Playboy's Book of Backgammon, by Lewis Deyong

Backgammon Books

Playboy's Book of Backgammon

AUTHOR: Lewis Deyong

YEAR: 1977

PUBLISHER: Playboy Press

CITY: Chicago, Illinois

ISBN: 87223-425-8

BINDING: Hardcover

PAGES: 295

SIZE: 21 cm high, 24 cm wide

OTHER
EDITIONS: Softcover

READERS
COMMENTS:

     "Lewis Deyong's Playboy's Book of Backgammon is highly entertaining. The instruction is poorly organized, however. Very difficult to read for learning. Great for just spending an hour recounting exaggeraged backgammon stories."—Shuman Lloyd Lee, August 1991


     "This book is fun. It tells the tales of professional players and high stakes backgammon tournaments in the late 60's and 70's. Although stories are interspersed throughout the work, the second half brings you the meat of the information on backgammon techniques. Deyong describes several 'Pillars' of play which amount to some of the deeper strategies of the game such as doubling odds, duplication, diversification, forcing a board to crash, priming and blitzing, keeping men in play, saving pips, saving gammon and when to hit in the bearoff. Concepts such as the trailer doubling after the crawford game, the importance of the five point, splitting, shifting, and priming battles are all covered."—Martin Short, December 2001


     "A 'must have' for the backgammon enthusiast or collector. Deyong's close association with the international jet set provided much of the material for the book. Deyong is a great raconteur, and his stimulating storytelling is the book's main value. He takes the reader on an epic journey following the international tournament circuit across four continents, from the bright lights of Vegas, to the elite first-class cabins of the QE-II. There is much valuable information on the psychology of the game and tournament etiquette, including the detailed mechanics of Calcutta auctions and hedging."—Mark Driver, December 2001


CONTENTS:

Foreword by Hugh Hefner
The World Championship—Las Vegas
Chapter 1: Why, When and (for Beginners) How
California—Q.E. II—London
Chapter 2: Tools of the Trade
Paris in the Spring—Munich
Chapter 3: The Seven Pillars of Backgammon
Man Is a Political Animal—Athens
Chapter 4: Cubey Dubey—the Doubling Die
Sponsorship—Johannesburg
Chapter 5: Infighting
Playing Franjieh—Beirut
Chapter 6: The Back Game: One Step Forward, Two Paces Back
Chapter 7: Bearing Off—the Last Lap
Finale
Glossary

COVER: The love of backgammon is almost as old as any of man's other passions. A challenge to great game-players for over 2000 years, backgammon has become a national craze, with 2 million people playing it regularly and millions more learning it. This complete, basic guide is designed for two types of people: those who would like to learn the game, and experienced players who want to become experts.
Written by one of the world's greatest backgammon players and profusely illustrated, this book provides a step-by-step account of how to play, from setting up the board and the crucial opening moves, to the finer points of the middle and end game, and everything in between.
After explaining the fundamentals, Deyong reveals his own sophisticated winning techniques, the kind of insight that made him the Champion of the City of Paris and the Winner of the Phillip Morris International Tournaments in Munich.
Deyong also takes the reader into the world of high-stakes backgammon players, where earls and sheiks bet thousands of dollars on a roll of the dice in exclusive clubs from the Riviera to Palm Springs.
Playboy has been closely identified with backgammon ever since Hugh Hefner began playing it with his guests at the Playboy mansions in Chicago and Los Angeles. In a lively foreword, Hefner tells how and why he became fascinated with the game.
Up to now backgammon authors have taken a dry textbook approach. Not so with Lewis Deyong. Mr. Deyong writes carefully and instructively but also with wit and style. This book is written from his firsthand in-depth study of the game, not simply as an expert but as a world-class player. Mr. Deyong has won many championships, including the 1974 Paris Championship, and the 1974 Munich Championship; he has represented the United Kingdom in international matches against the United States and Lebanon. His book is both instructive and anecdotal, and reflects his extensive experience.

BY THE SAME
AUTHOR:

   Backgammon: Learning to Win
Lewis Deyong
1977: Barrie & Jenkins, London