40-26-1. Hey, I played more CSW than TWL this year in tournament settings, that's cool.
Spread: +4963. TWL +2453, CSW +2510
Finishes: 3 1sts, 2 2nd's, 2 3rds, and a 13th at Nationals.
Rating in: 1735 TWL/1860 CSW
Rating out: 1798 TWL/1905 CSW
Rating peaks: 1820 TWL/1960 CSW
Money won: $785, plus a couple of restaurant gift cards.
High game: 591, Game 9 at NSC.
High Play: CrA(P)OLAS for 149, Game 20 of EC CSW Main Event.
Highlights: The Eastern Championships, hands down. Going 8-0 to win the Early Bird, including my first official victory over a 2000-rated player, then promptly winning the first 8 games of the CSW main event and holding off Koenig for first place in a very hard-fought battle. Scrabblin' in the Park also went very well this year, 14-3 across both days. Being in contention after Day 3 of Nationals was pretty awesome too. In fact, just being at my first Nationals was a blast. Great to meet in person so many people I've known from the Boggle and Scrabble communities. Seeing several of my Scrabble friends have breakout performances (Liz breaking 1700, Quinn winning Turkey Collins, Marsh grabbing 7th at NSC CSW, John Price going 20-0 over a weekend of Scrabble) was outstanding.
Lowlights. Day 4 at Nationals. Ug#, no more needs to be said. Having a chance to win in the last round in two local tournaments this year, and having Erickson Smith blow me out both times. The guy is good, and he's not even close to being fully booked up yet. Not going to as many tournaments as I would have liked to, but that's the case every year. Just so many events on the calendar, and I like to maintain a life outside of Scrabble as well.
Looking forward to next year: January is the local charity tournament, whilst the majority of the Scrabble world is in Reno and New Orleans. EC's in February again, where I'll try for a trifecta of Collins main event titles. Nationals is pretty likely, considering the location and venue cost. It may be a crappy venue, but Katie and I will still be going to Sushisamba and Carnevino and wherever else that catches our eye, we just have to sleep at the venue. Worlds doesn't look too likely at this point, especially if the qualifier is out in SF. That's OK, I still have so much to learn in the big book and about the game that I can wait for 2015 to roll around. And if we have switched by then and I get crowded out by the legit 2000's, that's OK too, because that means we will all be playing Collins and I will be a happy camper. I'd also like to get to a tournament that I've never attended before next year, whethere that is WV or Asheville or somewhere else.
I hope that the Scrabble community has a harmonious 2013, and that we remember that we play the game for enjoyment first, whether that enjoyment is derived from winning, competition, cool words, camaraderie, socialization, or some other factor that eludes me. Cheers, and hope to see you on the circuit next year!
Record: 79-40-1 (66.25%). TWL 39-14, CSW 40-26-1. Hey, I played more CSW than TWL this year in tournament settings, that's cool.
Spread: +4963. TWL +2453, CSW +2510
Finishes: 3 1sts, 2 2nd's, 2 3rds, and a 13th at Nationals.
Rating in: 1735 TWL/1860 CSW
Rating out: 1798 TWL/1905 CSW
Rating peaks: 1820 TWL/1960 CSW
Money won: $785, plus a couple of restaurant gift cards.
High game: 591, Game 9 at NSC.
High Play: CrA(P)OLAS for 149, Game 20 of EC CSW Main Event.
Highlights: The Eastern Championships, hands down. Going 8-0 to win the Early Bird, including my first official victory over a 2000-rated player, then promptly winning the first 8 games of the CSW main event and holding off Koenig for first place in a very hard-fought battle. Scrabblin' in the Park also went very well this year, 14-3 across both days. Being in contention after Day 3 of Nationals was pretty awesome too. In fact, just being at my first Nationals was a blast. Great to meet in person so many people I've known from the Boggle and Scrabble communities. Seeing several of my Scrabble friends have breakout performances (Liz breaking 1700, Quinn winning Turkey Collins, Marsh grabbing 7th at NSC CSW, John Price going 20-0 over a weekend of Scrabble) was outstanding.
Lowlights. Day 4 at Nationals. Ug#, no more needs to be said. Having a chance to win in the last round in two local tournaments this year, and having Erickson Smith blow me out both times. The guy is good, and he's not even close to being fully booked up yet. Not going to as many tournaments as I would have liked to, but that's the case every year. Just so many events on the calendar, and I like to maintain a life outside of Scrabble as well.
Looking forward to next year: January is the local charity tournament, whilst the majority of the Scrabble world is in Reno and New Orleans. EC's in February again, where I'll try for a trifecta of Collins main event titles. Nationals is pretty likely, considering the location and venue cost. It may be a crappy venue, but Katie and I will still be going to Sushisamba and Carnevino and wherever else that catches our eye, we just have to sleep at the venue. Worlds doesn't look too likely at this point, especially if the qualifier is out in SF. That's OK, I still have so much to learn in the big book and about the game that I can wait for 2015 to roll around. And if we have switched by then and I get crowded out by the legit 2000's, that's OK too, because that means we will all be playing Collins and I will be a happy camper. I'd also like to get to a tournament that I've never attended before next year, whethere that is WV or Asheville or somewhere else.
I hope that the Scrabble community has a harmonious 2013, and that we remember that we play the game for enjoyment first, whether that enjoyment is derived from winning, competition, cool words, camaraderie, socialization, or some other factor that eludes me. Cheers, and hope to see you on the circuit next year!