Day Four: Friday.
Action Everywhere
Today saw the event enter a little lighter mode when the Team and Doubles tournaments started. These are always great fun, 'though the high stakes in a tournament such as this do sometimes take the edge of the normal banter between teams; nonetheless, they were both enjoyable tournaments.
TEAM TOURNAMENT (18)
Ingredients; take 18 teams of 3 players per team, mix in a backgammon board, some checkers and dice, throw in some prize money - $4,450 1st place $1,900 2nd place, shake vigorously and stand well back. The result? A lively, win 2 out 3 tournament between teams with silly names.
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| 'Do Not Disturb'
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The last 8 were:
No Work Team vs. Typhoon
Psychotic Dice vs. Bavaria
Pip Monsters vs. Jokers
Ace Point vs. Texas Snowie
In the semi-final:
Typhoon vs. Psychotic Dice
Jokers vs. Ace Point
In the Final:
Psychotic Dice vs. Jokers . . . which Jokers won.
This successful 3-man team event was then followed by the Doubles Tournament, a report on which will follow tomorrow.
Meanwhile, from the Team tournament, here's a poser for you:
Score, Black 2, White 2 in match to 5 points.
White to play 54.
White had a good racing lead, 90 to 120 before this roll was made and offered the cube at 2 to black; black correctly took and then white rolled the 54 above.
What is your move? Options:
- 1. 8/3 5/1
- 2. 6/1 5/1
- 3. 13/8 13/9
- 4. 6/1 8/4
Rightly or wrongly (and it was a matter of heated debate - in a language I couldn't understand) white moved 13/8 13/9, which I think was possibly the best play; but, this being backgammon, black rolled 32, hit and then poor white danced with 53, black rolled 44 and made the 4-point, white danced again with 54, black rolled 53 ending up with a builder each on the 6- and 5-points, white came in with 51 and black rolled 54 hitting and pointing him out.
Black then went on to win a gammon and the match as white kept dancing by following the prime down lower and lower. Ah, backgammon, don't you just love it?
LETTERS FROM HOME
Due to technical difficulties I have not had the web access I'd anticipated and therefore logging onto the message board has been a very hit and miss affair. However, I have managed to read a few and they ask:
Q: Where is the great 'guru' Michael Crane, is he in or out?
A: I am here. I am not playing (being paid to play backgammon - now that's a job I'd like!), but reporting; as best I can. Anyway, what is a 'guru,? I expect the Beatles to turn up any minute and start asking for spiritual guidance.
Q: Is the new, backgammon Grandmaster prowling about?
A: No. He, like several other absent players he is washing his hair.
Q: Is the resurrected Roy Hollands roaming around there somewhere?
A: No, unfortunately Roy isn't here - but he sure as hell isn't washing his hair!
Q: How many Biba players are there?
A: One. Ed Rogers is the only member here; out of 950 odd current and lapsed members only he was the only one with the foresight to wash his hair a week earlier!
Q: Your reports tell us quite well who's out but who is left in?
A: Sorry about that, but it's been very hectic here and a little disjointed, but, today, Friday is the Teams and Doubles day and this has given me the breathing space needed to compile the list of those left in (see report below).
I have concentrated perhaps too much in sending copy for the backgammon viewer, but a lot of people have worked very hard to a strict deadline writing the software so that I could do just that. It is all quite experimental but I think it has been very worthwhile. I for one am impressed by the viewer - although inputting the raw data into the viewer is a laborious job and takes a lonnnng time.
WHO IS LEFT IN AND WHERE?
Who is left in and where; well it looks like this:
MAIN CHAMPIONSHIP: (Last 8)
Bolge vs. Shadallah
Ternel vs. Nantanzon
Christensen vs. Kahyoglu
Ongel vs. Reinhault
NB! Bolge, Ternel and Christensen are all from Sweden!
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| Martha Ghio, one of the two lady entrants this year, playing for her team in the Team Event.
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MAIN CONSOLATION (Last 16)
Ekmark vs. Ghio (One of the two female entrants)
Muradyan vs. Penzias
Bolge or Shadallah vs. Ternel or Nantanzon (Progressive entry)
Christensen or Kahyoglu vs. Ongel or Reinhault (Progressive entry)
Mizrakgi vs. Winslow
Hully vs. Juskovic
Gabi vs. Leibe-Hardkort
Wolf - Through to last 8.
INTERMEDIATE MAIN Semi-finals
Alexandre vs. Behnke ... Behnke won and meets ....
Kamalian vs. Frank ..... Kamalian in the Final
INTERMEDIATE CONSOLATION semi-finals
Franken vs. Clarke (One of the two female entrants)
Fursund vs. Jakov
BEGINNERS MAIN: Finalists:
Tukhareli vs. Harutunian
BEGINNERS CONSOLATION semifinals (and finalist)
Werner vs. Hakki
Durmus vs. Mamporia (Note Mamporia won and is in the Final)
SUPER JACKPOT: Finals
Leverman vs. Dogan
Click here to learn about the prize fund.
ALL OVER THE PLACE!
Yes, entrants have come from all over the place, 22 countries in fact. They are: Armenia, Argentina, Canada, Denmark, England (albeit an American living there for a couple of years!), Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, U.S.A. That's quite a selection you'll agree.
I've had a bit of feedback on why there are fewer American entrants this year. Apparently the US Government have advised it's citizens not to travel to the Middle East due to the political situation there. Turkey - Middle East?
Come on you Yanks, Istanbul actually straddles the Bosphorus, the dividing line between Western Europe and the Middle East; how much more Western do you want it - John Wayne on horseback, heading them off at the pass? In fact this hotel is in Europe, not in Asia Minor as you all obviously think; so what's the excuse now?
I knew I'd forgotten to bring something with my on this trip (no, not my wife Sharen), a torch. On all my trips to Turkey (20 in total over the years) I'd always packed a torch to combat the power cuts prevalent in this country, but I thought, eh, it's Istanbul, things will different there. Well they were . . . and they weren't!
During the Doubles Tournament we had a power cut, and boy, was it dark? You know when it's really dark and you feel you can almost touch the blackness with your hands? Well, that was sissy stuff, here, whilst it lasted we could TASTE it; cloaking us in a thick, treacly blackness that was choking. And then, whoof, the hotel generators cut in and we were blinded by the sheer contrast, blinking back our primal fear of the night.
When I returned to my room at 02:30 it was still pitch black outside. The only light struggling through my window was from a couple of cruise ships moored on the Bosphorus and the headlamps of passing taxis streaking along the road - which meant that my taxi driver from the airport was probably tucked up in bed . . . which is where I'm going soon. I'm bringing a torch next time. Or Sharen to hold on to. I think I'd like to have both.
And finally, Turkish baths. We've all heard of them but do you actually know what to expect? Well one imagines; and this is purely from a male perspective, not that I want to impose my imaginings upon the weaker sex (did I say weaker sex? Anyone that can go through childbirth is NOT a weaker sex in my book), but one imagines some beautiful, dark-skinned, brown-eyed, black-haired, nubile young maiden gently massaging you into a state of torpor with her soft dove-like hands amid the intoxicating aroma of exotic oils and spices;
... but the reality is a large, 22 stone, muscle-turned-to-rolls-of-fat, bald, ex-wrestler with eyes like shrivelled peas and shovels for hands who will pummel and pound and stretch and pull and push and contort your body until your very toenails begin to ache, and then he'll wash you down with buckets of freezing cold water, and the only aromas you're likely to be intoxicated by are sweat and foot odour! .... or so I'm led to believe.
- Michael Crane
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