Welcome to the Jerusalem Scrabble Club

COME PLAY WITH US – VISITORS ALWAYS WELCOME!

*** NEW PLAYERS: CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ***

 Director: Elana Simons, 054 220 6238, elanalibby@gmail.com

 THIS WEEK AT THE CLUB

Season 85, Week 09 of 25 – May 26, 2026

DavidS was warmly welcomed back into the bosom of the club following his impressive performance at the recent three-day Montreal Scrabblefest. His experiences there included a surprising exchange with elite-level player Jackson Smylie, who went on to win the tournament: “Normally, the winner takes a picture of a QR code on the table. This automatically sends to a form where you fill in the winner’s and loser’s names, the respective scores, and the margin of victory. Since I won and because it was Shabbos, I asked Jackson to do it. His reply was that he couldn’t be my ‘Shabbos goy’ because he was Jewish. I had no idea!”

Joel Elkins came to our 2025 Chanukah Tournament and gifted David a mechanical clock for his Scrabble ventures. It has a heter and can be used on Shabbat. “The flaw is its lack of a seconds indicator,” said David, “and when my game with Jackson was done we both stared at the clock to decide how much he had gone over time. We agreed on less than two minutes. I won 430-348.” The mechanical clock is now codified in the Scrabble rules, David said, adding that “an opponent can’t refuse it.”

Elana: “I had the classic EAINST, which can make many bingos – but I had an extra S and couldn’t see anything but SATINES (which is actually a phony). NASTIES and TISANES, amongst others, are both good.” With a rack of HKONSU plus a blank she found the word UNHOOKS, “which I played, and is good. The only other word I could have made with those letters is BOHUNKS, but it’s not a word I knew.” It describes rough, uncultured or stupid people. “UNSHOOK and UNSHOCK were words I considered but didn’t put down – thankfully, since neither is good.”

How to lose a game without even trying: “Please,” murmured my informant, “don’t use my name. I’d never live it down.” She explained that it was the last game and she was tired. “But I fought hard and the scores were very close. There was an EW coming down to the line above the triple, and being almost 100-percent sure that EW couldn’t be pluralized, I didn’t play my bingo ending in S along that line. What happened later could be seen as funny – if you weren’t involved. My opponent placed an S-ending bingo in that same space – and I didn’t remember to challenge her EWS!! I sure gave that game away.” Prescribes Hilites: Repeat five times before every game: “Check all moves and their ‘satellites’ for errors!”

Overheard: “Anyone who tells you Scrabble is ‘just a game’ is lying.” Richard, after placing a bingo on a triple: “It helps to have two blanks and two SS’s.” Post-game comment: “That was fun, but not as much fun as if I had won.”

If you missed the opportunity to communicate your hilite in person at the club you can email it to judymo@netvision.net.il or WhatsApp it (054-5552355) up until noon the following day. If you wish to mark any occasion by bringing refreshments to the club, please check with Susan up to a week in advance.

WWW: Steve, May

WOW: DIURNAL (Steve),  BENISON (Brenda), FAIRING (Yaakov)

PHOW: VITAMENS (Richard)

High Win, High Loss, High  Triple:

A: 524 (Rita), 416 (Rita), 1369 (Rita)

B1: 453 (Richard), 359 (Richard), 1238 (Richard)

Scores over 500: 524 (Rita)

100-pt play: PURPLED 103 (Wendy)

Attendance: 21