Expert: Dante - 6/3/2011

Question
A Scrabble endgame question for you: Player 1 has used her remaining tiles but Player 2 can still make a word. Is the game over when Player 1 uses up her remaining tiles, or does it end when Player 2 cannot make any more words? The rule as stated in the "Scrabble Gameplay Guide" (printed by Hasbro) states: "The game ends when all letters have been drawn and one player uses his or her last letter, or when all possible plays have been made." My wife interprets this to mean that the game is over when Player 1 uses up her remaining tiles. What's your opinion?

Answer
I checked the FAQ located here: http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/en_US/faqGameplay.cfm

According to that page:
The boxed rules in SCRABBLE mention that the game is over when a player uses all of his or her tiles and there are no more tiles to draw.

So, by this rule, I would say that as soon as player 1 plays their last tile and the bag is empty, then the game is over immediately. Many online versions of Scrabble, including those made by Hasbro or endorsed as 'official' use this rule as well.

So, my answer would be that your wife is correct.

Hope this helps!
--Dante