Backgammon Beginners’ Course

Tuesday 28th March 6.30pm

Backgammon is the oldest board game in the world. Easy to learn and apparently simple, it contains levels of complexity not obvious to the casual observer. The invention of doubling in 1926 changed the game forever and the advent of strong backgammon computer programs in the 1990s changed it again. An expert from 1970 would struggle against an intermediate modern-day player.

Most people learn the game in an unstructured manner from friends or family, picking up a lot of bad habits along the way! This course provides the basic building blocks of the game in a structured method that will enable you to play ‘good’ backgammon.

Like all good games there will be a lot more work to be done to become truly proficient, but this course will set you off in the right direction. How you then progress is up to each individual attendee but, at least if you start off in the right direction, you will have a chance of making rapid progress.

The course will be given as an interactive zoom session. During the main part of the seminar delegates can submit questions via chat. Those questions, plus any others, will be dealt with at the end of the event. The course will take approximately 100 minutes with a break at the half-way stage.

The target audience is beginners or those with only a rudimentary knowledge of the game. No specific prior knowledge is required. If successful, future courses will cover more complex topics.

A broad outline is:

History of the Game
The Basic Rules of Play
Notation and Terminology
A Sample Game
Opening Rolls and Responses
A Very Brief Summary of Middle Game Types
Endings
A Guide to Doubling
Computers
Where to Play
Suggested Reading

Chris Bray is the backgammon columnist for The Times. He is currently ranked number one in the country, and he represents the UK at international level. He has written nine books on the game including Backgammon for Dummies and Backgammon to Win. Chris and his wife, Gill, run the backgammon section at the Club.

To register for the course please send an email to Chris at chris.bray@btconnect.com

There is no fee to the club for this course, but attendees are requested to make a minimum of £20 donation to the local charity, React, which Gill and Chris support. React provides financial assistance to low-income families with terminally ill children.

You can donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/r-e-a-c-t

Chris Bray