Ogbonna Leads After A Testy Day 1 At Dynamite Opens Scrabble Tourney
By Tayo Ogunseye
Youthful Michael Ogbonna has taken the pole position with 10 wins in the opening 12 rounds of the ongoing 5th Dynamite Opens Scrabble Tournament at the Agege Local Government Secretariat, Lagos.
The youngster mustered a strong finish in the last game of the day by defeating Babatunde Adeagbo 534-463 in a tough duel to end with 10 wins, 2 losses and a +740 cumulative points.
“Basically, what I did was that, I made sure I didn’t rush any move, right? I didn’t even take it game by game, I took each move as it came. I was not really bothered about winning the game but I just tried to make my best move” he revealed.
He recalled how he edged Adeagbo in the last game which drew some time for reconciliation before the result was eventually recorded.
“It was a very funny game, I had won that game already but for somebody of his calibre who is very experienced, he really knows how to move around the board. I had won the game, what I really needed to do was to tidy up the board but he really gave me a tough time. Then, he played a LMP which was a Last Minute Premium, then reduced my cumulative which was almost 200 points to about 70. That was why he was trying to cross-check because nobody wants to lose so many points ahead of final day.”
“Basically, I don’t want to pressure myself. I just want to play good scrabble, play each move as it comes, play my optimal move. I will try my best of knowledge and ability. I will try to play my best move at every turn and by God’s grace I hope to emerge as the winner.
“For my inspiration, I have to go back to (my former coach) Mr Wale Joachim back then, he was the one that introduced me to scrabble in fact, many times I still remember him when I’m playing. I just want to be the best of the best of whatever I’m doing. It’s an open tournament, I believe I should not fall short of top 5 or top 10. That has been my drive, I don’t like mediocrity, I just believe that whatever you are doing, just try to do it well to the best of your abilities.”
Priscilla Akhabue jumped to second place with 9 wins with +655 cumulative points after she pulled a stunning win against Kingsley Enyi 480-379.
Ebikeme Adowei, Adebisi Adekansi, Adeagbo, Enyi and Peter Awonusi all scored same 9-3 result but separated were separated by varied cumulative points.
The highlight of the day centred around 7 year-old sensation Yusuf Abdulsalam who won a gold and a silver medal at the National Youth Games as he pulled some stunts in the field that boasts of more experience jammers.
Yusuf garnered 5 wins as he rubbed shoulders with some of the heavy hitters.
Hostilities resume this Sunday as players chase for crucial victory with 6 round of games available in the 18-round tournament.
