BEST stands for British (Isles) Elimination Scrabble Tournament and originated in 2001, with Andrew Fisher winning the inaugural title. BEST is a knockout competition which lasts over six months. Played as a series of face-to-face knockout matches at regional and then national level, the winner typically plays more than 70 games over six months to lift the trophy. Many big names in the game have won the title in its illustrious history, including World Champions Mark Nyman and Adam Logan. For the full list see here.
For 2018 the competition will be simplified with a number of changes. Firstly there will only be one entry fee, which is a mere £10 - no longer will you pay for each round you play in. Secondly there will be no preliminary rounds for 150 and under rated players, everyone will go straight into their regional phase. However players will be drawn to avoid big mismatches in their first fixture as well as minimize travelling. All matches will be five point penalty challenge (per word). The third and final change is that the ABSP has very generously agreed to help support the event by covering the rating levies, OnBoard costs and contributing £200 to the prize fund. This will help retain significant prizes despite very low entry fees.
To help make BEST bigger than ever, please send in as much detail as possible, such as match reports, photographs, annotated games so we can include the coverage on the ABSP website.