diff --git a/ui/src/app.css b/ui/src/app.css
index e796d77..2bde4aa 100644
--- a/ui/src/app.css
+++ b/ui/src/app.css
@@ -123,6 +123,9 @@ body {
   line-height: 1.4;
   -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
   text-rendering: optimizeLegibility;
+  /* Stop iOS/Safari from auto-inflating text (e.g. the long marquee message). */
+  text-size-adjust: 100%;
+  -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;
   /* never let the page scroll/zoom out from under the board */
   overscroll-behavior: none;
   touch-action: manipulation;
diff --git a/ui/src/components/AdBanner.svelte b/ui/src/components/AdBanner.svelte
index daae87a..843d2b0 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/AdBanner.svelte
+++ b/ui/src/components/AdBanner.svelte
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@
   .ad {
     overflow: hidden;
     white-space: nowrap;
-    padding: 6px var(--pad);
+    padding: 6px 0;
     background: var(--surface-2);
     color: var(--text-muted);
     font-size: 0.85rem;
@@ -68,6 +68,9 @@
   }
   .track {
     display: inline-block;
+    /* The side inset lives on the track (not the clipping .ad) so the scroll distance
+       (scrollWidth - viewport.clientWidth) reaches the very end of a long message. */
+    padding: 0 var(--pad);
     will-change: transform;
   }
   .track :global(a) {
diff --git a/ui/src/game/Board.svelte b/ui/src/game/Board.svelte
index 2f2688a..7c842de 100644
--- a/ui/src/game/Board.svelte
+++ b/ui/src/game/Board.svelte
@@ -47,12 +47,29 @@
   $effect(() => {
     const vp = viewport;
     if (!vp || !zoomed || !focus) return;
-    const cell = (vp.clientWidth * Z) / 15;
-    vp.scrollTo({
-      left: (focus.col + 0.5) * cell - vp.clientWidth / 2,
-      top: (focus.row + 0.5) * cell - vp.clientHeight / 2,
-      behavior: 'smooth',
-    });
+    const f = focus;
+    const scaler = vp.firstElementChild as HTMLElement | null;
+    const center = () => {
+      // Use the rendered scrollable width so the maths stays correct (gaps, padding).
+      const cell = vp.scrollWidth / 15;
+      vp.scrollTo({
+        left: (f.col + 0.5) * cell - vp.clientWidth / 2,
+        top: (f.row + 0.5) * cell - vp.clientHeight / 2,
+        behavior: 'smooth',
+      });
+    };
+    // When zoom has just turned on the board is still widening; centring now would
+    // clamp to the still-small scroll range and land top-left. Wait for the width
+    // transition to finish. If already zoomed (only the focus changed), centre at once.
+    if (scaler && scaler.clientWidth < vp.clientWidth * Z - 1) {
+      const onEnd = () => {
+        scaler.removeEventListener('transitionend', onEnd);
+        center();
+      };
+      scaler.addEventListener('transitionend', onEnd);
+      return () => scaler.removeEventListener('transitionend', onEnd);
+    }
+    center();
   });
 
   // Double-tap toggles zoom (pinch was dropped — it conflicts with native scroll).
diff --git a/ui/src/game/Game.svelte b/ui/src/game/Game.svelte
index f128732..43f0e81 100644
--- a/ui/src/game/Game.svelte
+++ b/ui/src/game/Game.svelte
@@ -132,7 +132,8 @@
       dragMoved = true;
       const slot = placement.rack[downInfo.index];
       drag = { letter: slot, blank: slot === BLANK, x: e.clientX, y: e.clientY };
-      if (isCoarse() && !zoomed) zoomed = true;
+      // No zoom on drag start: the player may still change their mind. The zoom
+      // (and centring) happens on drop, in attemptPlace.
     }
     if (drag) drag = { ...drag, x: e.clientX, y: e.clientY };
   }
@@ -169,6 +170,9 @@
       return;
     }
     if (selected != null) {
+      // A committed tile already sits here: keep the rack selection so a stray tap
+      // on an occupied cell doesn't cancel placement — wait for an empty cell.
+      if (board[row]?.[col]) return;
       attemptPlace(selected, row, col);
       selected = null;
     }