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BGonline.org Forums
What is Happening to Backgammon?
Posted By: Daniel Murphy In Response To: What is Happening to Backgammon? (Steve Mellen)
Date: Tuesday, 30 November 2010, at 4:37 p.m.
Great comment, Steve.
DBgF has had a rating system for 20 years. In that time many hundreds of players have dropped in and out of the system. Ratings inflation suggests that lower rated players are more likely to leave than higher rated players. But in the seven years I was in the system, I can't think of a single player who stopped playing because of his or her rating.
With regard to Steve's last paragraph, as a nonsubscriber, like Bill Calton, I too read the "teaser" and wondered how Bill Davis developed his thoughts in the rest of his editorial. Without knowing that, I was nevertheless struck by the header: "What is Happening to Backgammon." Note the use of the present tense, and read what Tak Morioka wrote way back in the February 1989 edition of the newsletter:
"Backgammon is tougher these days. The game has evolved from a social pastime into a mentally energetic sport. The influx of clear mathematical reasoning has transformed average players into efficient competitors. It’s not like ten years ago when a handful of players dominated the tournament circuit and established a hierarchy within our community. Today, tournament seeds regularly fall to the onslaught of the unnamed opponent."
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