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BGonline.org Forums
There are more important rule issues to address
Posted By: Phil Simborg In Response To: New Rule - Dice Flat on Checkers (Stick)
Date: Tuesday, 6 December 2016, at 10:00 p.m.
I can live with dice on the checkers or off. I can live with legal moves or non-legal moves. I can play with one or two pair of dice. I believe once the rule is established, most tournament players will learn to adjust with little problem. And if a couple of people forget or have a problem, it is probably because the rule is new, and in time that will not be such a problem.
What I cannot live with is rules that are not clearly written and with rules that leave great room for ambiguity and interpretation. What I cannot live with are rules that do not, in addition to stating what the rule is, state clearly what happens if the rule is broken. Lack of clarity in this area is where problems happen; where arguments arise; where individual tournament directors are forced to enforce rules arbitrarily.
This (clarity), in my opinion, is the greatest task and responsibility of a "ruling body." And I am sorry to say that the latest efforts of the USBGF fall short on several of the rules. In fact, if they would compare a few of their rules to the rules that Chuck, Jeb and I painstakingly wrote, with special attention to eliminating ambiguity on such rules as what constitutes a legal roll, I believe any objective reader will understand my point.
Now, as for the rules themselves, I happen to like not having to roll over when a die is on the checker because I do play with some people who do this over and over and it is a distraction, time consuming, and buggy. Of course, I don't have to tell people how much I prefer a baffle box to pretty much solve this problem, and I LOVED that Patrick had a baffle box preference rule that required its use if either player wanted it.
I LOVE the one set of dice rule...it stops fast rolling or arguments about what was rolled after a player picks up his dice.
I was a strong proponent of legal moves, but not for the reason most thought...it was because with two sets of dice it was difficult to enforce. And because people associated many other things I didn't like with legal moves, like making an "impossible" move like putting your own checker on the bar, or doubling when the cube is dead, etc. I can live with legal or non-legal moves if we use one set of dice.
But the MOST IMPORTANT rule change that has been made, and I hope will become the standard, is use of clocks. It is a far better game with clocks, and far more enjoyable for the spectators as well as players. It is better for tournament scheduling and it takes away the "moral" pressure to play reasonably fast when you don't have a clock. With a clock, I can take as long as I want on any play, and so can my opponent, without being accused of being unfair or rude or unreasonable. Playing doubles without a clock is about as pleasant to me as being stuck in a bathroom without toilet paper.
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