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BGonline.org Forums
Action and stuff from Charlotte
Posted By: Phil Simborg
Date: Friday, 4 September 2015, at 2:54 p.m.
I am happy to hear that two of my good friends, Dennis Culpepper and Cliff Pappas, are in the finals of the Faster Masters at 2PM today. Dennis has been a star for many years, and he will be giving the lecture with me this weekend (which I hope to stream or at least record for later viewing.)
Cliff was a great player from the past who has come back with a vengence and is really showing he is a force.
Hat's off to Jeb and others who run fun side events like Faster Masters...this is far more interesting and exciting to play and watch than simple blitzes and jackpots.
Yesterday I went out and bought a long extension cord and microphone in the hopes that it can be used to provide commentary for the finals in Charlotte. We'll see if the internet is good enough and the technology works, but it is my feeling that if possible, all finals should have commentary.
And let's talk about what the commentary should be, since it has often been criticized here.
The goal of the commentator of a finals match is, in my opinion, to make the game more interesting, exciting, and educational for the audience. It is not his role to show how terrible the players are or how much more he knows than they know (even if that is true). That approach is not only bad for the game, but it is terribly unfair to the players.
We all know that the finalists of a backgammon tournament are not always the very best players in the world, or even in the tournament, but they earned their way there and they deserve credit and respect. At the same time, pointing out an error and explaining why a different decision would have been better is a service to the audience and later, to the players when they watch the video. I also think commentary can help build suspense and make it more fun for everyone, and if done properly, can attract more people to the game...not just those watching live, but people who may later see the match on line.
Now, having said that, when Falafel does the commentary on a special challenge match like the one I had with Mochy back in Vegas, that's a completely different story. He's entitled to rip us apart and express strong feelings about our plays....he's not always right by the way, but what he adds to the game is passion and color, which most of us appreciate and enjoy. An "exhibition" match is just that...it's for entertainment, and people like Falafel, Carter, MCG, Joe Russell, Steve Sax and others who express strong opinions on the spot about the plays only add to the experience, even if they do call me a donkey for some of my plays (and most of the time I deserve it).
Back to Charlotte....if we can do a finals with commentary in a way that the players will not hear the comments, great....but if not, I've already ordered a longer extension cord for future tournaments, so stand by. This can only make the game more fun and exciting, and we could use a lot more of that to attract new players and sponsors.
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