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#player1 Mark_Milan Mark Milan
#player2 Jesse_Day Jesse Day
>Mark_Milan: COT 8G COT +10 10
>Jesse_Day: EGILOUW J4 GUILE +14 14
#note I've actually already quackled this game before and gotten to conclusions about most of the moves, but I'll try to keep up the commentary nonetheless. Here I didn't like the prospect of an UGLI leave, but WO isn't particularly better, and GUILE leaves the board a little bit more open. No reason not to take the points.
>Mark_Milan: DI 4J .ID +10 20
>Jesse_Day: AAEHNOW 3K HAW +26 40
#note WAHOO starts looking like a better play given his last play, seeing as it takes out potential double-doubles and the I. But I didn't want to give him too much credit, and taking the points seemed hard to avoid. But quackle actually likes another play in that spot HOWE, which I suppose I can understand (gets rid of the third vowel) but seems foolhardy given his last play.
>Mark_Milan: ?INRSTV 6E STRIV.Ng +62 82
#note I wonder if he would've seen STRIVEN if he had to.
>Jesse_Day: AAEINNO 5C NAOI +14 54
#note nowhere for AEONIAN, sadly.
>Mark_Milan: AILO H2 AIOL. +6 88
>Jesse_Day: ACEINTT 2J CAT +21 75
#note another non-go. This a pretty big mistake - I suppose I just didn't look at the spot, but ACT seals the board, dropping Mark's scoring average by three points.
>Mark_Milan: GUY 4B GUY +26 114
>Jesse_Day: EFIKNTT G1 INK +25 100
#note completely missed the spot, which is hooking the K for HAWK. FUNK actually does pretty well at C3 too to keep things closed. The best play seems like it's TIKE at N1 - it sets up the F pretty nicely with an ok draw. for the more paranoid, INK at that spot is an option as well, but I like TIKE.
>Mark_Milan: AMR 3A RAM +23 137
>Jesse_Day: EEFIOTT 2A EF +26 126
#note god, I am such a bluehair
>Mark_Milan: EOV 7C VOE +13 150
>Jesse_Day: DEIORTT K8 DOTTIER +74 200
#note lucked out.
>Mark_Milan: ELNRRUU 12F UNRUL.ER +68 218
#note He complained that he wished I'd done this play the turn before, but after a closer look he found his nice bingo.
>Jesse_Day: AAEHNPT 14I TH.EAP +38 238
#note a pretty interesting position. The best play is some variant on THREAP (or TERAPH). So do you play it at H10 or 14I? After thinking about it for a while, I think the one at H10 has to be the way to go. Despite garnering five extra points, the horizontal placement offers up an S hook with three of those unseen and a potential for plays like ZEST, JESS, JEST or JOSS, not to mention a great lane if he has an S. They sim pretty close, but I should've played it at H10.
>Mark_Milan: OWY 13M YOW +34 252
>Jesse_Day: ?AAMNQS F11 Q.A +12 250
#note alright, now it gets interesting. I remember thinking when I pulled the blank that I probably had a good shot at winning if I didn't do anything too stupid, so this would be probably the most important play of the game. As far as I see it there are five plays: QUA where I played it, SQUAMA through that U, SQuAMA burning the blank for 53, QAT at 10I for 14, and just dropping the Q at the top for 11. I've thought about this one a lot, and here's how I think it boils down: SQUAMA blows up a good rack for too little and gives too much back. Burning the blank is pretty tempting, but the lead thereafter is only 39 points - the board is pretty closed, though. It sims about .5 back of QAT. Just dropping the Q at the top isn't best even though AAMNS? hits about 83% of the time in the sim - I would guess that he's likely to react pretty defensively and take away a lot of the bingos. So, how about between QAT and QUA? I think that QUA just gives too much back, upon analysis - I love the lane that it sets up, but all he has to do is hook QUA and score big, and all of a sudden I HAVE to bingo to win, and AQUA is gone anyway. So I would say that the play is probably QAT at 10I, even though it blocks a lane. Crazy, eh?
>Mark_Milan: GIPRS 14B SPRIG +42 294
>Jesse_Day: ?ADMNSS 15F SAD +27 277
#note if you found the bingo, then congrats. I'd never seen DESMANS before, but now I guess I'll never miss it again (I'll miss MADNESS instead). Of the nonbingos, interesting to notice that SAD and DAM are even - MNS? and NSS? do about equally well on this board, which makes plenty of sense. Even DESMANS only wins just over two-thirds of the games.
>Mark_Milan: EX 15N EX +32 326
>Jesse_Day: ?BMNOOS B11 MOB. +8 285
#note pretty happy about this play, whose timing forces him to empty the bag to be able to use that lane for points. If he doesn't pay enough attention I'll bingo out...
>Mark_Milan: DEFILZ A8 FILED +42 368
#note so you can imagine my frustration when he empties the bag while holding the Z, and in the process blocks my BANJOES. I let my frustration show for the first time in the tournament, I think, setting a bad precedent. I don't know what his seventh tile was, but he really should play DOZE at 12A, but it's only about 10-15% better, less than I would've thought. Still, it frustrated me that he emptied the bag.
>Jesse_Day: ?BEJNOS D9 JOBbE.S +32 317
#note close, but the J sunk me. Best endgame play is adorable. Can YOU find it? seriously, think about it. It's pretty counterintuitive.
>Mark_Milan: AEEENZ 10I ZE.A +15 383
>Jesse_Day: N 3G ..N +8 325
#note OK, the best play is burning the blank and playing DOJo - that's right, even though you have it natural! The trick is that it leaves BESNOW, and the O is doubled - and if he blocks, you have BENTOS to go out anyway. The potential points of BESNOW force him to eat the Z to block your best play.
>Jesse_Day: (EEN) +6 331
#note Feeling a bit self-righteous, I asked Mark after the game about FILED: "weren't you worried that I might bingo?" his response: "I just didn't think you were going to." I think I might have been left in a sour mood for my next game as a result of how this one panned out.
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