Josh Sokol (Scrabble player) explained

Joshua Sokol
Birth Name:Joshua Sokol-Rubenstein
Birth Date:March 24, 1994
Birth Place:Montreal, Canada
Other Names:axcertypo
Years Active:2013–present

Joshua Sokol-Rubenstein (born March 24, 1994) is a Canadian competitive Scrabble player and influencer. He won the 2023 Scrabble Players Championship.

Career

Sokol, who is Jewish, has said Scrabble was his parents' "favourite board game" and began memorizing obscure words for the game as a child.[1] He joined the Montreal Scrabble Club at age 10 and soon began seriously competing.[1] He has played at the Scrabble Players Championship (formerly North American Scrabble Championship) since 2013.[2] He excelled at the Scrabble Players Championship in Las Vegas in 2023, with a 23–5 record going into the finals (four games ahead of anyone else), where he then won 3–2.[2] He was the second Montrealer in a row to win the tournament after Michael Fagen the previous year.[3]

Sokol has described himself as a "Scrabble influencer".[2] [4] He started livestreaming on Twitch in 2020 and has uploaded hundreds of YouTube videos under the username axcertypo.[1] [5] He has also commentated for Scrabble tournament livestreams.[6] [7]

Notes and References

  1. News: Montreal Scrabble champion picks up $10,000 prize at Las Vegas tournament. Caruso-Moro. Luca. 2023-07-20. CTV News. Montreal. 2023-11-15.
  2. News: Montreal 'Scrabble influencer' axcertypo wins North American championship. Schwartz. Susan. 2023-07-26. Montreal Gazette. 2023-11-15.
  3. News: A Jewish guy from Montreal just won North America's biggest Scrabble tournament. Canadian Jewish News. podcast. 2023-11-15. 2023-07-19.
  4. News: Horsefeatherses!. Fatsis. Stefan. Stefan Fatsis. 2023-11-15. Slate. 2023-11-15.
  5. News: 2023 Scrabble Word Cup playing letters in Albany. Krolikowski. Anthony. 2023-07-01. WTEN. 2023-11-15.
  6. News: Magic in the Tiles. Fatsis. Stefan. 2022-03-22. Stefan Fatsis. Slate. 2023-11-15.
  7. News: This Year's World Scrabble Champion Blew Everyone Away With a Three-Letter Word. 2023-08-09. Fatsis. Steven. Stefan Fatsis. Slate. 2023-11-15.