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Back to 2005 National SCRABBLE® Championship Live Coverage

2005 National SCRABBLE® Championship Commentary: Final Round 4

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Go to: Anagrams Championship, 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, Round 19, Round 20, Round 21, Round 22, Round 23, Round 24, Round 25, Round 26, Round 27, Round 28, Final Round 1, Final Round 2, Final Round 3, Final Round 4, Final Round 5.

Finals 4

Jim Kramer (Roseville, MN) is on my right with Steve Pellinen (St. Louis Park, MN) again on Maven on laptop to his side. On my left I anticipate the input of Evan Berofsky (Thornhill ON). First rack: FULOHUH for Panupol Sujjayakorn (Thailand) for 18. He plays HUH for 18. Dave Wiegand (Portland, OR) has REAPERS and he plays it creating HA/UP/HE for 77. 18-77, Dave's lead and the room is ESTATIC! We may make it to round 5 after all! Panupol's rack is FUZILOS. He plays FUZILS for 36 and the room claps. They like that play. Dave's rack is DMNQSTV. We hear talk in the room of his exchanging. Jim Geary (Phoenix, AZ) suggests keeping ST. He exchanged all but S. Panupol's rack is IIOOLS. He plays FOLIO, opening a triple-triple for 18. Dave holds AAFGWS?. The room is happy. I hear WAIF. Jim Geary (Phoenix, AZ) jokes if he doesn't know how to spell, he has foie gras. We laughed. Jim Kramer (Roseville, MN) says "I'd burn my blank with FATWA" for 44. Steve is talking about Dave's rhythmic playing style. He plays WAIF for 20. EXEQUIS with a U would be EXEQUIES. But he plays EX for 52. 124-97, Panupol is ahead. Dave has ANGERS?. The room is full of suggestions! Maven likes ASTRINGE overlapping 3 different words and playing through a tile. Chris Cree (Dallas, TX) wonders how long Dave will spend looking for a 9-letter word with that rack. He stands to get more points if there is a double-double. The maven-experts in the room can't see a double-double. Steve Pellinen (St. Louis Park, MN) says his favorite word SPEARGUN is playable. He plays ALiGNERS/AA/iF for 76. 173-124, Dave's lead. Panupol's turn and he has EQUISIA. He plays QUASI/IRE for 48 points. QUAERES for 64 was the play some say Panupol should have played instead. Dave now has AENORTT. He slowly moves the tiles around. The camera crew in this room flashes onto Chris Wiegand holding baby Melanie every time Dave makes a good play, which is often this game. So, the screen is suddenly full of a smiling family shot. Suggestions are ATT atop HUH for 4 different 3-letter words. John Luebkemann (Pineville, NC) is off scoreboard duty and now Mark Przybyszewski (Depew, NY) is handling the scores. Every once in a while, we confer with one another on the score.

Dave plays ATT to a smattering of applause. He gets 24.

Panupol has AEGIMNV. Jim Geary (Phoenix, AZ) makes a "vegemite sandwich" joke. VAGINA has been suggested.

We are delighted to have Evan back here, he is helping me tell the new tiles to the giant rack workers.

He plays VAGINAE for 34 to applause.

Dave has EENVOKR. I hear OVERKEEN by nearly everyone in the room, hooting it out like owls. And Dave delights the masses and plays it for 65: OVERKEEN through first E.

Panupol has IIMORT?. Suggestions are coming fast and furious. Unfortunately, none of these bingo suggestions will fit... People are now suggesting MI off of the I and N in VAGINAE for 22. MINOR now comes up as a possibility thru the N in OVERKEEN for 24. Panupol plays MI.

Dave holds ACCDENY. People are shouting out the possibility of DECADENCY - nice try... CONY is played thru the O in OVERKEEN for 36.

Panupol played TROY through the R holding TIR?TOY.

Dave has ACDDEIR. Wow! DYADIC for 39 through the Y in TROY.

Panupol has IORTTY?. He plays TRIOLeT when he noticed he made a phoney two-letter hook, TE. The whole room hushed and shh-ed itself, trying not to telegraph dismay. It was felt by all. Glad he caught it!

That appears to be his only bingo, and Maven has small play, rack balancing play suggestions. We think Panupol will continue to look for another bingo.

From the playing room, John Chew tells me that Panupol is sighing. We have video, but no audio.

TO has been suggested to clear up the worst two letters on his rack.

Evan is helping so much up here! Finally, the staff I always wanted! I don't even have to think!

Panupol has burned almost 5 minutes on this play.

He plays TITTUP to TUP for 9 points and he gets "very cool" comments from many.

Dave has JABRODE. JAB has been suggested. Dave plays OBJET, blocking off the left top quadrant that TITTUP has opened up. He got 28 oints.

368-263, Dave's lead.

Panupol has drawn a blank and he is going to bingo: EaRLOBE for 71 and room applauds. That was the only playable bingo. Nice find.

Dave has OUAWARD.

We are 368-334, Dave still leads.

Dave plays AWARD underlapping most of EARLOBE to applause in the viewing room. 35 points.

Panupol has EEOPTLN and we see him shaking his head on the screen.

Chris Cree (Dallas, TX) can't get over Dave's new rack: GIMNOSU, which is close to UNWISDOM.

Jim Geary (Phoenix, AZ) thinks Panupol will open up the board just in time for Dave to bingo again.

Unseen tiles are DI.

Panupol has only 1:20 left. That is unusual. His annotator this tournament, Kristen Chew, says he almost always ends with 8 minutes left on his clock.

He plays PEE to the E for 6.

So, Dave, holding GIMNSOU knows that Panupol has LENTOID. He has to block.

Chris Cree reminds us that the lesson here is to never give up. We never know what is going to happen in a game.

Dave plays MOPING.

Panupol's time is running low and he plays TOILED for 31. Dave, with US, went out with NUS for 19.

Final score: Dave 438 Panupol 372

Jim Kramer (Roseville, MN) it's the third game in a row that has been played very well by both sides

On to Game 5!!!