Plays made by the player that were challenged by an opponent. This list may not be completely accurate. Check the 'Challenge Heuristics' section of the about page for more information.
Plays made by the player that were challenged by an opponent. This list may not be completely accurate. Check the 'Challenge Heuristics' section of the about page for more information.
Sid pointed out SNUG J8, which sims even with FUGIO, but is probably a little bit better. Quackle always underrates defensive moves like that. Another option, which I didn't see, is OUZEL C11. OUZEL wins the sim, but I like SNUG best. (-1) #visionsmall
The commentators liked this play, and I was disappointed by how badly this sims relative to REVISAL/SERVAL/VERSAL. I suppose turnover is important with both blanks unseen, but I figured Will probably had one by now. Also, I acknowledge that VIS is better than VIA, except that Will would know that I have another S. (-16) #strategylarge
Here I figured that 9-letter words on 2D were the most dangerous threat. Bingos on column B require designating the blank an A, and give me something back. CAIN seemed better than WAIN because the W fits better at F6. Quackle agrees with all this, but there's an even better block: AECIA L11. (-4) #visionsmall
This is pretty good, but TEENIER 14B is even better, because it sets up QI in two places. UNIFIES 3H is also cool (I didn't see it) but I have to keep an I here. (-3) #visionsmall
When I was inputting this into Quackle, this seemed like a terrible play. It isn't even one of Quackle's initial choices. However, it sims decently. The bag is consonant heavy, so I figure to be able to use column H more easily than Thomas. Also, UNITED takes out column D. I remember considering sim-winner AEDINE O10, but the strategic benefits of UNITED seemed stronger. In practice, AEDINE has to be right. Thomas has many uses for the S, not just D12. OU isn't that bad of a leave with that consonant heavy pool, especially with the Q unseen. (-5) #strategymedium
I wasn't too worried about the 12A hotspot, figuring that Mark is on S? and will probably bingo. Quackle has none of that, playing EEEW at 6D. In retrospect, I concur. (-5) #strategymedium
A difficult decision. That bingo is coming, sooner rather than later. I've been very fortunate that he hasn't gotten it down yet. I saw options at N4, but they didn't seem worth it at the time. In fact, all of them are, even though Mark might parallel them. PuGAREE N4, tripling the G, is clearly best among those. (-2% win chances) #strategymedium
I did see AY/AYE/TYE at N5, but CAGEY seemed better. Quackle says this is a serious mistake, because I'm destroying my rack for a block that isn't effective; he still has Row 1. (-19 valuation, -5% win%) #strategylarge
Best play here is sick: EREMITE D8, setting up a likely QI C12 for next turn. QAT isn't awful, but you can see that EEIRT is a terrible leave against that pool. (-6) #visionmedium
FIE 14A is best here. I considered stuff like that, but GRIEF seemed better because it scored more and didn't give back parallel plays. (-3) #strategysmall
At the time, I was really conflicted about this play. I saw that if Alec hit a big -IC word at 2B, I was in a lot of trouble, but I also figured I was substantially more likely to hit the spot. I also considered KOINE at H1, which wins the sim. -2 #strategysmall
PITOT 10J is better, once again because F2 (A: 10J?) is such a big spot. Also better is TIPTOED 13C, breaking up the unpalatable DS combo. (-3.5) #visionmedium
So many lanes, so much potential! I spent more than 5 minutes looking for bingos and didn't see one. After the game, I gave the rack to Alec and he found the only bingo in about 30 seconds. Dude is *sharp*. Also, LENO 1A is better than any other play by far. I must have gotten flustered after wasting all my time failing to find the bingo that I didn't take more time to find the right non-bingo play. (-30) #visionlarge, #strategylarge, #timemanagementlarge
So many lanes, so much potential! I spent more than 5 minutes looking for bingos and didn't see one. After the game, I gave the rack to Alec and he found the only bingo in about 30 seconds. Dude is *sharp*. Also, LENO 1A is better than any other play by far. I must have gotten flustered after wasting all my time failing to find the bingo that I didn't take more time to find the right non-bingo play. (-30) #visionlarge, #strategylarge, #timemanagementlarge
So many lanes, so much potential! I spent more than 5 minutes looking for bingos and didn't see one. After the game, I gave the rack to Alec and he found the only bingo in about 30 seconds. Dude is *sharp*. Also, LENO 1A is better than any other play by far. I must have gotten flustered after wasting all my time failing to find the bingo that I didn't take more time to find the right non-bingo play. (-30) #visionlarge, #strategylarge, #timemanagementlarge
I considered sim-winners OE/AEON 7K, but it seemed like Will would be able to control the board after that, whereas OXO ensured that I would have a place for my bingo if I drew one. Quackle says this gives up too much. (-7) #strategymedium
ORIEL L10 is probably best. However, if Peter kept a second S after BINTS (no guarantee; he could just be burning consonants), ION does much better, simming basically even with ORIEL. ION is still a large mistake because I didn't see ORIEL at all, but it may not be as bad as Quackle thinks it is. (-13?) #visionlarge
I considered all three of the top plays here, the other two of which are HUP M1 and HAW 13G. I could see that WAAH made it trickier to fully take out Rows 10 and 14, relative to HAW, and made it easier to score there besides, but figured that most of those scoring plays figured to muck up that part of the board. The case for HUP was that Row 1 is dangerous, and HUP neutralizes it forever. But it didn't seem worth it to sacrifice 10+ points. In the end, HAW G13 wins the sim. The immediate three points are worth it, and it might be better positionally too. -2 #strategysmall
As usual, what I know about my opponent's rack leads me to make a mistake. A1 seemed like the biggest hotspot, since if Peter bingos there, it doesn't give much back. By contrast, if he bingos on Column D or Row 14, I'll be able to score 30 points and keep tempo with him. Nevertheless, VOLTES 10B is decidedly better than FOLK, scoring 17 more points and taking out two of the three bingo lanes. If he hits something to the F, so be it. (-8) #strategymedium
Way off. The right play here is MURA 5B, setting up the Y. I didn't see it, or anything else for that matter. And no, I didn't pick up on any tells; I'm just a spazz. -17 #visionlarge
What a horrible position this is! PED was such a scary play, and I can do very little about it. KIWI is dangerous as hell, especially since Mike almost certainly has bingo tiles after PED. But that means that oftentimes Mike will bingo on Row 1 next turn, and I'll get a big score at O1. Quackle exchanges here, and I don't blame it. I had half a mind to do so myself. (-2% win chances) #strategymedium
I didn't want to do BIO and offer a new bingo lane for Mike that gives back nothing that I can use. If Mike bingos, I want him to do so at B1, opening up lanes I can use for a comeback bingo. BIO sims best by a mile, but I'm skeptical. #strategylarge?
I was really happy to have found this unorthodox play, figuring it frustrated Joey's S spot while setting up the BLE combo at H4. To my indignation, Quackle absolutely HATES this play, going for KEBLAH F9 (which I didn't see), or the more obvious BARE, BARD, BARED 10G. (-13) #visionlarge, #strategymedium
I was really happy to have found this unorthodox play, figuring it frustrated Joey's S spot while setting up the BLE combo at H4. To my indignation, Quackle absolutely HATES this play, going for KEBLAH F9 (which I didn't see), or the more obvious BARE, BARD, BARED 10G. (-13) #visionlarge, #strategymedium
Too weird. I thought Joey might be setting up something big with AUGITE, and maybe he is. But PRIVETS doesn't do much to take out 15H. Something like SORPTIVE 2G (which I don't think I saw) or PRIVIEST 3F (which I did see) is best. (-6, #strategymedium)
I saw sim-winner WOW 12B but didn't like keeping a vowel heavy rack. It's better than opening the TWS. I just can't think without sleep, and consequently I'm making mistakes on nearly every turn. (-6) #strategymedium
With 90s left, I played this quickly, having noted it as the best out-in-two that I saw. I had been looking for out-in-twos because I figured Joey was going to bingo. There's actually one better sequence: DOSED J14, threatening TIDY N12 and TYIN J1. (-2) #endgamesmall #timemanagementmedium
With 90s left, I played this quickly, having noted it as the best out-in-two that I saw. I had been looking for out-in-twos because I figured Joey was going to bingo. There's actually one better sequence: DOSED J14, threatening TIDY N12 and TYIN J1. (-2) #endgamesmall #timemanagementmedium
YET or YELD E9 win the sim easily. It's possible that I missed the Y hook on OGEE, but maybe it didn't seem right to fish at this score. E5 does seem like a good thing to block, but apparently not worth breaking up the rack over. Either #strategymedium or #visionmedium (-6)
YET or YELD E9 win the sim easily. It's possible that I missed the Y hook on OGEE, but maybe it didn't seem right to fish at this score. E5 does seem like a good thing to block, but apparently not worth breaking up the rack over. Either #strategymedium or #visionmedium (-6)
I ruled out BONK here. It scores 4 points more but keeps three vowels, which is dreadful. Despite this, BONK is worth considering, because it can be hooked only with an S, whereas BONE takes a variety of hooks that will make it easy for Alec to score, most notably the Y. For these reasons, NEB 9E is better than either BONK/BONE. I don't think I saw NEB. If I did see it, then I might have disregarded it because EKOU is a worse leave than EKU, but failed to notice the positional advantages of NEB. This is the kind of mistake I'm most likely to make. I focus so intently on maximizing my score and keeping a good leave that I don't give enough consideration to what opportunities I offer my opponent. It's a critical leak in my game. (-4) #strategymedium
OY E9 wins the sim, even though there aren't many bingos to be drawn. It's probably even better than that since Rafi is telegraphing a bingo and might give me more lanes. (-2) #strategysmall
Another difficult decision. What's better, BOWER for 40 keeping IU, or OUREBI for 33 keeping W? It's close, but I think BOWER actually was the play. It scores seven more points and opens a new lane on Column O. Also, even though IU is a terrible leave, it 's probably better than a W for bingoing, and at this score I probably need to bingo. (-1.2% win chances) #strategymedium
I spent forever on this play, and didn't get anywhere. My brain was fried and I couldn't focus. I saw plays like WEB 7L or NEWB 12M. I also saw GLOW 5A. WEB/NEWB has to be right. It's possible that Rafi doesn't have either the blank or the S, and with the board getting tighter every turn, I need to keep lanes open to give myself a fighting chance. (-4) #strategymedium
I spent forever on this play too and couldn't wrap my sleepy head around it. Quackle plays PI J14, fishing for FEVERING/FORGIVEN/AVENGING/AVERTING/AGENTIVE. It doesn't hit often, but it's my best chance. All OPING accomplishes is make it easy for Rafi to shut everything down. (-23) (-7% win chances) #strategylarge
I had seen the 9 before Josh played ADOPT, but then spent way too long trying to find a decent bingo on Column M. There aren't really any that don't allow comeback plays on column N. I saw that TROILUSES was vulnerable to X plays, but if he didn't draw one after ADOPT, I like my chances. The sim winner here is OUtSETS M9, but I'm skeptical. (-4?) #strategymedium
This was an echo of the MUL(ATT)O/MO(G)UL position against Kevin Fraley at California Open 2018. JEW 4J is way better because FIDS M1 is unblockable. And I even saw it too! But I worried that I had mistracked and thought that Josh might play out and win if I was wrong. After JEW I'd be up 41 points but he'd get 16 from me, and his tiles look like they could score 25 points if there's a spot for them. With more time, I would have retracked the game to be dead certain that Josh can't play out, because that being the case, JEW/FIDS is best by a large margin. (-29) #endgamelarge #trackinglarge #timemanagementmedium
This was an echo of the MUL(ATT)O/MO(G)UL position against Kevin Fraley at California Open 2018. JEW 4J is way better because FIDS M1 is unblockable. And I even saw it too! But I worried that I had mistracked and thought that Josh might play out and win if I was wrong. After JEW I'd be up 41 points but he'd get 16 from me, and his tiles look like they could score 25 points if there's a spot for them. With more time, I would have retracked the game to be dead certain that Josh can't play out, because that being the case, JEW/FIDS is best by a large margin. (-29) #endgamelarge #trackinglarge #timemanagementmedium
I can see why I didn't want to play sim-winner ZIN at L8 or G4, but that doesn't make this the right play. It opens a lane that is basically impossible to block. Maybe RITZY 12G or ZINS 11B? (-6) #strategymedium
I felt like I couldn't really play ARIETTE with FWW unseen. The best play is RETE C2, which blocks the 3x3 and clears up the rack nicely. (-4) #visionmedium
This is such an automatic play that how could there possibly be anything better? Well, I did look for better plays and missed them. KEFIR 8A, which scores a little more, takes out Column B, and-- most importantly, does not open a big scoring spot for my opponent. But a true wizard would have found FEZ H14, setting up the other F. The only other hook that could go there is a T, and there is < 20% chance that Alec drew it after GASTREA. (-15) #visionlarge
I'm really surprized to see RAX F4 win the sim. I wanted to keep that RAZ combo for 14H. I suppose drawing the Q without that U is pretty bad, but I wouldn't think burning the R and the A would be worth it. (-5) #strategysmall
This was one of my favorite positions. So much potential! I have SHY J8, HeY J6. PRY 5I. PERKY 9I. SHY J8 is right, and it wins the sim by a fair amount. My only regret is not seeing DEY 6H, keeping a much better leave. SH has synergy; DS has anti-synergy. -4 #strategysmall
Sim winner is STUPA 5F, blocking LE(TUP). Ok, I'm sleep-deprived and all, and I have no time left, but I'm just saying: even on a good day, I'm never finding that. (-13) #endgamelarge #timemanagementlarge
Sim winner is STUPA 5F, blocking LE(TUP). Ok, I'm sleep-deprived and all, and I have no time left, but I'm just saying: even on a good day, I'm never finding that. (-13) #endgamelarge #timemanagementlarge
I was out of time, and in fact went OVERtime, and didn't see SABIR, let alone BAs O11, forming ZEBRASS. Ouch ouch ouch! (-17) #endgamelarge, timemanagementlarge
The listing of all of the player's mistakes. For more information about mistakes, check the 'Mistakes' section of the about page.
when he played CLOTH I realized that I was at a huge disadvantage, since he knew all the extensions and I didn't. Thinking about extensions did not help me find OIL(CLOTH). #findinglarge #knowledgelarge
when he played CLOTH I realized that I was at a huge disadvantage, since he knew all the extensions and I didn't. Thinking about extensions did not help me find OIL(CLOTH). #findinglarge #knowledgelarge
I thought about this and then realized BLOTCHED probably doesn't have an anagram. Still thought that I was desparate enough. I had O7 GYBED though, and honestly only saw it after losing the challenge. This is on one of Carl's phonies lists and apparently he had just recently mentioned it to Sid. #knowledgelarge
i told a few people this is the worst mistake i've ever made in a tournament game. i think this is correct. what hurts most is that this was day 4, and i'd been playing in the top 5 tables all tournament long pretty much. i had just beaten will and was still hanging around 6th place, just needed a run to get me to the finals. and then i play this. it doesn't make sense. of course i saw caressed, and in my infinite wisdom i decided to keep looking for bingos. i didn't remember studying addresser* but surely it's a word since adressee* is a word. when he challenged it i was kind of shocked and was like "that seems like a common enough word to me" but felt ok because i still had two playable bingos. #knowledgelarge
any shot i had of winning disappeared by missing MEALLESS, which is kind of a hard find, granted, especially with my state of mind at this point. -24 #knowledgelarge
i've actually played ossifier at a tournament earlier this year, but no hope of finding it here. i was nearly in tears by the end of this game, which hasn't happened to me in many years! i ended up losing my focus for much of the rest of the day. -9 #knowledgelarge
?GSS > ?SSTT and TUFT sets up my S's on a DWS lane, but Quackle prefers FUG, likely because it reduces Carl's scoring potential by not offering a floater. #tacticssmall
Quackle prefers N3 HEINIE--I don't know why--and 14A HIE which scores but keeps IINN, opens row 15, and doesn't block columns N and O. #tacticssmall but...
Quackle picks 14A BABA and 14A BABE. My best chance of winning depends on me drawing the X (I'm not expecting to draw a bingo), and BABA and BABE turn over 4 tiles, empty the bag, and save 14J XI. They also increase Carl's chance of having a bingo, providing a lane for sevens starting with L or R on row 15--and BABA permits A or E as well. I chose BIB because it allows fewer bingos, allows me to play another turn after a bingo, and saves 8A ATAP--although I should really be concerned about the X. BIB saves AXE at 1A and A6. #tacticsmedium
A: I chose EPIGrAM because it creates a decent sevens lane on row 2. But 1I PrIMAGE is slightly better, possibly because EPIGrAM creates scoring opportunities for Carl? I don't know. #tacticssmall
C: The whole game, I wanted to play EPIGRAMMIC*, but it's ENGRAMMIC/IDEOGRAMMIC/PHONOGRAMMIC only.
Fishing for Z plays at 10J in a way that doesn't arouse suspicion. J10 ZA is best, followed by plays using the letters BURD, BUD, BURDS, etc. but suspiciously not at 10J. #tacticsmedium
A: The best plays are exchanges: Quackle's pick is to exchange all 7, followed by other exchanges keeping the S and maybe one other tile. Keeping the S seems right because it is essential for column O and also useful on column N making ZITIS. GIRT blocks column D and leaves 6 in the bag, making it impossible for me to play two bingos. #strategysmall
C: Worse yet, a few years ago, I prepared a spreadsheet of all the blank bingos with 5 or fewer solutions, and have looked at the top 3,000 8s maybe 50 times each. One of these blanagrams is ?AEILNNO, with four solutions. If I had recognized this, I might have found mINNEOL(A) E4, but that seemed like the least promising lane, and I didn't give it enough time. All those hundreds of hours I've spent looking at those lists, and then I miss something from there. But it pays to remember that all the study in the world can't guarantee that you'll find the word. It merely increases your chances of finding it.
14J ROOST is a much better play; it does not give back O4 DONEE/RAKEE, and it blocks L12 DANK/DARK, while guaranteeing an out with whatever I draw. #visionlarge (-16)
I think I saw 4L VOE but didn't fully appreciate it. Not only does it partially block column O, it saves A8 DRUNK for next turn. And it has better equity! ENV is worse than I expected. #tacticsmedium
I missed B2 InFANTA, which scores 2 more points and is easily best. I chose this over ANTIFAt and ANtIFAT because I thought this would be harder to underlap, and also to show off one of the new NWL words. L1 TIFFANY is awesome. #findingmedium
Only four possible racks from the unseen tiles yield bingos: EEINRSS, EEIORSS, EENORSS, and EINORSS. PI blocks EEINRSS and EINORSS at N7, but I had not seen that Carl could play 9H ROSERIES or 10H SORENESS. N7 PADRI, RAPT, or RIANT or 9H RITARD blocks all possible bingos. #findingsmall
thought it might be PREFOLIATE* but yeah, never was going to be sure of PERFOLIATE, which is best here. Dave Wiegand thought CARPETBED* was good, as did I. #knowledgesaddest
missed 3(!) bingos here, and I knew I was missing them too. LOPPERED and LAPPETED I didn't know for sure, and I chickened out of DEPEOPLE. #knowledgeSADDEST
wow, quackle wants me to play it at 8F. how often will that work? i suppose the thing is that if he underlaps with an O, i can re-underlap? -1.5 #tacticssmall
i saw DISpLANT but i didn't want to give him all those nice letters to bingo through, and it seemed worth it to sacrifice 4 points for it (quackle suggests it's only worth 1 point). i also saw hANDLIST for 10 more and thought i was inventing it. #knowledgelarge -9
i should have at least compared the two plays. SPLAY/PALSY score 12 more than PATLY. it seems worth it to score 12 more points with an S, particularly on a board where there are no S hooks, and QT have some small amount of synergy too! do i psych myself out because i'm playing Carl?? -5.5 #tacticsmedium
i wrote X, WRONG and BAD next to this play a few turns later. i thought i was done making plays like this. at least do ANSA for 10 more, keeping a workable leave!! i thought exchanging could be correct, but it's far behind ANSA. at least i was right that AN and exchanging would sim very close together. i didn't like exchanging, and falling behind with a scoring spot that is open that he will take next turn. -12.5 #visionlarge #tacticssmall
i wrote X, WRONG and BAD next to this play a few turns later. i thought i was done making plays like this. at least do ANSA for 10 more, keeping a workable leave!! i thought exchanging could be correct, but it's far behind ANSA. at least i was right that AN and exchanging would sim very close together. i didn't like exchanging, and falling behind with a scoring spot that is open that he will take next turn. -12.5 #visionlarge #tacticssmall
falling apart here. i miscalculated WANES as 50. at least i made the decision that since that's 12 pts more than ANEW, it's worth spending the S.. and then Carl was like 44? ugh. sims closely anyway. #tacticssmall
8G TAKING has the best equity. I was leery of giving up an extra bingo lane, easier sevens lanes, and a chance to hook TAKING while using a DWS, which is why I chose KIANG; but I should also be concerned with keeping two T's. #strategysmall
This has the best equity, but Quackle overwhelmingly prefers exchanging, keeping only the R--though I am ahead, I am less than 50% to win, so I should preserve the lanes on rows 14 and 15. #tacticsmedium
Quackle goes haywire in the pre-endgame, but 4C TAV appears to have the best win chance. 7C GAP has the best equity as well as a better win chance than LAV. #strategysmall
The hotspot at O8 is so lucrative that it is worth the 34-point sacrifice to block with 8J GRAPEY. I didn't see GRAPEY, but even GLEY is worth playing there as well. And AGLEY, and GREY, and PLAYER.... #tacticsmedium
I missed an opportunity to fish for 11K QI, QAT, or QUA/QUASI with IIIIITTUU unseen and a backup of E3 QUA in case 11K is blocked. Quackle likes 14K DOOMS, but that opens a lucrative lane on row 15; I like 1L FOOD, which takes an easy scoring spot. #tacticssmall
Quackle prefers HALT, which scores two more points and unloads one more consonant, but keeps the V, which has less scoring potential than the H. At least HALT keeps E3 VUG and M11 VIG for next turn. #strategysmall I guess
Yet another example of Quackle being bad at pre-endgames: it says three plays win 100%, namely this, 1L FAGS, and M11 ZIG; and FAGS has by far the highest valuation. Upon further investigation, FAGS loses when I draw an I (3/8) and Carl plays 14L LEIs setting up 13J ODIC(!), which I cannot block without being Z-stuck. ZIG and ZAGS win 100%, and ZIG is slightly better, threatening plays at 1L-1O and 5B-5E. #tacticssmall (-0.5)
8H OY is best, followed by 8G YO. TOYO sets up my S on column K, but it is fairly likely for Carl to have an N or S with which to use the spot; and OY and YO have better equity than TOYO. #strategymedium
This is a bad play: it blocks row 12 and the BESCOURS hook, opens a D/N hook that I don't have, and scores only 12 points. Quackle strongly prefers 9F LIMA, which keeps the highest-scoring lanes open and scores 21 points. I like J2 MILIA, which scores the same as LIMA and keeps a better leave. #strategymedium
Yes, I saw 2A PANADA, and I absolutely should have played it--it scores better, keeps better, turns over one more tile for the blanks, and creates a high-scoring lane on column A, which I may need because I am behind. #strategymedium
C: In fact, Alec did draw the T, so good thing I'm not a wizard.
A: 3L LIE is best. The lane in column O is easier to use after LIE than after LIED, and the D is a useful bingo tile. #strategymedium
Drawing OOO killed any chance I had of winning this game. C2 APO has the best valuation; it blocks Carl's next play, and the pool is consonant-heavy, so I don't have to worry about keeping five vowels on my rack. #tacticslarge
The listing of all of the player's mistakes. For more information about mistakes, check the 'Mistakes' section of the about page.
Duplicate game detected (Tournament 10791, Round 17).
Warnings are notifications to players that they might want to update some of their GCG files. To learn more, check the 'Errors and Warnings' section in the about page.
