That’s a terrific essay and you’ve described Alex’s strategy in a few paragraphs.

So, why do we still need to read books of hundreds of pages?

Alex was in the mid-seventies. A levantiner. A cummulated backgammon experience. It needs a lifetime. Nowadays, with talent, desire, a couple of books, every day bot training and hard work, you will need a few years (atrifix).

What is A levantiner?

Misspelled, I think. A Levantine was a resident of the Levant, a term from the 18th, 19th, and early 20th century referring to the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean, roughly today's Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, and Iraq. Backgammon was (and is) very popular there, and the players played a straightforward racing style without the doubling cube. Alex was a smart guy, and he played an effective version of that style.

Because backgammon is a deep, really complex game that can't be summarized in a couple of paragraphs.

Do you read poker books?

Agreed that Backgammon is a complex game that can not be described in a few paragraphs.

That’s the very reason I find your Alex essay so interesting.

If you ever expand that essay into a book, I promise to be among the first to buy it.

30 years ago, i have read "The Levanter" from Eric Ambler. The German title was "Der Levantiner". By the way, a magnificent piece of art of the struggle there.
And if Stick Rice won't write the Enceclopaedia of Backgammon Vol. 3 "Backgames", Bill Robertie have to write it. I will buy 2 copies.

Where is this essay?

Anyone? I'd really like to read it if it's online.

Thanks.

It's the solution for problem of the week #77, written by Bill Robertie, right on this site.

"if Stick Rice won't write the Enceclopaedia of Backgammon Vol. 3 "Backgames"

Is there a Vol. 2 ?

In the last paragraph of the introduction to the Backgammon Encyclopedia Volume 1, Kit Woolsey states, "This book is volume 1 of a planned two-volume series. It deals with fairly standard types of positions we see every day; positions such as holding games, anchor games, and early blitzes. Volume 2 will deal with more complex and less standard types of positions. The player who is armed with the knowledge of these reference positions and their variations will be well-equipped to handle any over-the-board cube decision".

Whether Volume 2 is still planned, I don't know. But I do hope so as I would like to be "well-equipped to handle any over-the-board cube decision"...

Mr. Robertie said to my email-question, sorry, no vol. 2 planned. Despite a real help, vol. 1 has one lack: the sample size of the rollouts. With XG and the new multi core engines, this is even more urgent. Neil Kazaross for example works with 45.000 trials for opening rollouts.

Anyone with XG and a computer with a multi-core engine up to the challenge of rolling out the positions in Vol. 1 with a larger sample size?

One could post the results without showing the positions so as not to sabotage the sales of the book.

I would do it if someone would lend me a computer with a multi-core processor...