Forum Archive : Tournaments

Calcutta problems From:   Marty Storer Address:   mws@empire.net Date:   19 December 2002 Subject:   Calcuttas: more of it Forum:   GammOnLine Big tournament, I'm playing in the money round of the main event, opponent is banging the table as beveled dice are spinning; I request that she not do so, explaining that I don't believe she's trying to influence the way the dice fall, but that banging does transmit big vibrations to the playing surface, which I demonstrate. She complies for a while then goes back to table-banging. I warn her again. No holds barred anymore; I'm going to call for a reroll if she bangs the table and gets a good roll. Volatile game, priming-tactical, I own 2-cube, every roll is key. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE (tense) GAME my opponent's Calcutta owner pulls her aside to talk to her. They start to walk out the door! Do I patiently wait for them to return? I do not. I follow them closely. Owner says, "Excuse us, we're having a private conversation!" Owner has been watching the match. Owner is at least as strong a player as opponent. "No private conversations allowed in the middle of a game! I know you own her in the Calcutta, so what's going on here?" Well how DARE you suggest such a thing. Well, I'm not necessarily suggesting anything, but I'm going to follow you to the ends of the earth and listen to what you're saying. They return, then I bar the owner. He withdraws with a mere suggestion of huffiness; he understands my concerns full well. My opponent rolls, the dice are spinning, BOOM she bangs the table and the dice fall--I see the joker coming--then they land and the roll isn't very good. Whew--but I was set to call the director. I win the game and eventually the match. Neither of these people is thought of as sleazy in any way, and I'm sure they're not. But I had no way of knowing what they were up to, and I protected myself accordingly. Look at the situations that loosely run Calcuttas can cause. And Calcuttas are almost always run loosely. Another time I had a dispute with someone who claimed I hadn't bought 50% of myself back from him in the Calcutta. I had done so. I won the tournament and he had left taking the first-place Calcutta money with him. I showed the director my notebook entries, etc., and he didn't even want to hear it: "I know you and I know him and I know you're right." (Lucky for me, but in the previous incident I had traveled to the tournament and wasn't the local favorites the other disputants were.) Hundreds of dollars involved this time, not nickel-and-dime for this honest working man. Buyer tried to settle with me on a partial payment. I left him with the implication that his name would be mud if he didn't pay up. He didn't want his reputation blemished, I suppose. He paid in full. Honest mistake on his part? Maybe, but the "partial settlement" suggestion made me see red. Another ploy: buyer leaves scene and is nowhere to be found. Player wants to buy back and searches in vain. Pairings are posted, no buybacks allowed anymore. What is player to do? Buyer claims player didn't search very well as buyer was "just in the other room" or some nonsense. Director is called to arbitrate: "He can't buy back now after getting a bye (or favorable pairing)!" For all the director knows, it's the player attempting a coup and not the buyer. I mean, really...*splutter splutter* How to prevent such disputes? Organizers do bookkeeping on buybacks. Sure, Calcuttas are fun, and good for organizers. But I think they have to be controlled better than they typically are.   Did you find the information in this article useful?           Do you have any comments you'd like to add?

 

Tournaments

Adjusting to face-to-face play  (Paul Epstein+, Feb 2006) 

Adjusting to face-to-face play  (Daniel Murphy, June 1999) 

Avoiding disputes  (Kit Woolsey+, Oct 2007) 

Baffle box to roll dice  (Ken Bame, Mar 2012) 

Calcutta auctions  (David Moeser, Nov 2001) 

Calcutta auctions  (Roland Scheicher+, Dec 1998) 

Calcutta auctions  (Anthony R Wuersch, Oct 1994) 

Calcutta problems  (Marty Storer, Dec 2002) 

Clock ethics  (Patrick Gibson+, Mar 2009) 

Clock rules--Digital clocks  (Chuck Bower+, Oct 2003) 

Clock rules--End of turn  (Carlo Melzi+, July 2001) 

Clock rules--How do they work?  (Gregg Cattanach, Oct 2002) 

Clock rules--Illegal move  (Brendan Burgess+, Feb 2000) 

Clock rules--Why forfeit instead of penalty points?  (neilkaz, Sept 2010) 

Clocks and older players  (Stick+, July 2010) 

Clocks--Arguments against them  (Timothy Chow, Jan 2011) 

Clocks--Common arguments against  (Chuck Bower, Feb 2006) 

Clocks--Losing on time  (Jason Lee+, Mar 2004) 

Clocks--Pros and cons  (Michael Strato+, Jan 2004) 

Clocks--Should they be part of the game?  (Kit Woolsey, June 1995) 

Clocks--Why use them  (Stick, Jan 2011) 

Compensating for byes  (Hank Youngerman+, Dec 1998) 

Factors that affect attendance  (Stick, Oct 2009) 

"Fighter's bracket"  (Chuck Bower+, Sept 2010) 

First backgammon tournament  (Mislav Radica+, May 2007) 

First backgammon tournament  (Ed Collins+, Dec 2006) 

Hedging  (Jason Lee+, Apr 2009) 

Hedging  (Marv Porten+, Feb 2009) 

Hedging  (Tad Bright+, Jan 2003) 

Hitting clock instead of rolling  (Bob Glass+, Mar 2010) 

Keeping score during a match  (Gregg Cattanach, June 2007) 

Links to tournament rules  (Daniel Murphy, Oct 2009) 

Major tournament attendance 1998-2008  (Daniel Murphy, July 2008) 

Making notes during play  (Randy Pals+, Aug 2008) 

Manually recording a match  (Kevin P+, Apr 2007) 

Manually recording a match  (gammonus+, Feb 2006) 

Manually recording a match  (Daniel Murphy, Aug 1999) 

New U.S. Rules  (Gregg Cattanach+, Dec 2007) 

Newbie questions  (Donald Kahn, Oct 1999) 

Playing at Monte Carlo  (Achim, July 2007) 

Playing-off 3 remaining players  (Gregg Cattanach+, Apr 2007) 

Recording matches  (Robert Maier, May 2009) 

Recording matches  (Chuck Bower+, Sept 2003) 

Recording matches  (Sean Dakin+, Aug 1999) 

Round robins  (Hank Youngerman, Nov 2001) 

Rules for doubles play (with a partner)  (steve+, May 2012) 

Seeding  (Roland Scheicher+, Dec 1998) 

Skill level  (Kirk J. Rupnik+, Nov 1998) 

Skill levels  (Leonardo Jerkovic, Aug 2012) 

"Stop pots"  (Chuck Bower+, Sept 2010) 

Swiss format  (Osman Guner+, May 2001) 

Swiss format  (Osman Guner, Oct 1998) 

Swiss format  (Hank Youngerman+, Mar 1998) 

Tournament formats  (MikeMadMonk+, May 2003) 

Tournament rules  (Daniel Murphy, Apr 2001) 

Tournament rules links  (Daniel Murphy, Oct 2009) 

Types of events  (Daniel Murphy, Nov 1997) 

Uniform rules and procedures?  (Michael Crane+, Mar 2003) 

Variable side pools  (Art Grater+, July 2011) 

Vegas trip report (fall 2004)  (Gregg Cattanach, Nov 2004) 

Vegas trip report (spring 2005)  (Gregg Cattanach, May 2005) 

Videotaping matches  (André Nicoulin+, Nov 2000) 

What is a "Monrad format"?  (Daniel Murphy, Sept 2000) 

What is a "side pool"?  (Daniel Murphy, Nov 1997) 

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