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three different landscapes

Posted By: Chuck Bower
Date: Monday, 13 May 2013, at 4:39 p.m.

In Response To: Under-resigning and the PAF Backgammon London Open Online 2013 (Igor)

Backgammon used to have two playing fields but since the early 90's there are three: money games (including chouettes), face-to-face tournament matches, and online play which tends to be matches.

In money backgammon, offering your opponent a settlement in your favor is, AFAIK, not only standard practice but seen as intelligent. It's like dickering over a price at a flea market -- neither side puts his best offer up initially, assuming there will be back-and-forth negotiation.

Among experienced tournament players (and particularly if the rules forbid it), settlements are not a part of the game except for (equitable) resignations when the outcome is clear.

People experienced in face-to-face tournaments (as most here) tend to carry those practices to their online play. However there is a significant element of online players who have never played face-to-face. Many of them play other games online or computer/Xbox/etc. types of games where they expect the server-moderator to enforce the rules. THEREFORE if the moderator allows you to do something it is legal by definition. Period. It's similar to finding a tax loophole -- again something that is considered intelligent although it likely sidesteps the intent of the law's authors.

The current US rules don't go far enough:

4.9 COMPLETION. Each game must be rolled to completion, unless ended by passing a double or redouble, or conceding a no-contact position as a single game, gammon or backgammon loss.

Although this would cover the situation Sean initiated this post with, it still doesn't cover the cases where the outcome is in doubt -- i.e. when it's uncertain whether a gammon will result or just a simple loss, or even a loss vs. a win.

The cleanest solution (although one that is unlikely to be accepted because of tradition) is to not allow concessions at all. There should be some kind of compromise, though, that allows equitable concessions, but that's probably a lot easier to enforce online than face-to-face.

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