Report

The National Champs got underway in Wellington on Saturday 4 June with 80 players, including ten-year-old Alex Leckie-Zaharic who will be the first player from New Zealand to enter the Youth World Championship later in the year. Alex’s mum ran a fund-raising stall selling Scrabble wares which were very popular.

There was a delayed start due to my forgetfulness – I left my memory stick at home and therefore could not print the draw or set up the scoring. Fortunately my daughter was able to go to my place and email the files I needed. In the meantime it was decided to hold the Annual General Meeting early.  This turned out to be a blessing in disguise for President Paul Lister as he was able to leave early to be with Roslyn and his family.

Day 1

In the A Grade at the end of the day there were four players on five wins – in order of spread, Blue Thorogood, Howard Warner, Joanne Craig and Peter Sinton.

In B Grade Olivia Godfrey won all seven games to top the leaderboard. Lynn Wood was in second place on six wins. Four players were on five wins, headed by Helen Sillis.

In C Grade Scott Chaput won the first six games and then drew with Lyn Toka to finish the day on 6.5 wins. There were four players on five wins – Peter Johnstone, Shirley Martin, Shirley Hol and Mary Gray.

In D grade Malcolm Graham lost only one game to take the early lead. Andree Prentice, Betty Erikson and Roto Mitchell were in 2nd to 4th place on five wins apiece.

In E grade there were four players on five wins – Sheila Reed, Alex Leckie-Zaharic, Judith Thomas and Judy Driscoll.

Day 2

In the morning players learned that Roslyn Lister had passed away in the night. We paid our respects by observing a minute’s silence.

By lunch time the A Grade was sorting itself out. Howard was top of the field on nine wins, Joanne was still in contention on eight wins, while Peter, Glennis Hale, Mike Sigley and Glenda Foster were on seven. In B Grade Olivia was leading on nine wins, with Helen, Glenyss Buchanan, Lynn and Anderina McLean all on eight wins. In C Grade Scott retained a healthy lead on 8.5 wins, with Peter and both Shirleys on seven. In D Grade Betty had climbed to the top on nine wins, followed by Malcolm on eight and Andree and Roto on seven. In E grade three players were on 9 wins – Sheila, Judith and Judy Driscoll.

Going into the final game in A Grade, Howard was in an almost unassailable position on 11 wins and a spread of 856. Glennis was on 10 wins in second place. Blue, Joanne and Peter were all in contention for second place if Glennis was to lose the final game. In the end Howard won the final game to take his 5th Nationals title. Surprisingly, Glennis, Blue, Joanne and Peter all lost their last game, leaving Glennis in second place and Blue third.

In Grade B Olivia was also virtually assured of the win with 11 wins and a spread of 1216. Helen and Glenyss were vying for second and third spots, while Lynn Wood stood a chance of stealing a place should Helen or Glenyss lose the last game. Olivia lost the last game but had sufficient spread points to hold off Helen who beat Glenyss. Helen’s win let Lynn into third place on spread.

In Grade C Scott was assured of victory with 11.5 wins Mary, Rosalind Phillips and Shirley Hol were battling for the minor places. Scott lost the final game but won the grade, while Mary and Rosalind retained second and third places.

In Grade D Betty was in a winning position on 11 wins and a spread of 496. Roto, Marian, Carolyn Kyle and Andree were all in contention for a place. Betty won the last game, while Roto lost by one point, letting Marian into second place.

In Grade E Sheila was in an unassailable position on 12 wins and a spread of 1131. Judith, Nola and Annette Coombes were in second to fourth place. Sheila lost to Judith but retained first place on spread, while Nola had a two-point win to keep third place.

Prize-giving

The prize-giving dinner was held at The Pines. The Team Trophy was taken by the Wellington Club—Sheila, Olivia and Nola. The Georgie Award was presented to Alex in recognition of his huge rating gain in E Grade – he finished in sixth place on eight wins. The Eileen McLean Memorial Trophy was presented to Lynn Wood who played the most tournament games (151) since the last Nationals.

The high word of the tournament was shared by Peter Sinton (RAGTIMES) and Peter Johnstone (TRIUMPHS) for 149. The highest individual game was Glenyss Buchanan’s 586.

Players complimented the executive committee for a well-run tournament with excellent catering. A number of players also expressed the opinion that having the AGM at the start of day one was a great idea and could be considered for future tournaments.