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Miscellaneous
Giants of Backgammon list
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The 2005 GIANTS of BACKGAMMON list is due out at the end of the month.
Here's a recap of previous Giants:
Rank 1993 1995
1 Wilcox Snellings US Mike Senkiewicz US
2 Mike Senkiewicz US Wilcox Snellings US
3 Joe Sylvester US Billy Horan US
4 Paul Magriel US Nack Ballard US
5 Mike Svobodny US Paul Magriel US
6 Bill Robertie US Joe Sylvester US
7 Nack Ballard US Mike Svobodny US
8 Kent Goulding US Kent Goulding US
9 Kit Woolsey US Bill Robertie US
10 Jason Lester US Neil Kazaross US
11 Billy Horan US James Colen US
12 Tino Lechich AU Kit Woolsey US
13 Phillip Marmorstein DE Phillip Marmorstein DE
14 Hal Heinrich CA Joe Russell US
15 Joe Russell US Evert van Eijck NL
16 Tom Lumper DE Hal Heinrich CA
17 Neil Kazaross US Tino Lechich AU
18 Ed O'Laughlin US Howard Ring US
19 Bob Wachtel US Jason Lester US
20 Sandy Lubetkin US Malcolm Davis US
21 Frank Talbot US Thomas Lumper DE
22 Malcolm Davis US Ed O'Laughlin US
23 Mike Corbett US Sandy Lubetkin US
24 James Colen US Abbas Zaltash US
25 Paul Weaver US Peter Jes Thomsen DK
26 Alan Steffen US Rolf Schreuder NL
27 Walter Trice US Alan Steffen US
28 Jack Kissane US Frank Talbot US
29 Howard Ring US Harry Cohn US
30 Rolf Schreuder NL Herb Gurland US
31 Erik Seidel US Walter Trice US
32 Herb Gurland US Paul Weaver US
Rank 1997 1999
1 Wilcox Snellings US Jerry Grandell SE
2 Mike Senkiewicz US Nack Ballard US
3 Nack Ballard US Johannes Levermann DE
4 Mike Svobodny US Neil Kazaross US
5 Paul Magriel US Paul Magriel US
6 Neil Kazaross US Mike Senkiewicz US
7 Billy Horan US Michael Meyburg DE
8 Kit Woolsey US Dirk Schiemann DE
9 Jerry Grandell SE Mike Svobodny US
10 Bill Robertie US Kit Woolsey US
11 Kent Goulding US Howard Ring US
12 Joe Sylvester US Malcolm Davis US
13 Malcolm Davis US Kent Goulding US
14 James Colen US Jake Jacobs US
15 Phillip Marmorstein DE Bill Robertie US
16 Hal Heinrich C Billy Horan US
17 Peter Jes Thomsen DK Wilcox Snellings US
18 Joe Russell US Elliott Winslow US
19 Jason Lester US David Wells US
20 Evert van Eijck NL Peter Jes Thomsen DK
21 David Wells US Jorgen Granstedt SE
22 Gus Hansen DK Phillip Marmorstein DE
23 Howard Ring US Hal Heinrich CA
24 Thomas Lumper DE Abe Mosseri US
25 Jake Jacobs USA Gus Hansen DK
26 Mike Corbett US Joe Russell US
27 Elliott Winslow US Mike Corbett US
28 Tino Lechich AU Harald Johanni DE
29 Paul Weaver US Frank Talbot US
30 Johannes Levermann DE Peter Heitmueller DE
31 Stuart Hosen US Rick Barabino US
32 Sandy Lubetkin US Paul Weaver US
Rank 2001 2003
1 Nack Ballard US Nack Ballard US
2 Jerry Grandell SE Jerry Grandell SE
3 Johannes Levermann DE Dirk Schiemann DE
4 Dirk Schiemann DE Johannes Levermann DE
5 Jorgen Granstedt SE Paul Magriel US
6 Paul Magriel US David Wells US
7 Neil Kazaross US Neil Kazaross US
8 Mike Senkiewicz US Matvey Natanzon IS
9 Jake Jacobs US Mads Andersen DK
10 Kit Woolsey US J�rgen Granstedt SE
11 Michael Meyburg DE Kit Woolsey US
12 Mike Svobodny US Jake Jacobs US
13 Peter Jes Thomsen DK Steve Sax US
14 Bill Robertie US Fran�ois Tardieu FR
15 Kent Goulding US Bill Robertie US
16 Mads Andersen DK Mike Senkiewicz US
17 Matvey Natanzon IS Peter Jes Thomsen DK
18 Howard Ring US Michael Meyburg DE
19 Paul Weaver US Mike Svobodny US
20 Steve Sax US Paul Weaver US
21 Francois Tardieu FR Malcolm Davis US
22 Gus Hansen DK Howard Ring US
23 David Wells US Gus Hansen DK
24 Rick Barabino US Lars B�nding DK
25 Leo Fernandez AR Brian Elgaard DK
26 Abe Mosseri US Kent Goulding US
27 Harald Johanni DE Hugh Sconyers US
28 Mario Kuehl DE Morten Holm DK
29 Wilcox Snellings US Mike Corbett US
30 Elliott Winslow US Ralf Jonas DE
31 Malcolm Davis US Frank Talbot US
32 Hugh Sconyers US Leo Fernandez AR
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Klaus Evers writes:
I wonder who qualifies for sending in a vote/ballot. Can every bg player
do this? Or do I have to be an international, experienced player?
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Raccoon writes:
Voter eligibility is determined by the Giant Committee named at at
http://www.flintbg.com/giants.html. The Giant 32 (and 64) is supposed
to be a survey of "championship-level players and tournament directors
around the world." I don't think anyone can vote, but I'm sure the
committee would be glad to have more open level players cast votes.
It's been my impression that the Committee has desired and encouraged
more players from more places to vote, not fewer. If you wanted to
vote and were unknown to the committee, I suppose they might ask you
who you are and where you've played.
In past years ballots were distributed with Flint BackgammoNews and
also, I think, with Chicago Point. Or you could ask for one from Flint
newsletter editor Carol Joy Cole.
It's interesting to see how some names appear on the list and then
sometimes linger even though they're no longer active or play only
rarely. In the 2003 list I count six names who, if they hadn't retired
from the circuit already, have since. But I've a bias for and know more
about the tournament players. "Side action" reputation counts, too.
Curiously, only 4 of the top 25 point earners on the ABT tour in 2003
made the Giant list that year.
In the early years, U.S. voters dominated the selection process, and in
1993 27 of 32 Giants were American. That's changed some, as backgammon
grew and some great players emerged from Denmark, Germany, England and
France, and more voters came from outside the USA. In 1995, seven Giants
were not from the USA; in 1997, eight; in 1999, eleven; in 2001,
thirteen; and in 2003, fifteen.
Unfortunately, for the past five or six years not as many Americans have
been playing in Europe and vice versa, and neither group of players may
be very aware of the other half of the who's who. The 2005 list could
stand some Norwegian, English, Japanese and Armenian-from-Armenia names,
another from France, and a half-dozen more Danes wouldn't be out of
place on the list, either. Interestingly, winning the world championship
doesn't guarantee a spot in the Giant 32. Nature of the game, I guess.
Other ratings lists:
KG List June '92 '93 and '94 Top 30 are at
http://classic.csc.no/~paalf/BG/KG-rating-list
World Backgammon Association rating list at
http://www.world-backgammon-association.com/wba_elo-rating.htm -- lot of
new (?) names there.
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Miscellaneous
- Backgammon computers (Graham Bayne+, Mar 2005)
- Backgammon in famous paintings (Dan Scoones, Mar 2000)
- Backgammon versus poker (Peter Hallberg, June 2006)
- Backgammon's popularity (Anon+, Sept 2003)
- Board orientation (Daniel Murphy, Mar 1999)
- Calculation versus instinct (Kit Woolsey, Jan 1998)
- Checker play versus cube play (Gregg Cattanach, Oct 2004)
- Checker play versus cube play (David Montgomery, Jan 1998)
- Copying positions from books (Stick+, Nov 2005)
- Famous people who play (Carem Wiklicm+, Dec 2002)
- Free lesson (Donald Kahn, Apr 1999)
- General tips (Hank Youngerman, Aug 1998)
- Giants of Backgammon list (Raccoon+, Mar 2006)
- Handicapping (Kees van den Doel+, Aug 2003)
- Handicapping (flash, Aug 1998)
- Handicapping--Pass or pick a roll (Michael J. Zehr, Dec 1997)
- Handicapping--Rerolling 5-4 (Mary Hickey, Feb 2004)
- How bots rate you (Phil Simborg, Mar 2010)
- Initiatives by local clubs (Raccoon, Mar 2006)
- Is online gambling legal in the U.S.? (Chuck Bower+, June 2006)
- Maximizing earnings (Stanley E. Richards+, Oct 2005)
- Money management (Carly Robson+, Jan 2009)
- Money management (Gnoh Mon+, July 2004)
- Money management (Adam Stocks, Jan 2003)
- Money management and the Kelly Criterion (Stuart Thomson+, June 1999)
- Notation (Dean Gay, Feb 2000)
- Notation (Kit Woolsey, July 1995)
- Position cards (Francois Hochede, Jan 2004)
- Posted diagrams are scrunched up (Dale+, Sept 2000)
- Top women players (Tami+, Nov 2006)
- Typesetting backgammon (Jason Lee+, Apr 2006)
- What is Zbot? (Douglas Zare+, Dec 2003)
- What is backgammon? (David C. Oshel, Aug 1997)
- Why do people play for money? (Hank Youngerman+, Sept 2005)
- World Champions (John Bazigos, June 1994)
- rec.games.backgammon mini-FAQ (Daniel Murphy, Mar 1998)
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