<![CDATA[Scrabble Academy with Matthew]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.comhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5a_i!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2aa21cb0-93d2-4321-91e2-70e9054a7846_1032x1032.jpegScrabble Academy with Matthewhttps://matthewjoconnor.substack.comSubstackFri, 04 Sep 2026 08:59:07 GMT<![CDATA[Thursday Middlegame #25]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-25https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-25Fri, 04 Sep 2026 01:30:55 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Wednesday Late Game #25]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-25https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-25Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:36:50 GMT

I have two bingos for 77 here. Which is better?

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]]><![CDATA[Tuesday Pre-Endgame #25]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-25https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-25Tue, 01 Sep 2026 15:42:26 GMT

What is the best play here?

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Answer: K8 BOTH is the correct play. There are a couple tricks to this pre-endgame. First, you have to remember that SCUTTER is a word. Then, you must fish for S or ?, because you are far enough behind that you are going to need one of the two in order to have a chance. Once you do that it’s simply about maximi…

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]]><![CDATA[Monday Endgame #25]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-25https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-25Mon, 31 Aug 2026 14:20:14 GMT

What is the best endgame here?

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]]><![CDATA[Friday Early Game #24]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-24https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-24Fri, 28 Aug 2026 16:06:05 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Thursday Middlegame #24]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-24https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-24Thu, 27 Aug 2026 20:30:15 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Wednesday Late Game #24]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-24https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-24Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:50:51 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Tuesday Pre-Endgame #24]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-24https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-24Tue, 25 Aug 2026 15:04:23 GMT

What is the best pre-endgame here?

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]]><![CDATA[Monday Endgame #24]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-24https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-24Mon, 24 Aug 2026 14:01:36 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Friday Early Game #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-23-65chttps://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-23-65cFri, 21 Aug 2026 16:02:33 GMTWhat is the best play here?

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Answer: 13G C(O)SeD is the correct play. It might feel wrong to use the blank for 27 here, but this is the rare situation where it is correct. COSeD blocks every scoring spot on the board. It reduces my opponent’s score by 20 points compared to if I exchange. In addition it creates a board that will be very hard for my opponent to come back from long term.

Sim results and sim deatils. 14H SiK is #2 for similar reasons

]]><![CDATA[Thursday Middlegame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-23-818https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-23-818Thu, 20 Aug 2026 13:44:08 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Wednesday Late Game #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-23-2cchttps://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-23-2ccWed, 19 Aug 2026 13:57:43 GMT

This is an example of a position where inference matters. What is my best play here?

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Answer: D12 WOLD is the best play.

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]]><![CDATA[Tuesday Pre-Endgame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-23-14ehttps://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-23-14eTue, 18 Aug 2026 17:11:54 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Monday Endgame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-23-818https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-23-818Mon, 17 Aug 2026 13:08:04 GMT

What is the best sequence here?

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Answer: It is a tie between 14C ROPE and 14A UPGO. Nits has no outs other than 14B LION, so I mostly just have to make an out in two whose first play blocks LION. The best ones are 14C ROPE and 14A UPGO, both of which win by 5

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]]><![CDATA[Friday Early Game #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-23https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-23Fri, 14 Aug 2026 19:02:17 GMT

What is the best play here?

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]]><![CDATA[Thursday Middlegame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-23https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/thursday-middlegame-23Thu, 13 Aug 2026 11:32:46 GMT

What is the best play?

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Answer: N13 OD is the best play. OD scores more than my choice of 2M VAC. The per turn averages afterwards are surprisingly close. After OD, I have a nonzero chance of an immediate bingo with GLUGS and I can fish off my V on the next turn to get an even better chance for the future. The extra points of OD make the difference here.

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]]><![CDATA[Wednesday Late Game #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-23https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/wednesday-late-game-23Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:06:05 GMT

What is the best play here?

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Answer: K4 BEAN is the best play. The key thing in this position is that I cannot block all bingos. I cannot even block all triple bingos. I am very likely to win because of my lead, but if I make a low scoring play blocking the C, I can easily lose to R bingos, and if I make a low scoring play blocking the R, I can lose to C bingos.

Once you dismiss the possibility of blocking triple bingos, there are still several options for which way to go. You can make a play like B7 BRAP, which prioritizes blocking the C but still scores something. You can also make a play like K2 FAYNE which blocks the R but scores something. Ultimately, neither of these plays are quite enough to reliably beat triple bingos from the triple they don’t block.

BEAN is the best play because it is a setup. Setups are hugely powerful here because they are unlikely to get blocked. Matthew will play the bingo every time he has it, and if he has it, the combination of the 23 points of BEAN and the setup are likely to be just enough.

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]]><![CDATA[Tuesday Pre-Endgame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-23https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/tuesday-pre-endgame-23Tue, 11 Aug 2026 18:11:22 GMT

What is the best pre-endgame here?

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Answer: There are no bingos or triple triples I need to worry about. I can simply default to scoring well and leaving flexible tiles for the endgame. Although nearly every play wins 100% the best one for spread is M11 TAJ.

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]]><![CDATA[Monday Endgame #23]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-23https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/monday-endgame-23Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:15:26 GMT

The game result is not in doubt here as I have no bingos, but the best endgame is still the best endgame. What is the best play?

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Answer: I7 DOE is the correct play. Ben’s threat of POME is so much better than his next best play that I have to prioritize blocking it. My choice of 13H WEANED was the highest scoring out in two but it was 6 poin…

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]]><![CDATA[Friday Early Game #22]]>https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-22https://matthewjoconnor.substack.com/p/friday-early-game-22Fri, 07 Aug 2026 12:59:55 GMTFirst off apologies for the inconsistent posts. I have been playing in and driving home from the Word Cup. I will resume the regularly scheduled posts now.

In this position, what is the best play?

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