He not only knows the words, he’s able to search his memory for and play them near-optimally in a Scrabble game. Honestly I think that’s more impressive.
My brother is involved with tournament Scrabble and knows Nigel well. I don’t compete myself but have watched games among top players. There is a lot of strategy beyond simply memorizing word lists.
The best play is often not the highest-scoring one. You need to examine the board and determine what it might expose to your opponent. You also need to keep track of what tiles have been played already to get an idea of what may be lying on your opponent’s tray at the moment. You may also take the calculated risk of playing a word you know is not real. If it is not challenged, it stands. Depending on tournament rules, a challenge may cost you if it fails (i.e. the word is legit), so there is a poker-like bluffing element.
He not only knows the words, he’s able to search his memory for and play them near-optimally in a Scrabble game. Honestly I think that’s more impressive.
My brother is involved with tournament Scrabble and knows Nigel well. I don’t compete myself but have watched games among top players. There is a lot of strategy beyond simply memorizing word lists.
The best play is often not the highest-scoring one. You need to examine the board and determine what it might expose to your opponent. You also need to keep track of what tiles have been played already to get an idea of what may be lying on your opponent’s tray at the moment. You may also take the calculated risk of playing a word you know is not real. If it is not challenged, it stands. Depending on tournament rules, a challenge may cost you if it fails (i.e. the word is legit), so there is a poker-like bluffing element.
Good point, that’s a more transferable skill I haven’t thought of!