BAT 2013B A T 2 0 1 3April is a month of change, with signs of spring andchange bringing renewed optimism. This year’s BostonArea Tournament in at the lovely Westford Regency inWestford, MA, April 12-14, attracted some 160optimistic players, competing in the TWL and CollinsMain Events and Early Bird, and in a NewcomersTournament for new players and players rated under1100.Sherrie Saint John always does a spectacular job ofmaking players feel welcome. This year she was joinedby codirector Judy Cole, who did a terrific job. From thebadges handed out as players registered to the mints left at the table during games, BAT is a mostenjoyable tournament. It is also an exciting tournament, as the special Premier Division offers 16players an opportunity to play in a field of the best of the best.<strong>The</strong> TWL 5-game Early Bird was held as an open, withratings ranging from 876 to 2043. Top seed Ian Weinstein,fresh from his undefeated victory at Princeton, was thewinner with a 4-1 +409 record. Second was 16th seedLinda Wancel, with a 4-1 +409 record, and Verna RichardsBerg was third (4-1 +125). In the Collins Early Bird top seedDavid Koenig took the top prize, with a 4-1 +391 record,with Puneet Sharma second (3-2 +220) and Chris Lipe third(3-1 +192). That event welcomed Australian player CarmelDodd, playing in her first U.S. tournament; she finishedfourth.Early Bird winners (L-R) Ian Weinstein (TWL)and Dave Koenig (Collins)Saturday night players got to enjoy Jason Keller’s Jeopardy! Experience.Jason, who won has won $223,900 on Jeopardy!, awarded the night’s topprize to Judy Cole, who will appear on the real Jeopardy! on June 21!BAT Premier winners (L-R): Will Anderson (2nd); Stefan Rau(1st); Mack Meller (3rd)<strong>The</strong> 15-game MainEvent had someexciting finishes.Going into the finalgame of the roundrobinPremier division,Stefan Rau, WillJeopardy! Experience winnerJudy Cole with organizer (andJeopardy! superstar) JasonKeller.Anderson, and 13-year-old Mack Meller were allin contention for the win. Stefan won his lastgame to finish 11-4 +946, taking the division forthe second straight year. Will Anderson won hisgame with Mack to take the second slot (11-4+688), and Mack finished third 9.5-5.5 +414,bringing his rating to an impressive 2014.16
B A T 2 0 1 3Mack also won the Robert Felt Memorial Star StudentAward for the best performance by a Youth Player--probably the first time the winner has ever come fromthe Premier Division!Joe Edley and Jeremiah Mead entered the final gameof Division A with 10 wins apiece. Joe prevailed in thatgame to take the win, 11-4 +386, earning himself aspot in next year’s Premier Division. Jere finishedsecond with 10-5 +470 record, and Steve Glass wasthird, 10-5 +91.Division A winner Joe Edley with codirectors Judy Coleand Sherrie Saint John.In Division B Brandon Randall entered the final gamein the lead by one game over Ed Liebfried, Mike Ecsedy and Daniel Blake. Mike beat Brandon towin the division, 11-4 +932, with Ed second (11-4 +805). Brandon finished third (11-5 +625).L-R: Division B winner Mike Ecsedy; Division C winner Steve Moniz; Division D winner Harolyn MeyerSteve Moniz won Division C with an 11-4 +521 record, a game ahead of runner-up Jackie Prince(10-5 +650) and Helena Gauthier (10-5 +446). Also with 10 wins was the 4th-place finisher, LillaSinanan.Division D came down to the final game, too, withHarolyn Meyer beating Marvin Kraus to take thetop prize. Harolyn ended with an 11-4 +582record, with Marvin second at 11-4 +302. Thirdwas Texan Robin Gates, who finished 10-5 +634.Collins winner John O’Laughlin<strong>The</strong> Collins Division was also a close finish, withtop seed John O’Laughlin beating former WorldChampion Joel Wapnick in the last round to takethe division, 12-3 +1222. Joel was second, 10-5+1398, and David Koenig third, 10-5 +816. Allthree will be heading to the World <strong>SCRABBLE</strong>Championship in Prague in November, John andDavid representing the U.S.A. and Joelrepresenting Canada. 17