Playing Nigerian-style Scrabble made me World Champ – Jighere Wellington

Jighere Wellington, 34, started playing Scrabble in 1996 after an older brother introduced him to the game. He went pro, playing his first tournament in 2002, which means he has had fourteen years of play so far. He learned how to play the board game in 1995, when he was 14, becoming hooked ever since. […]

Jighere Wellington, 34, started playing Scrabble in 1996 after an older brother introduced him to the game. He went pro, playing his first tournament in 2002, which means he has had fourteen years of play so far. He learned how to play the board game in 1995, when he was 14, becoming hooked ever since. He went to the University of Benin, Faculty of Agriculture, where he studied Crop Science, but it is his sports career that has continued to grow, seeing him become the World Champion, a title he currently holds. Daily Trust cornered the soft-spoken word-master for an interview. Herewith, are excerpts:

Daily Trust: How did winning the world championship feel?
Jighere Wellington: It felt good. It was something I have looked forward to in years. After winning the championship in Perth, Australia, I was too fatigued to celebrate. But I and my team mates went out that evening, as we decided to have a feel of the town. The next day we took a stroll, went shopping and had fun.
DT: Where you surprised to receive a call from President Buhari congratulating you?
Wellington: Yes, that came as a huge surprise. Immediately after I won, I received a call from someone in the Presidency, telling me to get ready, that the President will be speaking with me in thirty minutes time. So he called, congratulated me and told me how much I have done Nigeria proud. He said he was proud of me and my team, and will be receiving us when we get back. It felt good, of course, because for the first time I was having a one-on-one discussion with a Commander-in-Chief.
We were hosted when we came back, along with victorious athletes in many sports, who did Nigeria proud on the international scene. It was very nice.
DT: An article in a major foreign media outlet praised you for winning by playing short words. Is this a strategy you’ve developed over time?
Wellington: I think I might have been misquoted in that article. But generally, there is a Nigerian strategy which is rather on the defensive. It isn’t because we are not capable of playing open games, but because we choose to keep to our style. Everybody should have a strength and weakness, and I choose to play to my strength.
I am more comfortable on a tight board, especially on the international scene. It is just my style, and I’d say it is a Nigerian one and it helped me win. I am a Nigerian and feel I should play as one, the way we play at home and this has worked for me.
DT: What were the most seven-letter words you’ve ever played during any single game?
Wellington: I have played about five or six in one sitting. But I usually don’t keep track of such things. I play to win, so whatever direction the game takes, I play. There are some games you can hardly play a 7-letter bingo, especially if it is a close board, so you just follow as it goes. You don’t have to get desperate to play bingo. There are games also that are very expressive from the start, but on the average I have played a maximum of six bingos in a game.
DT: Do you play the computer once in a while, regularly or never?
Wellington: I practice with the computer sometimes. After I relocated to Abuja from Delta State, it became hard to get a sparring partner to compete with. Sometimes you are left with practicing with the computer, which I do often.
DT: Do you feel enough Scrabble is played in Nigeria?
Wellington: I’d say no to that. This year, only two national tournaments have been played, and it shouldn’t be so. We should have a national tournament every month at least. This is something that is really giving us cause for concern, because the more you play, the sharper your reflexes are. I strongly feel we are not playing sufficient Scrabble in Nigeria.
DT: Can you remember the toughest game you’ve ever played?
Wellington: That would be difficult to remember. Sometimes when you play a game, it is better to forget the game and focus on relaxing before the next one. I hardly keep track of previous games, but I have played a lot of difficult ones and have had difficult opponents, especially at home in Nigeria. It is one thing to succeed at the international front, but back home everybody knows you, your style of play and your weaknesses.
DT: Do you agree with the maxim that scrabble is 50% skill and 50% chance, or has that proven otherwise for you since you’ve been playing?
Wellington: I totally disagree with that. Personally, I don’t believe there is a luck factor in Scrabble. A lot of my contemporaries have debated that with me and I have consistently rstuck to my guns that there is no luck factor. In the short run, if you are considering just a few number of games, one might be tempted to say there is a luck factor. But when you consider the long run, if you consider a large number of games, then it becomes a question of how thorough you are.
The player that makes fewer mistakes and is able to handle the stress that comes with the game as it builds up, is usually the one who does well in the game and not the lucky one. Although sometimes, the luck factor can show up in very crucial games, the ones you have to win that will decide who goes ahead to a particular junction. But generally, I don’t believe there is much chance in Scrabble.
DT: Can you remember the very first Scrabble game you played?
Wellington: That would be the day I learned how to play. My elder brother James taught me the game. I can’t really remember how the game went, but I remember being thrashed.