2008 Queensland Backgammon Championship

The final leg of Paul Weaver's tour of Australia took place at the Gold Coast Commerce Club in Surfers Paradise, Queensland on 23rd and 24th February. Around 45 players from all over Australia (and even one from New Zealand) helped to make this the largest backgammon tournament held in Australia in recent years. Paul again showed his class by winning the event from Sydney's Robbie Solomon. The two had met in the first round, where Robbie prevailed, only to be defeated by Peter Brown in the next round. Paul subsequently won through the buy-back field while Robbie patiently won his way through the field of 32 Last Chance. The main flight plus buy-backs came down to this final eight:

Simon Woodhead then played Robbie Solomon (who had defeated organiser Steve Roberts in the Last Chance Final) for a second chance at the Major Final and top honours. Alas, it was not to be:

Thus we came to the Grand Final between one of Australia's best players and one of the World's. There was nothing between them, with points shared and no cubes taken throughout the match until the last game when Double Match Point was quickly reached. Robbie then edged tantalizingly close to victory, trapping Paul behind his prime before leaving a shot in the bearoff. Paul hit and rolled the game, match and Championship home.

It was a great weekend of backgammon organised at short notice by Steve Roberts and his fabulous and patient staff. The trophies you see below were kindly donated by tournament sponsor Health Protect International. Thanks to Steve and all involved.

Some of the booty up for grabs

Photos - click on photo for full size image. Photos courtesy Simon Woodhead and Rodney Hearn.
My apologies for the poor quality of some of these images, and the lack of photos from the presentation. I was using a new camera and didn't have the settings quite right :-(