By Tayo Ogunseye
Tega Okiemute has been crowned the King after he won 15 games in the 23 round contest of the Scrabble In The Jungle, Hardcore Edition over the weekend in Lagos.
Four of the top players in Africa including Grandmaster John Aiyedun, Africa No. 2 George Ezinore and immediate past African champion Enoch Nwali were all camped in a place in Ikeja where the jammers engaged one another in a test of endurance of playing the mindgame over 23 rounds in two days.
The inmates who were of almost equal strength were strategically selected by the organisers for the Hardcore Edition.
The Delta State based player confirmed his new status as the ruler of the field when he defeated his closest adversary in Nwali 492-366 in round 22; with a game to spare.
Feared for his fast play and intimidating prowess of dropping premiums (‘Bingos) practically at the speed of light, Okiemute knew he had to deploy his skills on the board if he could fulfill his yearning of finishing the year with a top podium placement which has eluded him on several occasions.
Like a carousel, the players took turns in facing each other knowing that any mistake would be costly.
Nwali who concluded Day One as a leader with 8-5 result, found it difficult to sustain the momentum on Day Two as he lost six out of 10 rounds to finish as 2nd with 12 wins and 11 defeats (+120 cumulative points.)
Ezinore place third with the same wins as Nwali but had a lower cumulative of +79 points while No.1 ranked player going into the jungle, Aiyedun found the slop too slippery as he fell with a result of 7-16 which underscored the unpredictable nature of the tournament.
“If your name is not written in Nigeria as a winner, you are not there. So, I said to myself, I can quit this game (knowing how close I had been to winning a title). I think this is a good start for me. Looking at the world championship and the National Sports Festival coming up next year, I believe this will give me a boost to do well. Now I have to sharpen my knowledge and study harder.
“For King Of The Jungle, it’s a very difficult tournament because unlike other ones where you paired against those with lower rankings, here you play against players of almost equal strength. So you have to be at your best to be at the top. I’m dedicating this title to God and my new wife. I will also commend the Scrabble Las Vegas headed by Dr Musa Olasupo and his vice president Kabiru Olaiya for putting up Scrabble In The Jungle were we were accommodated and fed. it’s a great way to end the year for me.”
For his efforts, Okiemute earned a cash prize of 200,000 while other contestants got various sums of prizes.
The tournament was followed across the world by subscribers who monitored all the moves across different online channels.
