He Was Crushed By Scrabble History. Then He Made His Own.

Welcome to Episode 18 of Scrabble History, a series where I break down some of the most incredible plays, epic rivalries, and amazing moments in Scrabble's rich competitive history.
In the previous episode of Scrabble History, Rik Kennedy could do little more than watch as his opponent, Toh Weibin, set an all-time record for points in a tournament game. A top expert in his own right, Rik would make history of his own just a few years later, sitting across from Scrabble's greatest player.
Sometime soon, I plan to resume streaming on my Twitch channel:
/ wanderer15
I also have a weekly show on the official Scrabble Twitch channel (Tuesdays 3-5 PM ET):
/ scrabble
Play Scrabble at playscrabble.com!

[@Teleman2112]

I think AAAAAEU has to be one of the funniest racks to get in a scrabble game.

[@ifyoureadthisyoudi]

AAAAA EU is actually what many Hungarians say often when complaining about democracy

[@Benjy52]

@@ifyoureadthisyoudiAAAAAEU is the sound I make when I stub my toe

[@sircheesethethird6179]

probably even funnier at the uk open

[@cloverisfan818]

I got JUUOOO blank before

[@iarmycombo5659]

​@@Benjy52 thats exactly what my subtitles say too!

[@louisng114]

Can you make a video about the first player advantage (or lack thereof)?

[@Sam-oz8pn]

That would be cool!

[@MsBrookeWilcox]

What does this mean? (Serious question)

[@littlebob2104]

It means "does the first person to make a word have an advantage in winning the game"

[@joshuatopp2039]

@@littlebob2104thank you! Was very confused🤣

[@Firefly256]

I would be interested as well! I thought it doesn't matter that much since the first player opens lanes for the second player anyways, so I usually trade instead of playing short if I'm the first player

[@pokinDave]

You are a fantastic ambassador for competitive Scrabble. You do an amazing job of highlighting the strategy behind all the obscure words

[@wanderer15]

Thank you very much, that’s a primary goal for me so it’s great to see this feedback

[@lasagnahog7695]

Great follow up. It's nice to see Rik get some positive attention after last video and it's interesting to see some games the GOAT lost.

[@mattcanik]

Wow, some freaking awesome decisions by Rik here. It's even more impressive that he's still playing this way in rounds 29, 30, and 31 -- brain drain is so intense at this point

[@DadgeCity]

I was there! I won division C. I had a chat with Nigel - he's quiet but friendly.

[@Kosmicd12]

7:5x has to be the rarest length of KZbin video

[@wanderer15]

Ha! MIDROLL* isn’t valid in Scrabble yet…if it gets added maybe that’ll be a sign to avoid the 7:5x :)

[@spimbles]

dude Kosmic how are you consistently always in the coolest fuckin niche communities lol youre the goat bro

[@GourmetBurrito]

Your graphics and on screen notes help so much in aiding my understanding as a non-player and (prior to finding your channel) non-carer of competitive scrabble

[@wanderer15]

Thanks so much - it’s awesome to hear this feedback

[@furretwalky]

is "winning percentage against Nigel" a serious stat? XD

[@ProfGlitch]

considering more than a handful of players have said their scrabble career goal is to "be the second best player ever" yeah probably thats a serious stat

[@wanderer15]

I think it can be a helpful stat as context for someone’s ability to hang with the very best, but it’s also highly prone to variance and the best way to measure a player’s performance is definitely in the aggregate of their full results.

[@avitaltagar]

2:14 my name is Avital lol

[@doughyjoey_8742]

As always, that was an extremely enjoyable video to watch! It's almost like watching a battle strategy documentary. The game board, the battlefield. The players, the generals. Maybe the letter tiles would be the soldiers. With your Q's and Z's being spelialist troops, not always able to be deployed! Anyway appreciate the upload and Happy Christmas 🎄

[@mattcanik]

Welcome to Scrabble! It's an awesome game. Come play and employ the troops yourself!

[@spimbles]

You should make a video about How Good Is Mack Meller cuz that dudes analytical and methodical thought process is genuinely so impressive, he’s like a mini Nigel Richards in how he almost always spots the most optimal plays

[@wanderer15]

Mack is amazing, and I surely hope to feature him on Scrabble History sometime

[@asterism343]

I had no idea that Scrabble had so much strategy to it. It's not just about knowing all the words, it's like some sort of crazy 4D chess mind games too.

[@wanderer15]

If this was your takeaway, I've achieved my goal! Thank you for the comment, makes me feel like I'm doing something right.

[@user-st6zf1sm8w]

Amazing video as always! KZbin algorithm brought me to your channel a few weeks ago, and now I have watched all your videos and waiting for more. I had never thought that I would enjoy scrabble content this much, since I'm a non-native speaker unfamiliar with english. Your videos really showed me the beauty of competitive scrabble, in that it's a game of strategy rather than language skill. Thank you!

[@wanderer15]

Really appreciate these comments, and so glad you’re enjoying my content!

[@dentonyoung4314]

Another marvelous video. It always amazes me how the Scrabble greats are able to see several moves ahead and anticipate their opponents' possible threats so well.

[@robinier]

Thanks for posting the definitions they are really helpful. By the way, the *a-* prefix in *azonic* is often enunciated in US English (ay-ZAWN-ick); destressing is more typical of the UK (uh-ZAWN-ick). [Source: Collins Dictionary]

[@aarush____]

These are some of the most intuitive and clever plays I’ve ever seen in a scrabble game🤩

[@sharkyplayzgaming]

Hi Will, just wanna say I was an early fan of your channel with your creative and amazing videos, it's insane seeing you grow so rapidly to almost 30k already now. Love your content and keep helping this game and your channel grow! Merry Christmas!

[@wanderer15]

Thank you very much! It’s been a crazy year…let’s see what 2024 brings!

[@vincentskater]

With Rik's top scoring move of "EXLIXERITES" , he manages to dominate the board blocking two vital "S" hooks from Nigel's "SKID" or "KIDS" over the double word score. While still in the lead, Rik finds his only bingo of "JOHNARSELY" with three overlaps, securing the win and leaving Nigel with an unplayable Q left on his rack. While these opponents may have never faced in person before, they have certainly crossed paths and if you're reading this in Will Andersen's voice, he does have a beautiful voice

[@wanderer15]

Lol, thank you! Very nicely narrated!

[@Noah2047_]

Found you on my recommended, clicked on a video, watched another, subbed. Videos are perfectly edited and explained. If only all content was like this! You earned a sub from me. Absolutely love these videos! Keep it up!

[@wanderer15]

Thank you very much for giving my videos a chance!

[@jdmhexagon2584]

This might be my favourite episode yet - loved your clear explanation of these creative and bold plays! Rik is a badass.

[@suspiciousshadeofgreen]

I love how the way to test an expert-level player’s skill is to see how well they play against Nigel

[@stevefurrier9932]

Was there a game,when both players bingoed with the same word in the same game? If yes,it would be interesting to see compilations about that.

[@nibiew90]

(1) How unlucky Nigel was in those games! I'd love to see a consolation video for Nigel... oh wait (2) I hope Rik placed the blank A in the correct spot in game 29, heh

[@thegodofpez]

Damn, Rik is a clever player! Fun to watch! Great upload, Sir Will! Happy holidays to everyone!

[@girltalk08]

Fantastic job, I don’t even play scrabble but you got me hooked

[@loganhallahan164]

This was a fantastic video and was extremely entertaining throughout the whole watch. Thank you so much for making these, my love for scrabble grows everyday because of your content

[@wanderer15]

I really appreciate the kind words, thank you!

[@redravenrages6321]

"One day, you might give up the highest score in Scrabble History, but the next day, you might put forth a masterclass of how to play fearlessly and creatively against the game's greatest player." Beautifully said, but I love also how "the next day" is actually 8 years, lolZ!!

[@wanderer15]

Couldn't let that fact get in the way of a nice turn of phrase :)

[@ronaldscredo2009]

Rik should wear a shirt with notes: "I beat Nigel Richards thrice!"

[@BeyondMediocreMandarin]

Another excellent video Will! Any chance you'll do a video on "What makes a good leave?"

[@wanderer15]

This would be a great topic to dive into at some point for sure

[@natebengtson5252]

lets go Rik!

[@plebcrabslayer]

5:59 “The Oxford English Dictionary accepts both pronunciations. They are wrong. It is a soft ‘G’, pronounced ‘jif’. End of story.” -Steve Wilhite 6:21 UTIS#* This episode reminds me of when my friend, who got me into tournament Scrabble (cf. “living room Scrabble”), played against John Luebkemann, then rated fourth in the country, and won! It showcased the fact that anyone can beat anyone in Scrabble because of the element of luck. :D

[@wanderer15]

John is a great player - that’s a pretty cool accomplishment!

[@averagesmashenjoyer7697]

Is zex really a word lmao

[@fscreations7373]

This will sound very stupid I'm sure. Can you actually go along to a Scrabble tournament just as a 'spectator'?

[@richards31415]

You could but I wouldn't recommend lingering in the playing area. Under tournament rules, players are well within their rights to ask you to leave the playing area if you are watching them too closely.

[@DadgeCity]

Before I started playing competitively I did go along to the UK Open in Coventry to see what it's like, and I got the buzz. Nigel R was there, and I also had coffee and a chat with Mark Nyman. People were welcoming and you can watch people playing, albeit only for a minute at a time - being watched makes some players nervous.

[@wanderer15]

If you happen to know of any happening nearby, it couldn’t hurt to stop by and take a look - otherwise, we’re trying to offer lots of live-streaming to make it a little more accessible regardless of where you’re from.

[@Dylan_Lu]

I love these videos :)

[@mikedicenzo1650]

I’d love to a video about a game where Nigel Richards got destroyed by 300 points(if that ever happened)

[@AlexDings]

I looked it up: in the 4,800 WESPA and NASPA games by Nigel so far, this has apparently happened only once, but that was in a World Championship final of all places! If the protocol of that game is correct, Nigel accidentally played IR*. His opponent played a triple-triple and three other bingos. Final score 303-670.

[@SAYFVCKFOR100DOLLARS]

pls showcase this game

[@dsdsd1]

FIRE 🔥🔥🔥

[@spencerciting]

Now I feel bad for Nigel

[@arthurcharest9061]

Super cool

[@chintanrajani1536]

The game is not only about knowledge of words but about sound tactics. Most importantly, it is about luck. You draw bad tiles and you're done

[@tranonehalf]

Everyone knows Nigel is the 🐐. But who is the second best Scrabble player?

[@AlexDings]

Probably David Eldar from Australia. But it's much more debatable and would make for an interesting video.

[@wanderer15]

Agree that my vote is for David but several others have made strong cases!

[@Gastogh]

6:58 How would playing FEAST to hook TROOP here rank as an option?

[@wanderer15]

It would be solid, but would offer an outside chance of Nigel playing something through the newly-opened letters.

[@shr1mpleTV]

How does EDH create an S-hook?

[@richards31415]

EDH is a noun

[@spimbles]

@@richards31415that’s wild lol

[@plebcrabslayer]

@@spimbles What's wilder is that the /th/ in "that" is EDH!

[@clausgiloi6036]

Why not zinco instead of azonic?

[@jellomochas]

AZONIC was a mistake; ZINCO scores 87 in the same spot.

[@risky6string]

I'm sure I made a lot of mistakes but there was at least a reason for playing AZONIC over ZINCO. The avalanche of As in the bag. Maybe too much of a sacrifice and I drew them anyway but I thought AZONIC gave me enough of a lead on a dead board to sacrifice the pts 🤷‍♂️

[@javierrodrigo1009]

​@@risky6stringHi Rik! Congrats on your impressive wins against Nigel - do you plan on shooting for the GM title next year? Also happy holidays!

[@risky6string]

​@@javierrodrigo1009I'm ranked #8 of UK players but it's extremely difficult to hit GM in the UK right now for various reasons - ratings deflation, retiral of a bunch of highly rated players etc

[@DadgeCity]

There's supposed to be a new ratings system introduced next year, so hopefully that will be better for top players

[@javierrodrigo1009]

@@risky6string Gotcha. Still, best of luck to you and keep up the grind! :)

[@woonxiongping6985]

i literally got AAAAAE blank

[@billynakamura48]

Surely ZINCO for 16 more is better than AZONIC?

[@adamprestin28]

Thank you for your pronunciation of gif.

[@plebcrabslayer]

Steve Wilhite would disagree. ;)

[@SAYFVCKFOR100DOLLARS]

eggs

[@vanshjain3428]

❤

[@qbreezy2417]

Great video but pretty jarring to hear you mispronounce gif.

[@wanderer15]

I had somebody else praising me for saying it right :)

[@jesseluckeroth9647]

earaly

[@LightAndDark2763]

5:59 I would say it's pronounced with a soft G, but people are too stuck in their brain to listen to me. 😞

[@shr1mpleTV]

How does EDH create an S-hook?

[@HoodTrampoline]

"Edhs"