Via the Revolutions Blog, The Luck and Skill of Scrabble. If you play enough Scrabble, you probably know these conclusions already:
- The blank is worth about 30 points to a good player, mainly by making 50-point “bingo” plays possible.
- Each S is worth about 10 points to the player who draws it.
- The Q is a burden to whichever player receives it, effectively serving as a 5 point penalty for having to deal with it due to its effect in reducing bingo opportunities, needing either a U or a blank for a chance at a bingo and a 50-point bonus.
- The J is essentially neutral pointwise.
- The X and the Z are each worth about 3-5 extra points to the player who receives them. Their difficulty in playing in bingoes is mitigated by their usefulness in other short words.
