This is the thread for the 2005 World Scrabble Championships, bitches!

oh, go on, please do...

it's about 10 years since i gave up scrabble, but i still feel weirdly attached to it, even though i have absolutely no idea as to eg what dictionary is used in uk scrabble tournaments these days. are there still successful scrabble mags? was one of them called onwords, or am i misremembering?

Basically, long story short: I was absolutely certain to get selected, as I have basically been near the top of the ratings list for the last couple of years, and Australia gets four spots, so I had a really good chance, but a big tournament I did really well in was de-rated, that is to say, the points I got for doing well in it got taken away from me, and thus people who'd done badly who lost points, got them back. Two of our current team were big beneficiaries of this as they'd done poorly at the event.

I became crabby and depressed and bombed out at a big tournament that I'd won the previous year, and several people got ahead of me. In the lead up to qualifying, they basically sat out and didn't play tournaments which meant I couldn't catch them, even though my results over the last two years have been superior. I ended up as the reserve player, just as I did in 2003. I played in 2001 and came 23rd, which was creditable, I suppose.

If the "team" does well enough, we'll get five spots to fill in 2007, but that's a long way away. If I miss out again, I might give the game away.

They use a dictionary called SOWPODS nowadays.

http://www.wscgames.com/2005/build/standing/1/02.html

I note that if anyone cares, and wants someone to cheer for, I suggest Andrew Fisher, currently 3rd. Former Pom, current Australian, genuinely nice guy.