Grand Master John Ayedun on Sunday became the third player to win the South-West Scrabble Open Tournament after he defeated Abdulmumin Jimoh 477-390 in the final round to edge his closest rival Cyril Umebiye to the title with a cumulative points of +81.
Ayedun poked his nose with +958 ahead of the defending champion who got +877 and Jimoh who scored +679 after the trio recorded 11 wins and 4 defeats to win the giant trophy and a cash prize of 600,000 naira at the end of the 2-day tournament.
Umebiye would however, miss the opportunity of having the trophy for keeps after he failed to win the title for a second time.
The finicky nature of the game again came into play when Day One leader Umujose fell from his advantage position to 6th despite opening the final day with a win and with just three games left which he lost .
In the rankings, 2022 African champion Enoch Nwali, new African King Timilehin Doko, Umujose and Ibukun Faloye who all recorded 10 wins and 5 defeats each were separated by varying cumulative points of +1138, +504, +326, +27.
Emotion was also high as top players tried to outpoint each other in the closing stage.
“It was a highly competitive event. I actually never saw it ( this victory) coming.” said Ayedun with a smile playing on his face.
“With the presence of two African champions; the immediate past champion in Enoch Nwali and the just recently crowned holder Timilehin Doko. Having them participate in this tournament shows it’s really a competitive one. For me emerging as the winner shows it’s not a small feat and I give God Almighty the glory for the achievement.”
“Mr Egbele has done so well for making this South-West Scrabble Tournament a wonderful one. From the first edition in Ibadan won by my friend Adeyemi Adeosun to the one in Abeokuta,Ogun State won by Cyril Umebiye. Those ones were closed. Now that this edition was opened to all Nigerians and I won. God will continue to bless him.”
Apiafi Isaac emerged as the best intermediate category while Tsola Mabiaku picked the best Open title.
There was also a side-event for children.
Many players were also rewarded across board with spot prizes.
In his closing remarks, Nigeria Scrabble Federation South-West Coordinator Emmanuel Egbele was full of praise for the host Ondo State Scrabble Board members including Chief Samuel Alagha and Sunshine Scrabble Club Chairman Prince Adeloye Adetomiwa for hosting one of the best tournaments in the zone.
Egbele who is a proponent of exquisite scrabble playing experience also commended the Local Organising Committee which also included his team members namely; Tayo Ogunseye, Hakeem Olaribigbe, Omotayo Hamzat, Khaleel Adedeji, Emmanuel Enyi and Paul Gbadegeshin for their impact on the organisation of the event.
The convener of the Emmanuel Egbele Annual Scrabble Tournament. (EEAST) raised concerns on the future of the tournament as the tenure of the NSF would soon be over.
“The experience has always been a tough one to be honest because putting up resources for a tournament of this magnitude requires a lot of resources, a lot of logistics and a lot of preparations. Yes, we cannot rule out the challenges of the economic situation even with the players having to travel from different locations across the country but for me, it’s better to look on the bright side and look for how to improve on the game, have more tournaments and it will be able to help us prepare for international tournaments like the World Championship in Ghana next year. We have the present and the immediate past African champions at this tournament which they are using to prepare for the National Sports Festival next year.”
Chairman of the Ondo State Scrabble Board Chief Samuel Alagha captured his thoughts this way.
“I feel elated that this tournament has surpassed others. We have the who-is-who in scrabble with the presence of Enoch Nwali, Timilehin Doko, John Ayedun and many others. Mr Egbele has done a yeoman’s job. You can see his sense of organisation. We also thank the state Governor for his support and more importantly, the impact this tournament is having on young players is massive. You can see the children also had their own event alongside the main one so, tournaments like the South-West Scrabble Open is what we should be have to develop our game.”he concluded.
