December 5-8, 2003

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Back to 2003 Canadian SCRABBLE Championship Live Coverage

2003 Canadian SCRABBLE Championship Commentary: Round 14

Go to: Before the Tournament, Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7, Round 8, Round 9, Round 10, Round 11, Round 12, Round 13, Round 14, Round 15, Round 16, Round 17, Round 18, Award Ceremony, Final Round 1, Final Round 2, Final Round 3, Final Round 4, After the Tournament.

Jeff Parsons (St. John's NF) played Dean Saldanha (Richmond BC) at Board 1 this round, and their annotated game is available for browsing.

Lou Cornelis (Ottawa ON) played Evan Berofsky (Thornhill ON) at Board 2 this round, and their annotated game is available for browsing.

round 14

This is our third game today and afterwards we'll have a lunch break until 1:15.

At table 5, David Boys (Dorval QC) opened with JOINERS for 92 points though which Andrew Golding (Verdun QC) played DISHERIT through the I for 68 points. Later in the game, along the triple line, David played ACINOSE for 89. The C hooked onto the front of OHO to form COHO. In the end game, both players were playing against the clock. David was victorious, 485-317.

Diane Brown was impressed by the bingo AZOtEMIA to the A for 90, played by Anita Rackham (Mansonville QC) in her game vs. Ian Bell (Waterloo ON). It was Anita's win, 417-338.

At table 7, Diane saw Robin Pollock Daniel (Toronto ON) play pARANOIA through the N in her game against Tim Anglin (Scarborough ON). She went on to win this game, so perhaps the play explained Tim's state of mind. Robin used three Ss for LOSTNESS played thorugh the S for 62 points. The added bonus? Tim challenged. Final score, 445-284, and a respite from Robin's losing streak.

At table 25, Lynda Wise (Toronto ON) had another winning game, this time versus Arthur Carvalho (Dollard-des-Ormeaux QC). She pointed out Arthur's play of QUEAn/AHA/YOn for 82 points. She again made a nice extension in this round. Earlier in the game she played FRINGE and then extended it with a front IN hook of INFRINGE for 36 points. She also made the bingo MARINATe through the I. Game score, 367-361.

Always too late with the camera, it seems, I miss a post-game handshake between Vince Castellano (Fairfax, VA) and George MacAulay (Saskatoon SK). The latter won their game, 455-364.

At table 1, the man of the hour, Dean Saldanha (Richmond BC), defeated Jeff Parsons (St. John's NF), 395-379. Jeff got down PiCTURES from the P for 92 to the triple and Dean played SHADILY/FAYS for 102.

I catch Laura hugging her dad Salvatore Desiato (Toronto ON). He shrugs and says, "yes, I can still smile after a five-point loss." I look down toward the board, which he is busy reconfiguring with possible plays that could have won him the game. Game score, 367-362.

Steve Ozorio (Mississauga ON) always seems to win games that I walk by. This time he decimated Mike Ebanks (Calgary AB), 422-293. While Mike admits to being a busy scorekeeper, Steve played EMeTiNES from the E for 74. He then got down FLINDERS for 92. I note a six-tile double-double, PRIVATE, for 48 points by Steve to which he added an R later for AURA/PRIVATER for a bunch more points.

As people mill out towards lunch, Zev Kaufman (Toronto ON) stops to tell me that he made "one good play" today with the word MENISCI. This helped him win his first game today, which "brought him back into the tournament." He's had zero blanks today and has won all three games this morning. He looks forward to the opposite blank situation this afternoon--getting ALL the blanks and winning.

Ian Bell (Waterloo ON) hesitates to tell me about a phoney he made during the first game on Friday. He says his spouse tells him that I reported another phoney he made that game, so I guess m reporting one that wasn't called off is in order. His opponent, Glenn Dunlop (Brantford ON), let him get away with CRoQUES*. Looking back, Ian sees he had CiRQUES, and he isn't sure why he didn't play the good word, but that is decision-making under stress showing.

During lunch, I see Roger Cullman, who is here volunteering today, catching up on the internet coverage in the club's business centre. I laughed because unlike most people who aren't here, he actually knows what is going on here!

Andrea Jo Wilson of the Toronto Sun is here interviewing players for an article on the Championship that will appear in tomorrow morning's paper. One of her questions to me was, "why is Robin Pollock Daniel (Toronto ON) losing so many games?" I told her about the luck factor and the strength of Robin's opponents. I further guaranteed that if she gave Robin a chance to explain why, like any good player, Robin would be more than happy to go into great detail about the nuances of every game she played and explain the intricacies of the wins and losses.