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BGonline.org Forums
The Backgammon Club of the Future--I have a dream
Posted By: Phil Simborg
Date: Saturday, 5 February 2011, at 8:27 a.m.
I have a dream:
I picture a weekly club that is filled with people of all ages, there are always 3 divisions and they are full...Open, Intermediate, and Novice.
The Open Division has a $10 entry fee, and for those who want to gamble there are various optional levels of side pools.
The Intermediate and Novice divisions have a $5 entry fee. There are no side pools.
People will come religiously because you get points just for showing up, and points for every match won, and point accumulate over the year for prizes and trophies, and they accumulate over the years for an overall club standing. Also, the highest ranked players in both Open and Intermediate make the team for the National on-line (proctored) competition for the top team in the country.
The winner of the Open Division is not allowed to enter the tournament the next week, but to collect his prize money and points, he must show up the following week and spend the entire session working with the Novice players and offering tips and advice about the game and answer any questions.
Once a month the format for the Open Division will be modified to make it more interesting and fun. Once in a while it will be doubles, with random draw for partners. Once a year it will be Nackgammon. Once in a while it will be modified Swiss. And once in a while it will be strictly 2-point matches, round-robin modified Swiss with a lot of different matches. Maybe there will be non-consulting doubles with an Open and Intermediate player.
The format and point systems will be the same every week at every backgammon club in the country and there will be national rankings.
There will be clocks on all matches, except in the Novice division.
All first-time players are free, and all college or high school students under 26 years of age play for half price until they win an intermediate event (full price if they enter the Open).
The tournament director keeps half of all entry fees (nothing from the side pools in the open). Half of that money goes into his pocket for his efforts in running the club. The other half is used for prizes and awards at the end of the year. An accounting of the funds collected and the money used for prizes will be kept and shared with the members.
Once a month, before the tournament starts, there will be a 10 minute quiz about covering 3 or 4 positions followed by a discussion and explanation from one of the top players in the club. (Quizzes and explanations will be provided by the USBGF for this purpose to help see that they are quality discussions.)
The room will be packed every week because there is a place for the money players and a place for people who just enjoy playing backgammon for the competition. It will be a sharing and learning experience, and it will be fun. The room will be open at least an hour before the tournament starts and at least an hour after for those who want to play practice matches or chouettes.
Gumbaya!
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