Mm Links Results May 2014 Week 1

[gen2]

The game has now closed.
'King Cliffyg' did warn you that he had set a hard challenge to start the month off but some of his expectations weren't just 'outside the box', they weren't even on the horizon!

As a result, three links were low-scoring but there was compensation in the fourth one where the Pilgrim Fathers came to the rescue for many of you.
The scoring pairings were as follows:

MAYFLOWER (or MAY FLOWERS)
POLE POSITION
MORRIS CHAIR (you didn't think it fully through tearinghair)
BELLY DANCE

Now might be a good time to remind everyone that each week at the start of the game we state that the sought-after pairing will never be a person's name so Peter May and Brian May weren't even on the cards.
Also - the word you suggest has to be a real word as well as the combination. (MayORAL would be OK but not MayORSHIP)

See below for the detailed results.

[gen2]

First off was Strix who sailed away on the MAYFLOWER with a crew of beejay1124, grannydi, tearinghair & seekeerz for 2 points each

Second player, Big Mac, then claimed POLE POSITION for 2 points.

And then the third player, beejay1124, felt like a rest on a MORRIS CHAIR (2 points)

It looked like a great start but apart from 'Mayflower' which attracted a few guesses throughout the weekend, there were only 3 more guesses for 'Pole Position' and no further pairings of 'Morris Chair'.

What about the final link? That held out until mid afternoon on Saturday. Mrs Onty, maybe slightly disadvantaged with MORRIS (didn't William Morris's fame cross the Atlantic?) made up for it by correctly and uniquely (apart from last-minute player, kettledrum) matching BELLY DANCE for 2 points.

There were two double-hitters this week; beejay1124 and Elspeth, but for gaining full bonus points on them as well, I declare:

***** HOTSHOT FOR *****
***** THIS WEEK IS *****
**** B E E J A Y 1124 ****
*** CONGRATULATIONS ***


In summary then, This week's points were

4 beejay1124
2 BigMac
2 Elspeth
2 grannydi
2 Onty (Mrs O)
2 seekeerz
2 Strix
2 tearinghair
1 baza
1 Brenden
1 elliemay1
1 kettledrum
1 middlestump
1 Nibble
1 Onty (Mr O)
1 Psybbo
1 roslyn251254
1 SHAZZA-Hewat
1 ulysses100


This is a 5-week month so a long way to go yet which means you are all still in with a chance.

Round 2 starts next Saturday,

So until then
Same time (9am)
Same place (Q&P)
Happy Linking
gen2

[pixie373]

Thanks gen and cliffyg- nowhere near the horizon for me

[Strix]

Thank you Gen2.
"Morris chair" - having sat on and enjoyed sitting on, a probably late Victorian one, on many occasions over the last 50 years I never knew, until now, it had a patent name!
Always learning - per ardua ad astra!

[tearinghair]

Thanks King Cliffyg and Gen2. I knew William Morris couldn't be right, but thought I might just escape a slap on the wrist as it can (sort of) be used as an adjective.....

[boxtops]

Thanks, chaps - at least someone in our house got a point this week!

[ChrisHewat]

If that is outside the box, I had better get inside it next time!!! What a put down!!

[gen2]

Let me explain Chris.

The setter provides me with a list of five ranked possible inks for each challenge word.
If nobody guesses the first one then I score the game on the second one. If nobody matches the second one then I move on to the third and 4th etc. If nobody guesses all five suggestions then points go to the most popular answer.

This weekend, three of the setters choices weren't guessed by players - ie they weren't even on the players' horizon.

I suggested it would be tough but the setter wanted a tough challenge to start off with. It was within the rules so we went ahead.

If we have two low-scoring weeks in a row, then I intervene in an attempt to raise morale.

I hope that makes it clearer.
No 'put down' intended

[pixie373]

It's never going to be an exact science trying to work out an individual setter's wavelength- but that's part of the fun :-)

[Strix]

In response to Gen2's explanation of the system of judging I would like to add how much it throws up in how differently we all think when setting or choosing link words.
It reveals so much of our various backgrounds - personal histories, education, location etc.
Long may, I hope, that gallimaufry and confusion continue!

[pixie373]

Yes. When i had a turn setting, i was surprised at a lot of suggestions, that just hadn't crossed my mind at all. And those that i thought were most obvious, clearly weren't, always.

[evsajo]

Blow !!! my daughter does belly dancing and was going to put that but decided on my other choice so nil points !!! :(

[kettledrum]

Thank you, Gen2, for explaining how this fun game works. And thank you for all the hard work that you put into to running it for our entertainment every week.
I love the idea of 'thinking outside the box' (just in case you hadn't noticed!), so more please, King Cliffy.
Fortunately I hadn't noticed that someone had guessed 'belly dance' before me, so I was very lucky to score a point.
Could we, please, be told what were the 3 first choices that none of us sussed.

[seekeerz]

Just pleased to have guessed one correctly, thanks King Cliffy And gen2

[gen2]

Kettledrum, It wasn't three FIRST choices. There were three preferred choices in front of MAYFLOWER (4th choice). Had one of those been selected by a player then the 19 points earned on 'Mayflower' wouldn't have happened.

I hope Cliffyg wont mind if I reveal those as he can't now use them another week.

1st: MAY TREE - I thought someone would be bound to guess that, but no.
2nd: MAY BEETLE (aka MAYBUG)
3rd: MAY-DUKE (a variety of sour cherry)

All in Chambers, all real words and not a person's name so within the rules.

[kettledrum]

Thank you for that Gen2.
I now almost wish I hadn't asked, as May beetle was my alternative answer! But I chose May Week, as knowing how keen King Cliffy is on cricket I thought he'd be more likely to chose the week of the Oxford - Cambridge Varsity match at Lords than an insect. How wrong can I be? What's new?