Recapping the 7th annual Hood River Open

It feels like it's almost every year now that we say this, to the point where it probably comes off sounding like not only empty rhetoric but also absurd self-parody, and yet I swear it's true every time: This year's Hood River was the best one yet.

I don't mean that in terms of the top-notch Scrabble competition - although, most definitely, that was a thing. And I'm not referring to the copious amounts of tasty food and local craft beer and after-hours board gaming that many of us enjoyed every night - although, yes, enjoy those things we most certainly did. More than anything, this is a statement about what a close-knit, congenial group of people we brought together under one roof this weekend. Two dozen humans in total - including 20 players, two directors, one spouse, and one spouse-to-be - teamed up in every single imaginable way to make this weekend a success.

And, let me tell you, the odds were against us. One player almost missed the tournament due to a snow-delayed flight. Another was local to Portland, but almost couldn't make the trip out of their own driveway to embark for Hood River. Yet another made it to Panorama Lodge safe and sound, only to end up with their car stuck in a snowbank in the driveway.

There was also no shortage of non-snow adversity. We had light fixtures at the lodge out of whack. We had raccoons running roughshod over our trash cans on the front porch. We even had a stupid, ridiculous, infuriating package of Costco bacon that refused to separate into individual strips, instead collapsing into one massive heap of bacon goop that was nearly inedible.

It was a lot.

And yet, at every turn, this group banded together and turned this Presidents' Day weekend into an epic one. We didn't just survive - we thrived. We enjoyed some super-fun group meal outings together. We had marathon Cards Against Humanity sessions featuring endless rollicking laughter. One group even hit up a local spot in Hood River and enjoyed an afternoon of climbing after the tournament!

...and oh, right, that reminds me. There was also a tournament.

As for the Scrabble of it all, props are due first and foremost to Kolton Koehler, who was completely dominant all weekend long as he captured his first Hood River title. Kolton was 7-1 on Saturday, putting him in a three-way tie for first place at day's end. He was 7-1 again on Sunday, strengthening his grip on the top spot. Then on Monday, he cruised past a murderers' row of opponents in rounds 17, 18, and 19, ensuring a quick and easy Gibsonization. He even had a chance, if he'd won his final game, to set a new Hood River record by becoming the first player ever to finish 18-2. Alas, he fell just short, settling for a meager 17 wins, 1,660 spread points, a shiny new 1981 peak rating, and $800 of straight cash money. Truly sad.

Congratulations also to Alec Sjöholm for finishing second at 15-5 (including a giant-slaying win over Kolton in the final round), Dave Wiegand for coming third with 13.5 wins, David Whitley fourth at 13-7, and Randi Goldberg who turned in an 11-9 performance as the #16 seed, earning the class prize. Kudos as well to Lola McKissen, who busted out multiple 9-letter bingos including the impressive (C)A(T)ATONIC; Bharath Balakrishnan, who played the tournament's only 10-letter word in (POL)LINATES; Betty Cornelison, who bingoed out to win a game with a sick bingo of GOATFISH with three overlaps; and the aforementioned David Whitley, who managed to use a butter knife and a great deal of patience to mostly salvage the aforementioned ridiculous bacon.

Thanks to everyone who attended the 7th annual Hood River Open. We're grateful to everyone who attended, including our "All 7 Club" (Dave, Randi, Chris Lipe, Conrad Bassett-Bouchard, and Puneet Sharma), as well as this year's one newbie (Joe Roberdeau), as well as everyone in between. Shout out to all 20 players. Shout out to Hood River for just generally being an all-around awesome town. Shout out to the Jersey Pie at Double Mountain - man, that's some good pizza.

We love this tournament, and we already can't wait to run it back next year. Presidents' Day will be on Feb. 16 then, so according to math, we'll be back in Hood River again in just 359 days. Hope to see the whole HORO gang again in 2026 - with perhaps a newbie or three sprinkled in. Until then...