Internet gives scrabblers competitive edge

REGINA (CUP) — Scrabulous — the online version of Scrabble made popular through Facebook - has exploded onto campuses across the nation, becoming this term's most popular passtime for procrastinating students.

But for some serious Scrabble players, it has also become the tool of choice for honing their skills.

According to John Chew, a mathematics graduate student at the University of Toronto and webmaster for the National Scrabble Association, Scrabulous is a great way to develop your Scrabble game.

“People who play the game on a serious level are still uncommon,” Chew said. “It's hard to find quality opponents when you don't live near big clubs.”

This is where the internet comes in handy, he said. The internet allows you to compete against more top quality players, improving the dynamic of your game. It's all about healthy competition. Unlike the online world, where all clubs are combined, where you compete can have a big impact on your placement in the major tournaments.

Chew said that even the Montreal and Toronto Scrabble clubs are inherently different. He said that though the Montreal club is smaller, it has produced more champions. Of the last seven international tournaments, three of the winners have been Canadian and two of them have come out of the Montreal club.

Because of this, the inherent competitiveness of the Montreal Club is that much better.

The international tournaments are three days long and have been held every two years since 1991. The last Canadian player to have won the tournament was Adam Logan, a math professor at the University of Waterloo, and friend of Chew's, in 2005.

The most recent championship was held last weekend in Mumbai, India and was won by Nigel Richards of New Zealand.

According to Chew, not only is Richards a brilliant player, but he knows every word in the dictionary.

“If you were to study the dictionary for 4-5 hours a day, anyone could accomplish this feat in about a year,” said Chew.

And he would know. He's been playing competitive scrabble since the early 1990s, and has tried to compete in at least one tournament every year.

“I like making order out of chaos,” Chew said. “It's like you are creating a work of art out of letters and every time it's beautiful.”

There's lot of strategy too he says — it's not just about playing the highest score available. For instance, when there are about 10 tiles left, the game becomes a chess match. “It's where intuition can really shine,” he said.

Besides being a graduate student, Chew is the director of both the Toronto Scrabble Club and the Canadian Scrabble Championships. He's also a self-identified Scrabble consultant, and spends approximately three-quarters of his time traveling around the world, arranging matches and tournaments.

The next Canadian Scrabble Championship will be held in April 2008 in Toronto.