Adam Logan, a mathematician from Ottawa, has secured his place in Scrabble history by winning his second World Scrabble Championship title. Logan achieved this feat during the championship held in Accra, Ghana, where he showcased his skills with a remarkable play that earned him 149 points for the word "diopters." This high-scoring move involved placing the letters across two triple-word squares, contributing to a total of 252 points in just two turns. In the third game of the best-of-seven final, Logan's previous move, "infamies," had already netted him 103 points. His impressive comeback allowed him to overcome his opponent's lead, ultimately winning the game and the championship with a final score of four games to two. Logan's journey in Scrabble began at the age of nine when he discovered a strategy book in a Quebec cottage. Since then, he has become one of the elite players in the game, now joining the ranks of only three individuals worldwide who have won multiple World Scrabble Championship titles. Reflecting on his victory, Logan said, "I had to consciously tell myself to slow down. Look at it for a few seconds. Make sure that you’re spelling correctly." He faced off against Nigel Richards, a five-time world champion and widely regarded as the best Scrabble player ever. Logan's first championship win came 20 years ago in London, England, when he was just 30 years old. He recalls that moment with disbelief, stating, "It was something that I really couldn’t quite believe that I had done." At 50 years old, Logan's lifetime earnings from Scrabble now exceed $110,000, a significant achievement in the competitive world of Scrabble, where tournament wins often yield around $300. His parents recognized his analytical abilities early on, with his father noting that Logan was a prodigy who enjoyed solving complex equations in his head. Logan graduated from Lisgar Collegiate Institute in Ottawa and later attended Princeton University, where he excelled in mathematics. He earned a PhD from Harvard in 1999. His introduction to the U.K. Scrabble dictionary during a postdoctoral position in England was pivotal for his first world championship win in 2005. To prepare for competitions, Logan studies the Scrabble dictionary for up to an hour daily, employing a spaced repetition method to enhance his memory of words. He explained, "By doing this, you can gain not only knowledge of what the words are, but also the ability to find them when you actually have tiles in front of you." Logan believes that his mathematical background aids his Scrabble performance, as both fields require analytical thinking and an understanding of probability. He describes Scrabble as a blend of strategy and luck, emphasizing the importance of optimizing moves and blocking opponents. Despite his success, Logan remains humble and focused on personal growth rather than just winning. His mother, Michal Ben-Cera, noted that he values his own judgment of his performance over the scoreboard. Now back in Ottawa, Logan continues his research in mathematics and plans to participate in more Scrabble tournaments worldwide. He views the game as a metaphor for life, stating, "By whatever it may be, we can improve our lives by challenging ourselves and trying to do things that are just a little bit beyond our reach." Logan's story is a testament to the dedication and passion required to excel in competitive Scrabble, and he remains a prominent figure in the Scrabble community.