World Scrabble Championship 1991

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World Scrabble Championship 1991
27 September 1991 – 30 September 1991
WinnerPeter Morris (Scrabble)|Peter Morris
Number of players48
LocationLondon
SponsorMattel

The World Scrabble Championship 1991 was the first World Scrabble Championship. The winner was Peter Morris,[1] a Canadian, representing the United States.

Plans for a World Scrabble Championship had formed as early as 1986/87. After Coleco bought Selchow and Righter, the company announced that they were interested in helping players to organize a "World-Class Open" in 1988. At the 1987 Nationals, John Williams announced that the first World Scrabble Championship would be held the following summer in New York. It would be 1991, however, before it became a reality.

The 48 players were separated into random groups of 6 and played round robins within their groups. The top 2 players from each group then played a knockout to produce two finalists who played a best-of-three finals.

Morris and Cappelletto split their first two games then met for a final game to decide it all. On his tenth move, Cappelletto made a rare blunder by playing the phony SMAIL instead of CLAIMS. The move may have cost him the championship. As it was, Morris pulled out a complicated end game for a 4-point win and the first world title.

Complete Results[edit]

Position Name Country Prize (USD)[1]
1 Morris, Peter United States 10,000
2 Cappelletto, Brian United States 5,000
3 Boys, David Canada 2,500
4 Edley, Joe United States 1,000
5 Tiekert, Ron United States 500
6 Cansfield, Joyce United Kingdom
7 Simonis, Sandie United Kingdom
8 Benjamin, Larry South Africa
9 Fisher, Stephen Canada
10 Southwell, Charlie United States
11 Finley, Peter England
12 Cohen, Evan Israel
13 Carroll, Charlie United States
14 Elbourne, Peter Malta
15 Warusawitharana, Missaka Sri Lanka
16 Nderitu, Patrick Gitonga Kenya
17 Grant, Jeff New Zealand
18 Sapong, Kwaku Ghana
19 Holgate, John Australia
20 Fisher, Andrew United Kingdom
21 Spate, Clive United Kingdom
22 Nyman, Mark England
23 Violett, Bob United Kingdom
24 Schonbrun, Lester United States
25 Sigley, Michael New Zealand
26 Kane, Alistair Australia
27 Wapnick, Joel Canada
28 Pratesi, Diane United Kingdom
29 Filio, Roland Philippines
30 Donkoh, George Ghana
31 Brown, Christine Éire
32 Harridge, Barry Australia
33 Appleby, Phil England
34 Butler, Lynne New Zealand
35 Lawrie, Glenys Australia
36 Felt, Robert United States
37 Filio, Candido Philippines
38 Rowe, Dennis European Community
39 Saldanha, Norbert United Arab Emirates
40 Saldanha, Allan United Kingdom
41 Sim, Tony Singapore
42 Berger, Averil South Africa
43 Thobani, Shafique Kenya
44 Ismal, Muhammed Malaysia
45 Cleary, Paul Stephen Australia
46 Thompson, Martin United Kingdom
47 Levine, Eli South Africa
48 Nakai, Ken Japan
  • Finals
  • Game 1: Morris 463 - Cappelletto 349
  • Game 2: Cappelletto 368 - Morris 301
  • Game 3: Morris 371 - Cappelletto 367

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b WSC 1991 results at cross-tables.com