Joe Edley - American Scrabble Champion

Joseph Edley is one of the more recognizable American Scrabble players. Joe Edley is the only U.S. player to win the U.S. National Scrabble Championship on three separate occasions. Beyond his tournament history, Joe Edley has a long association with the National Scrabble Association.

Career Highlights

Joe Edley has a 68% tournament winning percentage, placing him among the top players of his generation. Edley has added several major successes to some notable flops at national-level tournaments. Joe Edley is the only player to have ever won multiple United States National Scrabble Championships. In fact, Edley has won the National Scrabble Champion on three occasions.

Joe Edley's first NSC win came in 1980, when he barely edged out Jim Neuburger, who had played a better tournament up to the finals. Edley won again in 1992 and 2002.

Despite this, Joe Edley has not played in the World Scrabble Championship since 2001. He has never placed higher than 3rd in an WSC tournament and has finished as low as 23rd.

Overall, Joe Edley has won just over $102,000 in Scrabble prize winnings.

The National Scrabble Association

Joe Edley worked as a consultant for the National Scrabble Association for numerous years. These days, Joe Edley is the Director of Clubs and Tournaments for the NSA. This position is considered especially important in the organizing of high level national SCRABBLE tournaments.

Everything Scrabble

Joe Edley is also a published author on the subject of SCRABBLE. Joe Edley co-wrote Everything Scrabble (1994) and has wrote The Official SCRABBLE Puzzle Book (1997) on his own.

The Trial

Joe Edley has sometimes been the target of criticism by fellow American Scrabble players. In a 1996 thread on the SCRABBLE forum, Crossword-Games-Pro, Edley was attacked by Mike Baron for his perceived conflict of interest.

Given his position of influence with the NSA, Mike Baron suggested that Joseph Edley was in a position to hurt or harm the notoreity of fellow American Scrabble players. Baron also suggested that Joe Edley also had the ability to influence rules decisions at the major tournaments, therefore acquiring an unfair advantage in U.S. tourneys.

Scrabble players also give Joe Edley credit for his efforts in promoting Scrabble during his time with the National Scrabble Association, as well as his long career of success. Though sometimes criticized, Joe Edley is respected by most of his peers.

Routes

Joe Edley has also invented his own word game, named Routes. Naturally, Edley is a world champion Routes player.

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