Clubs
For more information, contact the club’s representative shown below.
Club | Contact | Phone | Meeting Details | Location |
Auckland Mount Albert (MTA) |
Helen Scott | 027 433 3339 helenruthscott@hotmail.com |
Mon 7pm | Mt Albert Bridge Club |
Christchurch (CHC) | Peter Johnstone |
027 258 2629 |
Wed 12.00pm Thu 6.00pm |
Sydenham Community Centre |
Dunedin (DUN) |
Sue Hensley | 027 424 4386 sue.hensley@gmail.com |
Tue 7pm | South Dunedin Community Network |
Featherston (FTN) |
Fran Lowe | 021 055 4897 lowefran66@gmail.com |
Mon 6.30 pm – 9.30 pm |
Featherston |
Kapiti (KAP) (In Recess) |
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Kiwi – Hamilton (KIW) | Jacqueline Coldham-Fussell | 027 302 8061 jicoldham-fussell@hotmail.co.nz |
Thu 1pm or 7pm (Ph for details) | Beerescourt Bowling Club |
Lower Hutt (LOH) | Glenyss Buchanan | (04) 569 5433 | Tue 7.30pm | Private home (Ph. for details) |
Martinborough (MTB) |
Victoria Jones | 021 054 0212 vicbjones@gmail.com |
Friday 9.30am – 12.30pm | Martinborough Library |
Masterton (MAS) |
Sue McRae | 027 449 0601 sue.mcrae.nz@gmail.com |
Wed 1pm | Masterton District Library |
Nelson (NEL) |
Tony Charlton | (03) 545 1159 tonycharlton44@gmail.com |
Wed 7pm |
Nelson |
Papatoetoe (PAP) (In Recess) |
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Rodney (ROD) |
Linda Moore | (09) 425 4959 | Mon 1pm | Totara Park Retirement Village |
Rotorua (ROT) |
Ruth Godwin |
027 349 6061 ruthmgodwin@gmail.com |
Thu 9am | Parksyde Tarewa Place |
Tauranga (TGA) |
Fay Wenzlick | 021 164 8180 | Tue 9.20am | Tauranga Citizen Club |
Waitara (WTA) |
Ngaire Kemp | (06) 754 4017 | Wed 1pm | Services & Citizens Club |
Whanganui (WAN) | Rosie Cleary | (06) 347 1837 rosecleary@icloud.com |
Mon 1pm |
Gonville |
Scrabble Wellington (WEL) | Nick Ascroft | nick_ascroft@hotmail.com | Thu 7pm | Victoria Bridge Club 112 Tinakori Rd Thorndon |
Whangarei (WRE) | Susan Harris | 021 182 9310 sueharris298@gmail.com |
Thu 1pm | Whangarei Contract Bridge Club |
Organized Scrabble is a little different from the game most of us start off playing at home or on our electronic devices. If you’ve reached your peak among friends and family and need fresh challenges, why not try a club. You may be surprised how much more there is to the game. You’ll also be pleasantly surprised how quickly you raise your own level after a few weeks.
This is what to expect from Scrabble club play:
Format and time:
We only play one on one. At a club it’s common to play without time limits. However, if you eventually decide to enter a tournament, each player has 25 minutes to make all their moves (timed using chess clocks). We never time individual turns.
Equipment:
We use rotating boards with ridges that hold the tiles in place as the board moves. We use bags to hold tiles. We also have ready-printed scoresheets. Clubs usually have all the boards, tiles, scoresheets and other supplies on hand, so you don’t need to bring your own.
Word source and challenges:
In New Zealand – as in most parts of the world – everyone uses Collins Official Scrabble Words 2019 as the word authority. This avoids fights over whether a word is allowable. Every club has copies of CSW19 (both the word list and the full dictionary) on hand. In most clubs, new players may refer to word lists for a while till they build confidence and a store of new words. More experienced club players – and tournaments – use a challenge system. If your opponent plays a word you’re not sure of, you can challenge it. If the word turns out to be correct, your opponent adds 5 points to their score. If the word is incorrect, your opponent loses their turn. It’s cheap to challenge – don’t be afraid to!
Competition:
Larger clubs organize competitions and ladders for their members. Others are more casual and random. You’ll find players of all abilities. You’ll probably be matched up against other ‘newbies’ at first so you don’t get overwhelmed. We want you to feel comfortable and have fun – as we do. Later you can try your hand against more experienced players.
Word learning:
If you want to improve, start learning the short words. After a few months of playing, all players should know the 130 or so two-letter words. After those, try to learn some of the 3s and 4s. There are many word lists and programs around that can help.
Tournaments:
If you want to challenge yourself further, enter a tournament. (Your club will help you.) Most tournaments in New Zealand are open to all players. At first you’ll play others at the same level as you. As you get better, you’ll move up the grades. Tournaments are a great way to meet players from all around the country – and even overseas.
Joining up:
Contact a club near you to find out what they can offer you.
Wellington tournament 2020: These four blokes are all migrants (with a penchant for Scrabble) that are now happily settled with families in NZ, and the NZASP is all the richer for their membership.
From left: Dylan Early (Wellington, originally South Africa), Stanley Ngundi (Wellington, originally from Kenya), Gil Quiballo (Independent, Lower Hutt, originally Philippines), and Murray Rogers (Independent, Golden Bay, originally US
Starting a new club:
If there is not a scrabble club already in your area, but enough interest in scrabble from the community to form a club, then see this guide for help: