Rules for club and tournament play are similar to the rules used by most "home players." Following are the important differences:

The Official Tournament and Club Word List, 2nd Edition (OWL2 or just OWL), published by Merriam-Webster for the National Scrabble Association (NSA, our previous sanctioning body), is the sole reference for deciding acceptability of base words of nine or fewer letters and their inflected forms in all tournaments and most clubs.[1] The Long Word List (LWL) published by the NSA Dictionary Committee, is based on Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition (MW10), and is used to decide acceptability of base words of ten or more letters and their inflections. OWL and LWL can be ordered directly from the NSA's "Word Gear" catalog, www.wordgear.com

While three-minute timers are sometimes used in novice events, chess clocks are the preferred timing tool. Each side is allotted 25* minutes on the chess clock to play the entire game. When your time is used up, as indicated by a fallen flag on analog clocks or minus sign to the left of the time displayed on digital clocks, the game does not automatically end, and the player whose time has expired does not automatically lose. Ten points per extra minute or part thereof used by the overtime player are deducted from that player's score. * Club #56 allows only 23 minutes in order to save half an hour on the course of a midweek evening session.

• The routine for ending a turn is strictly enforced as it also determines when a challenge may be made. These actions must be done in the order in which they are listed: 1) record the cumulative score after opponent's last turn, 2) place tiles on board, 3) announce score of the play, [and the letter represented by any blank played on the turn, also write it down legibly where opponent can see it], 4) start opponent's clock, 5) write down your new cumulative score, 6) draw new tiles.

  A challenge may NOT be made UNTIL the player has STARTED the opponent's CLOCK. A challenge may NOT be made AFTER the player has TAKEN at least one NEW TILE completely OUT of the BAG. Pay careful attention to all new words formed when your opponent announces his score for the play and starts your clock. If you are considering challenging, but have not yet decided, say "HOLD" before opponent draws tiles. You then have a full minute (your clock continues to run) to think about it before opponent is allowed to see new tiles. If you have said "hold," your right to challenge extends beyond the drawing of the new tiles until you either challenge, or make your next move. Once you have decided to challenge, neutralize the clock, and say "challenge" loud enough for the word judge to hear you, and raise your hand so you don't have to keep yelling it out if challenges are being judged at other boards first.

  One player loses their turn every time a challenge is made. Either the play is acceptable and challenger loses the turn, or the play is not acceptable and the player takes back their tiles and play passes to the challenger. When multiple words are formed on one play, a challenger should always indicate to the word judge every word formed on the play. When multiple words are indicated in a challenge, only one ruling is given by the word judge: such a play is ruled ACCEPTABLE ONLY if ALL words formed and INDICATED by the challenger are valid, and the play is ruled UNACCEPTABLE if ANY of the INDICATED words is not valid.

  Both players are required to keep a written record of the cumulative score throughout the game.

  Contrived "house rules" such as recycling blanks or free exchange when you have 3 of a kind do not exist in organized play.

  If you didn't see it written in the rules your set came with, we don't do it. No games are played with more than two racks. Rated competition is one player vs. one opponent. Some club games or unofficial tourneys are played with partners consulting on one rack against one other rack.

  Any turn can be used to EXCHANGE tiles, as long as there are AT LEAST 7 tiles IN THE BAG. Any turn can be "passed." Passing does not change the board or your rack. Exchange, pass, or lost challenge all score zero.

  At the end of the game, the player going out adds double the value of opponent's remaining tiles, opponent does not subtract them. Time penalties are only subtracted from the overtime player, not added to opponent.

• The only things that constitute appropriate talk during the game are announcements of or requests to verify score, blank labeling, "hold," "challenge," or "pass." NEVER PRONOUNCE a WORD PLAYED.

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