2008 saw downs and ups for the Ashland Scrabble Club. The first few meetings
of the year at the Inner Child Cafe saw record attendances. The venue did not
work out and then attendances began to fall. The club estivated until August,
when we began to meet again at the Beanery. Now we are thriving again.
25 different persons recorded official club games in 2008 compared with only
14 the year before. 221 games were logged in 2008 compared with 161 in
2007.
Before I list the individual club leaders for 2008 and career club leaders, there
are some exciting bits of news for 2009.
Beginning Sunday, January 4, Ashland’s Scrabble Club will become the first club
in the United States to use as its official word source Collins Scrabble Words.
This is the word source used in the vast majority of other countries in the
world for official tournament play and at the World Championship. I made
this decision because I want us to be on the vanguard of change. North
America is starting to be left behind on the world stage because of its
resistance to join the rest of the world in using the combined British and
American English lexica. I am hoping that other clubs will follow our example
and help us to attain eventual unity and reestablish dominance.
Secondly, on April 11 and 12, Ashland Springs Hotel will be home to the first
annual West Coast World Championship Wordlist Challenge (the WCWCWC).
This is an international tournament which will likewise use Collins Scrabble
Words and WESPA (World English Scrabble Players Association) rules instead
of The Official Tournament and Club Word List and National Scrabble Association
rules typically used in tournaments in the United States. More info at
www.cross-tables.com
Now the leaders for 2008:
Top Winning Percentages (minimum 10 games):
Travis Chaney .831 (108 wins, 22 losses)
Matthew Stewart .455 (5 wins, 6 losses)
Ron Gideons .408 (20 wins, 29 losses)
Julius Chaney .392 (40 wins, 62 losses)
Most games played:
Travis Chaney 130
Julius Chaney 102
Mitzi Loftus 55
Ron Gideons 49
Top Average Scores (minimum 10 games):
Travis Chaney 436.6
Ron Gideons 384
Matthew Stewart 370.5
Julius Chaney 306
Top Bingos Per Game (minimum 10 games):
Travis Chaney 2.12 (275 bingos in 130 games)
Ron Gideons 1.53 (75 bingos in 49 games)
Matthew Stewart 1.27 (14 bingos in 11 games)
Julius Chaney 0.91 (93 bingos in 102 games)
CAREER LEADERS:
Games Played:
Travis Chaney 232
Ron Gideons 149
Julius Chaney 124
Mitzi Loftus 55
Matthew Stewart 38
Adam Johnson 37
Points scored:
Travis Chaney 99894
Ron Gideons 56880
Julius Chaney 37095
Mitzi Loftus 14523
Matthew Stewart 14503
Average points per game (minimum 20 games)
Travis Chaney 430.6
Ron Gideons 381.74
Matthew Stewart 381.66
Most bingos played
Travis Chaney 483 (2.08 per game)
Ron Gideons 216 (1.45 per game)
Julius Chaney 107 (0.86 per game)
OTHER RECORDS:
Highest Scoring Game: Travis Chaney, 606
Highest Losing Score: Travis Chaney, 469
Highest Combined Score: 979, Travis Chaney vs. Ron Gideons
Highest Scoring Play: Travis Chaney, 212 points (SNEEZIER)
Highest Margin of Win: Travis Chaney, 418
Most Bingos, Game: Travis Chaney and Ron Gideons, 4
Most Combined Bingos, Game: 6, Travis Chaney vs. Ron Gideons
Most Consecutive Wins: Travis Chaney, 27
