CNSC 2011 Commentary: Round 18

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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.

As always happens as we wind down toward the end of an event, I'm both relieved yet sorry to see it end. Fatigue makes me relieved, but I'll miss seeing everyone. I hope a bunch show up tomorrow for the Finals. Just found out that Chris Lipe will be here!

Adam Logan (Ottawa ON) is playing Tony Leah (Ajax ON) at table 1. Early on, Tony tried a phoney that got held good and long, OUTgRIPED. The assembled peoples were hardly breathing. What would Adam do. Well, we found out the second Mad passed through, he was challenging, off it came.

At table 2, Evan Berofsky (Thornhill ON) and Joel Wapnick (Montreal QC) were locking horns. Never have I seen happier, more attentive annotators. Before this game began, Risa Horowitz and I agreed that there was nowhere on earth we would rather be at this moment. Fun times. I see SPIRAEAS and SHOAlEST for Evan and Joel's RETAILER to the R for 77. Check out the other details in the annotated game section.

Marilyn Wilkins (Richmond BC) vs. Juraj Pivovarov (Calgary AB): PIMENTO, VOMIToRY, and NEREIDS are Juraj's and Marilyn got down INHERITS and LANGUETS. Marilyn jokes about merely warming the seat!

Andy Saunders (Guelph ON) tells me that he lost his game this round with David Jones (Ottawa ON). He is happy to have ended 9-9 in he the event, since he came in seeded 44th. Had he won the last game, he'd have broken 1600. Next tournament can't come soon enough, eh, Andy? Notes from their board: COLLATED, UNORNATE, FLINTING, and DIVIDErS.

Will Nediger (London ON) vs. Zev Kaufman (Toronto ON) at table 3. SERrANID, UNREPaIR, and DECOYERS are the board's larger plays. I walk by as the game ends and Zev announces, "411 for me and 312 for you?" Will agrees, and the paperwork zooms toward the front of the room.

Robin Pollock Daniel (Toronto ON) and Jesse Matthews (Kelowna BC) had a good game, just as Jesse had predicted. He was behind much of the game, but still in it. He had DRYSTONE and MUREINS and then Robin had PICKLEs, which she put down, picked up, then put down again. Then, she kept EIIL and drew SUQ and bingoed with SILIQUES, which drew a challenge, because it was a game-deciding play. It was a frustration challenge and if he left it on and it was bad, it would have lost him the game, for sure. A 441-335 win for her. As they were laughing it up and finishing the paperwork, Zev Kaufman (Toronto ON) came by and said, "did you win?" She nodded. He said, I'm 5th and you are 4th. She nearly shouted, "get out of here!" I guess she came in 4th last year, too.

John Chew suggests I take a photo of a Mark Edelson (Toronto ON) vs. Geoffrey Newman (Brampton ON) board. I see ZONER and two BONERs!

Yvonne Lobo (Mississauga ON) and Randall Thomas (Calgary AB) took a trip to the challenge machine. DUNT is good!

Okay, our finalists have been determined! Congratulations to Adam and Joel!

Chris writes:

Jackson Smylie (Toronto ON) is playing Jeff Parsons (Logy Bay NL) over in the corner and it looks like Jackson had an early bingo-bango with mOUSERS and ELUATED*. He's sitting ?ISHERY now but it doesn't play.

Betty Bergeron (Calgary AB) is playing Glenn Dunlop (Brantford ON) in the last round. It looks like a big game for Glenn — bingo bango bongo with IONIZES, ENTERAL, and AEROGEL. Betty has ?ASSION on her rack — apropos for the end of a long tournament where everyone has played with such passion and grit.

Cool word alert — Gabriel Gauthier-Shalom (Montreal QC) and Ron Hoekstra (Surrey BC) have UNWASHEDS on the board.

John Stardom (Ottawa ON) hit SOAPIESt 3x3 for 140 early in his game against George MacAulay (Saskatoon SK), but George hit a bingo-bango late with BUNCHED for 107 and GADDERS which drew a challenge. Despite the triple triple, George wins 472-410.

Allen Pengelly (Waterloo ON) and Sue Tremblay (Carlsbad Springs ON) go up to the challenge computer to check an outplay — Allen has bingoed out with EXOrDIAL through the X! Allen also had ANSWERED and VERITAS bingo bango, and SNAPpIER early in the game. Sue bingoed with EROTICA and had a bunch of good power tile plays to pull into the lead before Allen's outbingo, but it's Allen's win 444-407.

Dielle Saldanha (Richmond BC) is playing Eric Tran (Calgary AB) in the last round, and they both have blanks on a tough board going into the endgame. Dielle has a sizable lead, having had SERAGLIO and GUSTIER. Dielle's ABDUCT was extended to ABDUCTEE by Eric. Eric finds sANATIVE with one in the bag, but it gives Dielle a spot for MaX for 57 and it's her win, 434-319.

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