Galesburg Mayor Peter Schwartzman finished 35th out of 53 competitors in the top division of the 34th U.S. National Scrabble Championship, held Aug. 9-14, in the Baltimore suburbs.
The tournament, which drew over 300 players from the U.S., Canada, and beyond, also saw Schwartzman win the “late bird” tournament the following day.
His performance elevated him to the 73rd highest-rated active player and third in Illinois.
A competitive Scrabble player for 30 years, Schwartzman, mayor since 2021, has authored six word game books, some sold at Galesburg’s Wordsmith Bookshoppe. He began co-directing local Scrabble tournaments with Darla Krejci in 2024, with the next event set for Sept. 13-14. Interested players can find details at www.cross-tables.com.
