From: grue@cs.uq.oz.au (Pauli Dale)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: Scrabble
Date: 6 Jan 93 09:06:30 GMT
Reply-To: grue@cs.uq.oz.au

LIPSCOJA@ctrvax.Vanderbilt.Edu (Andy Lipscomb) writes:

>> > What's the highest score conceivable in a single play?

>I can think of 320, but it requires four tiles already in place and a blank:
>QUIzZICALLY in a corner.
>Q 10
>U  1 11
>I  1 12
>z  0    (blank)
>Z 10 22
>I  1 23
>C  2 25 (?)
>A  1 26
>L  1 27
>L  1 28
>Y  2 30 (?)
>It crosses two triple-words to reach 90 and 270, and a bingo would then make it
>320.

Warwick Alison and I worked at this problem for a while and came up with
the following board:

    P s y C h o A N a l Y Z i n G 
    r e . r . e x o n . w i t . r 
    e . . o . . . o . . . n . . a 
    j . . q u i d s . . . k . . t 
    u . . u . . . p . . . i m p i 
    d . . e . . . h . . . e . . f 
    g o a t . . . e . . . r . . i 
    i . . e . . .<r>. . . . . . c 
    n . . d . . . e . . . . . . a 
    g . . . . . . s w i f t l e t 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . n 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . s 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 


And the capital letters in the top row are our suggested
play.  The P, the N and the G are on triple word score
squares and the C and the Z are on double letter score
ones.


The scoring (capital letters are double value):

psyChoanalyZing 51*3*3*3	(wow!)
prejudging      22*3
noospheres      15*3
gratifications  20*3
Zinkier         30
Croqueted       24
ax              9
yw              8

7 letter bonus  50
--------------------
Total:          1669



Then it was pointed out to us that the current record is:

According to the Scrabble Players Newspaper (since renamed to 
Scrabble Players News) issue 44, p13, the highest score for one
turn yet discovered, using the Official Scrabble Players
Dictionary, 1st ed. (the 2nd edition is now in use in club and
tournament play) and the Websters 9th New Collegiate Dictionary,
was the following:

d i s e q u i l i b r a t e D
. . . . . . . e . . . . . . e
. . . . . . . e . . . . . o m
r a d i o a u t o g r a p(h)Y
. . . . . . . . . . . w a s T
. . . . . . . . . . b e . . h
. . . . . . . . . . a . . g o
. . . c o n j u n c t i v a L 
. . . . . . . . . . . . . n o
. . . . . . . f i n i k i n G
. . . . . . . a . . . (l) e i
. . . . . . . d . s p e l t Z
. . . . . . w e . . . . . . e
. . . . . . r . . . . . . o r
m e t h o x y f l u r a n e S

for 1682 points.


Which meant that we were quite close to the answer.  In fact I am pretty
sure we can beat it using 'benzoxycamphors' as the base word.  A friend
of mine also pointed out 'sesquioxydizing' would be a better choice (I think
I've spelt that correctly) only it isn't really a word (although sesquioxydize
is supposed to be one).

The scores from the base words alone are (assuming three triples are hit):

	benzoxycamphors 1593
	demythologizers 1296
	psychoanalyzing 1377
	sesquioxydizing 1755

We based our play on psychoanalyzing because it was the highest scoring
fifteen letter word that we could find.


The highest score for a play in a non-legal position is around 1950 and I
believe it uses benzoxycamphors as before and every other letter is also
scored.






        						Pauli

Paul Dale                       | grue@cs.uq.oz.au
Department of Computer Science  | +61 7 365 2445
University of Queensland        |
Australia, 4072                 | Did you know that there are 41 two letter
                                |     words containing the letter 'a'?
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Newsgroups: rec.games.board