Rating: 
Summary: Excellent book for the starting Backgammon Player
Review: Agressive backgammon. Wimpy players need not apply! I've played backgammon for a number of years, but never in competition. I bought the book after just having started on an on-line backgammon server. I was losing. Then I read this book. Mr. Robertie's lessons emphasise agressive play. Not simply hitting other players, but agressive movement, agressive defense and agressive doubling. After implementing the straegies outlined in the book, my rank began to rise. These strategies work...espescially against concervative players. This book is for intermediate players who are looking to improve their game to new levels.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book for intermediate and higher players
Review: Agressive backgammon. Wimpy players need not apply! I've played backgammon for a number of years, but never in competition. I bought the book after just having started on an on-line backgammon server. I was losing. Then I read this book. Mr. Robertie's lessons emphasise agressive play. Not simply hitting other players, but agressive movement, agressive defense and agressive doubling. After implementing the straegies outlined in the book, my rank began to rise. These strategies work...espescially against concervative players. This book is for intermediate players who are looking to improve their game to new levels.
Rating: 
Summary: Typo Heaven
Review: An interesting book for the semi-advanced player is destroyed by typo after typo, a fault that ultimately drives the reader mad. What's going on in the publishing world?
Rating:
Summary: Typo Heaven
Review: An interesting book for the semi-advanced player is destroyed by typo after typo, a fault that ultimately drives the reader mad. What's going on in the publishing world?
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book for the starting Backgammon Player
Review: I thought this book might give me a tip or two before reading it but to my surprise it taught me all kinds of opening moves, mid-position and end play moves. This book will improve your game. God Bless you.
Rating: 
Summary: A new player's view
Review: I wanted to get into playing backgammon at some of the online sites, but I hadn't played in years. I figured I needed some help so went looking for a book on backgammon and more or less at random picked Backgammon for Winners by Bill Robertie. And it turned out to be a decent choice.
It's a fairly thin book, which I liked. I didn't want to spend 2 weeks reading about the history of the game (at least not right now). Robertie jumps right into the meat of the subject, first giving the rules and a bit of broad strategy as well as best opening moves for every possible first roll of the dice. But the bulk of the book is taken up with three different sample games, and Robertie analyzes each move of each game, giving lots of explanation for why something was a strong or poor move. While he suggests you set up a board and move the pieces yourself, there were enough illustrations that you don't have to do so (I didn't).
By the time you work through these three sample games you'll understand backgammon notation, the different phases/styles of a backgammon game, why control of certain points is more important than others, and you'll even see examples of when the 'rules of thumb' should be broken. He does a good job of urging you to go back and reread a section if its covering difficult material, keeping you from glossing over it with an "I'll figure this out later" shrug.
Overall, I'm thinking this is a good first backgammon book. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: I guess is great for beginners
Review: I've been playing backgammon tournaments for 2 months now, and while I read the book cover to cover, it left me wishing for something more. It does help a lot if you are REALLY new to the game. Don't get me wrong, you'll get some good tips from the book....just not enough from a world champion, at least not in this book.
Rating:
Summary: Good quick introduction to aggressive Backgammon
Review: I've been playing chess since I was a little kid, but a group of friends at the local coffeehouse started to play a lot of backgammon. So this book was a first attempt at seeing how the pros approach this dice-based game.In short, the book is great if you want a quick read that outlines the best opening moves and gives you a feel for aggressive 'modern' backgammon. In addition to the rationale behind how to use opening dice rolls, the book gives you 3 sample games and lets you hear the pro's thoughts on possible moves. My favorite line is "He could play 14/20, moving the blot on the 14-point to safety, but this is a craven play, unworthy of a modern player." :) How could you not like such opinionated tutelage?? I could have used more exposition on why some seemingly valid plays (e.g. hitting an opponent's blot in your inner table even though its deep) are really less effective. Even better would be some statistical analysis showing why some moves make sense when looking at the odds, but I'm not sure there's such a book out there.
Rating:
Summary: Good. Not much depth. But the price is right.
Review: Not very much depth of coverage here. Very solid for a beginner. Some helpful tips for intermediate players. Good value. Robertie gives clear advice. I plan on studying his more advanced books now.
Rating: 
Summary: A great book, worthy of a champion--NOT.
Review: One expected (MUCH) more from a world champion who has written several top-notch advanced books on backgammon. On this one he tries--and fails miserably--to capture the style of the truly great 70's book on backgammon, Bruce Becker's Backgammon for Blood. That book, though seriously flawed on tactics and strategy, had a joie de vie about it which stimulated more than one beginner to carry on with the game. "Winners" is more a a damp, white bread, mayonaise sandwich. It's not clear that's it the same author who did the advanced books. Other in-print books must do the job better and several out-of-print ones far, far surpass this one.
|
