Brandon Twp.- Za. Qi. Oi.
No, they’re not words in a foreign language, they’re the latest additions to the Scrabble Dictionary? ‘Za? being a word for pizza, ‘Qi? is like chi, a positive sense of being and ‘Oi? an interjection, like ‘Oy!?
These words and hundreds more are likely to show up on a couple dozen game boards when the library hosts a Scrabble Tournament fundraiser from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sept. 20 at the library, 304 South St.
‘A lot of people don’t even know you can play competitive Scrabble,? said Linda Hoggatt, a National Scrabble Association director who will help oversee the tournament. ‘We make it friendly for experts and non-experts. This is really a good tournament to start in if you’ve never played before. Everyone is welcome.?
Elaine Glowniak, 63, will be one of the tournament players. The Groveland Township resident began playing the crossword style word game about 32 years ago and is now a member of the Flint Scrabble Club. She plays weekly with club members and attends tournaments regularly. She has even gone on a Scrabble cruise.
‘This is an addiction,? says Glowniak of her love for the game invented by Alfred Butts and trademarked in 1948. ‘Scrabble is like family. You connect with people and get to know people at nationals.?
Hoggatt, 49, grew up playing Scrabble at family and holiday gatherings. She began competing in tournaments in 2001. In Michigan, she said there are probably 20 tournaments per year, at least one every month. The most recent was a 3-day tournament in Pontiac, drawing people from as far away as Canada, West Virginia and Ohio. Hoggatt received third place in her division.
Tournaments are generally divided into expert, intermediate and novice divisions. A rating system is in place for Scrabble players, based on how many games a person has won. In the library tournament, seven rounds (games) will be played by each participant, with a round-robin style pairing system. An electronic word judge program, named ‘Zyzvyza? after the last word in the Scrabble dictionary, is used for words that are challenged (Zyzvyza is a tropical weevil). Human word judges are also available.
Scrabble players are diverse. Hoggatt says ladies in their 80s and 90s are often seen at tournaments and the person who won the intermediate division in Pontiac was only 16-years-old. At the national tournament in Orlando in July, an 11-year-old boy won the novice division.
‘People who play Scrabble come from all walks of life,? Hoggatt said. ‘Teachers, doctors, lawyers, homemakers, grandmas, teenage boys all play. That’s what wonderful about Scrabble? it crosses all boundaries, blacks, whites, Asians, men and women, all ages. It has no bounds. It’s a game everyone can play at some level.?
A timer will be set at the table at the tournament, giving each player 25 minutes for their total game time. The timer starts and stops with each play. A scoresheet keeps track of words played and the points for each. Typically, Hoggatt said, in the expert division, a player needs to score an average of more than 450 points in a game, intermediate averages about 375-400 points, and novice division about 350. Hoggatt said it is rare for a player to score in the 600-700 point range.
Jeff Clark, an NSA member who will assist at the library tournament, was the long-time record holder of the most points for one word? 302 points for ‘methodize.? The record was recently broken.
Hoggatt’s favorite word she has played to date is ‘ekpwele,? a former monetary unit in equatorial Guinea.
It isn’t necessary to be a big reader, a wordsmith, or even a great speller to play Scrabble, Hoggatt says. All you need is a love of the game.
‘Some people spend all their spare time reading word lists and studying, some use the vocabulary they have,? she said. ‘Most people learn two-letter word lists quickly. There is a cheat sheet available online, but you can’t bring it to tournaments.?
The Scrabble tournament fundraiser will have gift card prizes for the top two players in each division and may have other prizes for high loss or high win, as well as a prize for the best library word or Ortonville word.
‘There are highs and lows to this,? Glowniak said. ‘When I’m losing, I’m devastated, but then I get to start all over again. It’s a rush.?
‘Win or lose, I love to play the game,? said Hoggatt. ‘It’s a lot more fun when you win, but even when I lose, I still love playing. It’s such a game with your mind. You really have to think things through and strategize, it’s really cool.?

Get your Scrabble on

The Scrabble Tournament fundraiser is from 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Sept. 20, at the library, 304 South St., Ortonville. There is a limit of 48 players and pre-registration is required by Sept. 15. Tickets are $30, proceeds benefitting the Brandon Township Library. Register by calling 248-627-1460 or online at www.brandonlibrary.org. No walk-ins allowed. Doors open at 8 a.m., registration begins at 8:30 a.m. and games promptly start at 9 a.m. No walk-ins allowed. Please bring your own game. For more information, call Linda Hoggatt at 513-256-9594 or e-mail faithenufff@aim.com or call Jeff Clark at 810-347-0571 or e-mail him at bgscrabble@aim.com.