Scrabble champs win with ‘killer instinct’ and blanks

Two top players, who were in city, say that you have to be competitive to win, and share with us what their favourite word and alphabet are
Mark Nyman (left) with Nigel Richards
Mark Nyman (left) with Nigel Richards

BENGALURU: Renowned scrabble players Mark Nyman and Madhav Gopal Kamath participated in the 14th edition of the International Scrabble Tournament organised by Capgemini in association with Karnataka State Scrabble Association (KSSA). City Express chats with two of these top scrabble players.
Excerpts:

‘Blank is the best letter’
says Mark Nyman, UK
Grandmaster

Which is your favourite word and why?
Taghairm is my personal favourite.

Madhav Gopal Kamath, an ‘Under 8’ scrabble genius with his father
Madhav Gopal Kamath, an ‘Under 8’ scrabble genius with his father

What is it about scrabble that fascinates you the most?
There are many aspects of the game which actually attracts me – one is not just to have strong vocabulary but to be very creative in thinking and be very competitive.

Who has been your toughest contender?
Nigel Richards

Which is your favourite letter and why?
Blank is the best letter, just because one won’t get a choice to play 50 points bingo business words from it.

Do you play scrabble with your family?
No, I don’t play with my family as we play in different levels and most of the words I use, they don’t know.

What’s the highest score you have made on a single word? What was the word?
302 for words such as Conquest and Mutagenic.

What’s your strategy for a game?
I play the game in a competitive spirit and I am more focused in using the highest scorer words and play best of my ability.

I have lost many games to my father: Madhav Gopal Kamath

Which is your favourite word and why?
Caziques, because if you play on a 9 timer, then you will get 392 points.

What is it about scrabble that fascinates you the most?
I like the game as its is fun to play and it helps your mind learn words.

Who has been your toughest contender?
Udayan Grover

Which is your favourite letter and why?
Blank, because it can be turned to any letter and it is easy to get highest score and bingos.

Do you play scrabble with your family? Who is the best player, apart from you, in your family?
Yes I do play with my father and brother. My father is the best player and he is my coach as well. I learn a lot from him. Yes I have lost so many games from him and also at the same time learnt from him.

What’s the highest score you have made on a single word? What was the word?
In an online game, my highest score has been 158 for the word Spongier and for offline game, I have scored 149 for word like Overawes.

What’s your strategy for a game?
My strategy is to use 7 or 5 letters words and get the highest score.

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