Chris Cree was going to be traveling today, so he and David Higbee worked in their Round 3 match last night. It’s clear that Krista’s husband has got game. Cree calls Higbee “quite the boardsman” after claiming a narrow 397 to 380 victory. He considers himself lucky that he didn’t have to encounter the environmental consultant in the semifinals of our contest – which will be played as a one-minute-per-turn speed match.
Here’s Cree’s account of the fun:
David Higbee is another superb player; quite the boardsman. This was an extremely tense and exciting game that came down to the last draws. The Q, which I exchanged early on, was the key factor in late game decisions and, ultimately, the game. I decided that I needed to pass up a cheap bingo (58 points) late, instead, playing ETH for 32, knocking out a QI dump spot and keeping IRS? to have the best chance to win. David made a beautiful blocking setup for the Q, which I suppose he must have drawn on the previous 3 in 9 scenario, by playing CON, taking out two bingo alleys while at the same time setting up QI/ICON. Fortunately, I had the tiles to block that setup. I cannot fathom any way to have intuited any part of this endgame in a one minute time limit game. – whew!!
Krista should be proud. Board after jump.
