Rules: WESPA Rules Version 4.0

Dictionary: Collins Scrabble Dictionary Edition 2024 (CSW24)

Number of Players: Two players per game

Total Number of Games

• Qualifying Rounds - 3

• Finals - 5

Pairing System

• Participants will be paired randomly by computer software for the first round.

• Qualifying Rounds: King of the Hill Tournament format

  • Warm-up Game to familiarise players with playing Scrabble in a tournament setting. Game results of this round will not count.

  • Game One is the first official game of the tournament. All players are to play. Game points (win/draw/loss) will count toward player rankings.

  • Game Two is the second official game of the tournament. All players are to play. Game points (win/draw/loss) will count toward player rankings in a cumulative fashion.

• The Top 30 players from each of the three Qualifying Rounds locations will proceed to the Finals. 90 finalists will play at the Finals.

• Finals: King of the Hill Tournament format

  • Players will play five games, each contributing to their overall ranking. 

Competition Specific Rules:

• There will be a 300-point spread cap per game.

• In the event that two players end a round (Qualifying Rounds/Finals) with the same number of game points and cumulative spread, the Tournament Director will determine their rankings based on the final ranking of their opponents from the games of that round. The player whose past opponents have the higher final rankings will be awarded the higher position on the board.

• This tournament will practise free challenge play.

Scoresheet: Players are each responsible for calculating their own scores and verifying their opponent’s. This document is to help players keep track of both their own and their opponent’s plays during the game. The player who goes first is Player A. Players should continue to check in with each other during the game that they are recording the same scores.

Results Slip: This is to be completed by the winner at the end of each round and passed to the tournament official. It is used to document the winner and the Scrabble score difference. This is also the designated piece of paper to record the letters chosen for the blank tiles to represent.

Individual Score Record: For a player’s own record, they are to use this sheet to mark down their game point score (W-1, L-0, D-0.5) and the Scrabble score difference (spread) after the game. They are also to take down their opponent’s information. It is important for players to keep their own records in the case of a dispute. 

Each player will have 25 minutes of playtime per game.

There will be a 10-point penalty for each minute a player exceeds their allotted time. The maximum penalty is 50 points. 

Once a player has exceeded their playtime by 10 minutes,, it will count as an automatic loss.

The Tournament Director may intervene with whatever necessary action if they deem a game proceeding too slowly.

Tiles must be laid out in four 5x5 grids, one in each corner of the board.

This step is to ensure that all 100 tiles are accounted for.

Once tiles are accounted for, they are to be returned to the bag and scrambled.

Players should always draw tiles while holding the bag at or above eye level.

A full rack should only have seven tiles.

Players draw one tile each from the bag to determine who starts.

The player with the tile closest to “A” starts. A blank tile supersedes all other tiles.

If the same tiles are taken, players are to draw again until the starting player is decided.

A Tournament Director may choose to allow the computer to decide which player starts. Their name would be indicated by an asterisk on the pairing sheet.

Players share one timer that is prepared by the organiser.

Both players are responsible for checking that the timer works correctly before the game begins.

The timer can be started once Player One draws their first tile.

Once the person playing has completed playing their letters and announcing their score they may start their opponent’s timer.

In the case of a challenge or a dispute, timers must be neutralised - stopped for both players - until the dispute is resolved.

A turn consists of making a play, calculating, announcing your score.

Your timer cannot be stopped unless your turn has been played to completion.

Once you stop your timer, your turn is over and your opponent may begin.

A player may choose to pass instead of making a play. When this is done, the pass must be recorded on the scoresheet with the word “PASS” and given a score of “0.”

There are two blank Scrabble tiles that may show up during gameplay. They are worth no points and may represent any English alphabet letter. Once played, they stay that letter for the duration of the game.

A player who wants to play a blank tile must declare their intention to do so and write down the letter they want it to represent on the designated piece of paper before they place their tiles on the board.

An opponent may challenge a player’s  play once it has been placed on the board, they have announced their score, and they have pressed the timer.

A challenge can only be issued after the timer has been pressed and before new tiles have been drawn.  Once new tiles have been drawn, it is too late to issue the challenge.

When a challenge is issued, the timer must be neutralised while the word is looked up at the designated station.

In the case of parallel play, multiple words may have been formed with one move. All words formed during the play may be entered into the word checker, each separated by a comma.

There is no penalty for the challenger if the word they challenge is found to be legitimate.

If any word checked is found to be illegitimate, the person who played it must retract their tiles and lose their turn.

The challenged player should have their side of the timer started before they retract their tiles.

A player is only to draw enough tiles to bring their full rack up to 7.

Players should draw their tiles face down and place them on the table before racking them to prevent overdrawing.

If a player accidentally overdraws tiles, they must reveal all overdrawn tiles and another two of their racked tiles. It is up to their opponent to decide which of the overturned tiles return to the bag.

A game is over when i) one player runs out of tiles to play, ii) one player has used 35 minutes of playing time iii) all possible plays have been made iv) both players have passed thrice in consecutive turns, i.e. both players are unable to place a word after six consecutive turns scoring zero, resulting from any combination of passes, exchanges and successful challenges.

When calculating their scores, players should remember to deduct any time penalty they accumulated (-10 points per minute over 25 minutes with a maximum penalty of -50) as well as the value of the tiles they have left on their rack.

At the end of each round, players are to tally their own scores, sharing their final scores with each other.

The winner should fill out the Results Slip, both players must sign it, and the winner should turn the slip into a tournament official.

The winner is the player with the higher Scrabble score at the end of each round.

Players will be awarded 1 game point for a win, 0.5 game points for a draw, and 0 game points for a loss.

Players will be ranked by their game points. Where game points are the same, Scrabble score differences (spread) will be taken into account. If the number of wins and score differences are the same, players will be awarded the same ranking.

If there is a dispute over the legality of an action, the timer is to be neutralised and both players are to raise their hands to call on the Tournament Director.

If a player fails to dispute a move or action by their opponent during a game, they may not raise it after the fact.

Only players may raise a dispute about their own game. 

No electronic devices are allowed during gameplay.

No Scrabble notes of any kind may be referred to during a game.

Players must use the score sheets provided.

When drawing tiles, players must hold the tile pouch at or above eye level and in full view of their opponent.

Once the game is over, tiles must be returned to the 5x5 grids. Both players are responsible for this task.

A third party may not intervene directly in any way including but not limited to spotting errors of mathematics or procedure or providing assistance to players. Such instances must be reported to the Tournament Director for decisive action.