Euclid Hui crowned the Hong Kong Scrabble Champion once again

The Hong Kong Scrabble Championship 2023 was successfully held from 1 to 2 April 2023.

As most COVID-19 infection control measures have been lifted, the Championship resumed its 2-division format after three years of waiting. This year, apart from selecting the Hong Kong Scrabble Champion, the Championship also serves as the local qualifier for WESPA Championship 2023.

There were two divisions in the Championship. Division A was open to players with HKSPA peak ratings of 1500 or above from 1 January 2021 to March 2023, while Division B was open to players with HKSPA peak ratings below 1500. Only players with Hong Kong representation status were eligible for the Championship.

Sixteen players signed up for Division A, which is a two-day tournament. The tournament's first day took place in the 1985 studio, an event space in Shum Shui Po. The second day was in the Foreign Correspondents' Club, a private Club in Central. Players played 18 games in total, which makes the Championship the tournament with the largest number of games in a single tournament in Hong Kong. The games are intense, and the champion is finalised only after the completion of the last game. Euclid won the Hong Kong Scrabble Champion title again this year by winning 14 out of 18 games in the Championship. He was also awarded the High Game award for his 681-275 game with Douglas Tsang.

Players playing in Division A, and the game in the top table is being annotated

"This is the most difficult Hong Kong Scrabble Championship that I have ever won, where it went down to the wire until the decider in the final game. I am excited to be representing Hong Kong in the WESPA Championship for the first time alongside Carson and Brian. A big thanks to Hong Kong Scrabble Players Association and all admin staff for putting up yet another wonderful tournament", Euclid said.

Carson and Brian were the 1st and 2nd runner-ups in the event, respectively. They will also be qualified to represent Hong Kong in the WESPA Championship 2023. Apart from these players, Thomson got 4th place, and Hong Hoi Ting was awarded the High Word award.

Players playing in Division B

50 players participated in Division B of the tournament as well. Division B is a one-day six-game tournament for players with less experience in Scrabble. All players enjoyed a joyful and fruitful day playing Scrabble. Rex Chan Hiu Cheung (CCC Mong Man Wai College) was the winner in the Division, while Samuel Fok (W F Joseph Lee Primary School) and Felix Liu (CCC Mong Man Wai College) were the first and second runner-ups in the Division, respectively.

Prize-winners of Division B

Thank you all players for joining the Championship this year, and congratulations to all winners in the Championship! Also, we would like to thank the Foreign Correspondents' Club for the services and venues they provided for the second day of the Championship. There will be some more tournaments in the upcoming few months. We look forward to seeing all the players in the forthcoming events very soon!

Group photos of the Championship