The English Open, 4, 5, 6, June 2010

Report by Michael Crane

Well, the double rollover made a difference, and not just in the turnout (up 21%) but that it brought one of the UK's top players out - Paul Lamford. Paul, the author of many books, not just on backgammon, but chess and bridge (and possibly others) was the favourite to win the tournament, and the one player that everyone dreaded meeting. Well, everyone except Peter Chan! Peter had a tough draw in the Main (40) and before he got to Paul he had beaten Nicky Check, Marcus Wrinch and Kevin Stebbing. The entire match against Paul came down to one roll, and it was Peter's and he needed a double-two or greater. Now, if you're not aware of Peter's shaking/rolling technique when it comes to doubles you should know he shakes and shakes and shakes and shakes and shakes . . . . you've got the picture? Well, this roll was no different: he shook for 45 minutes (well, it seemed like 45 minutes!) and out popped double-two and out went Paul Lamford!

Peter was now in the Final and his opponent was just a tad less than Paul - Raj Jansari. If John Hurst was making a book on the outcome of this match he'd have given you good odds on Peter winning it . . . and he'd have lost a packet! Peter took an early 4-0 lead in the first game, a game in which Raj (white, in the 11 point match) made this blunder:

White to play 54

He took his time about it and tried a couple of moves eventually going with 7/3, 7/2 playing behind Peter's anchor. XG rates this a blunder and reckons that duplicating 4s with 20/16, 13/8 a better play. As a consequence his game winning chances (GWC) went down from 46.31% to 40.77%.

By Game #4, Peter led 5-1 and in this position he made an awful move, one that led to him being cubed out not long after:

Black to play 43

Incredibly, Peter played 18/11, giving Raj the very thing he needed - a (multiple) shot! He rolled an excellent 65: 13/7*, 10/5; Peter did re-enter but was then cubed out. The score moves along a bit now and we get to 8-8; and it is here we get to the end bit. Raj slowly edges forward but a 66 spoiled his timing and he was left in this position:

White on roll

He rolls 32 and his board starts to contract after he plays 5/2, 5/3. However, he is saved as Peter comes in with 51: 25/20, 3/2 and Raj replies with 44: 21/13(2). Raj gets his last two checkers in safely and the is now on roll in this position:

White to play 41

From here I will let Brian Lever tell you what happens as I reprint his comment from Daily Gammon: Raj rolls 41. He can pick and pass Peter's checker on his 5-point, putting Peter on the bar but risking possible future jeopardy if Peter re-enters on Raj's 4-point or even if he dances and Raj can't safely clear his remaining two checkers on the 6-point - Peter's board is good enough to contain and win if he gets a hit.

Raj has better distribution so barring miracle rolls he'll win - he opts not to pick and pass but to play 6/2, 1/0. I haven't checked but it seems the right play - unless your opponent is Peter! [MC: It is correct.]

Did I mention miracle rolls? Peter's next roll is 66, which would have danced if Raj had hit him. But he still needs another double in the bear-off to win. We all know he rolled it ....

Peter rolls 55

... otherwise we'd be posting "hard luck" rather than "well done".

Raj joins the long list of eminent players who can wear the tee-shirt with the legend "I've been Channed"!

It goes to the wire as each of them bears off, but, after his roll of 55 Peter edges nearer to victory. The final roll of the game is here:

Raj rolls 42 and Peter wins the title!

So, there you have it. This is Peter's second national title, he won the 2003 Scottish Open (and the 2006 Backpacker), and now he is gunning for the Irish in October! This match is available from Biba HQ in various formats - just email and tell me what you want! Click here to see the XG stats.

Peter and Raj	Losing semi-finalists: Tony and Paul

#

Peter with his new board

Meanwhile, in the Consolation (36), Gheorghe Filipas beat Julian Fetterlein in the semi of the non-progressive side and Danny Cohen (doing a 'Lamford' and returning after some time away) beat Lawrence Powell in the progressive final. Danny proved to be the better player in the final and it was he that went home the Consolation winner.

Gheorge & Danny	Paul and George
Paul and Paul  :-)	George and Brian

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Another George (see how it is spelt differently?), George Hall, made it into two finals, the Last Chance (16) and the 1-pointer (40). He beat Paul Plumptre in the former, and Brian Lever in the latter to win both of them. In the Grammy (32) named in memory of our old mate, Grahame Powell (read his obit here ) Paul Gilbertson beat Paul Lamford to take home another trophy to the wife, kids and dog!

Of course, it all kicked off with the Friday 500 (18) when Kevin Stebbing beat Brian Lever in the final. In the listings (here), Andy Darby keeps his #1 slot leading Nicky Check by 13 points, an increase of 3. We lose John Wright, Marcus Wrinch and Martin Birkhahn as they are replaced by Rosey Bensley, Kevin Stebbing and Mick Vacarey. There are many players threatening the lower placed Top 16, and it won't take more than two or three entries on a Friday night to make those threats real. Don't forget, one of the Top 16 will take away £500 at the Christmas UK Finals in December.

And, over the weekend in the Poker (17), Rosey Bensley came out on top with Simon K Jones 2nd and Paul Lamford 3rd. In the listing, (here) of the qualifiers, the top two remain in situ: Vicki Pemberton and Mark Calderbank, Lawrence Powell moves up to #3, moving Andy Darby down one spot. We lose Myke Wignall as Phil Tutchings makes his first Top 5 appearance. I'd like to thank Mark and Vicki for running the poker now that Tony Fawcett has stepped down (to concentrate on his game - although he didn't play this weekend).

In the Team (4) Kevin Jones beat Irving Czechowicz in the final after they had previously beaten Nicky Check and me with some very lucky rolls!

Finally
Heard in the corridor: A family of mum and dad and two young kids were walking down the hotel corridor past the door leading to the backgammon playing rooms. One of the kids asked, "What's backgammon?" upon seeing the sign on the wall. Like all dads, this one was no exception - he knew everything - and he confidentially replied, "It's a game like bingo!"

And before I go
Many thanks to Tony Fawcett for running the poker this last year or so, may your 'retirement' prove fruitful. Happily (for me), wife Deana is not retiring (phew! Thank God!) and she will be sat at my side keeping me in check for many weekends to come.

OK, I'm off soon!
Special thanks to Andy Bell of PlayWSOB for not only sponsoring the event and providing the trophies, but for also being the sponsor of the Biba Backgammon Tour, a part of which is the English Open. The board that Peter is seen holding was also donated by Andy as part of his prize. The latest BBT news can be read here.

The Trophies

Really, this is it!!

In the Main final, Peter wanted one of his 'special' rolls. The score stood at 7-4 to him and he was holding a 4-cube. All Peter needs to win the title is to roll any one of 17 winning dice combinations . . .  Click on the picure to see it on YouTube.