We apologize for the sudden changes in the management of the Raptor League.

For those participating in this well-organized backgammon tournament league known as the Raptor League, the sudden resignation of the league hosts has caused this tournament to be put on temporary hold.

We are eager to restore this league as soon as possible.

This league of backgammon tournaments is easily managed via an additional set of customized tools for posting and reporting league standings, which are nothing more than essentially a small collection of images displayed in the parlour where this league is hosted at the site.  The simple-to-use tools created for all Tournament Directors are also used in managing this league.

Essentially this league is operated on an annual basis with monthly tournaments. Within the league are three divisions of 12 players who play a single round-robin tournament in the month.  The league has several divisions, in which members gain access to higher levels of competition, or drop to lower levels  .
It is similar, if not the same, as the system of promotion and relegation used in European soccer leagues and cup competitions .

Refer to these local posts for additional useful details on the Raptor League at SimplyBG:
Introduction of the League
League Handbook

We are open to anyone available and interested in helping host this league. Please contact Frank @ simplybg@feweb.net

Thank you.

7 1/2 years ago I was diagnosed with a chronic brain disease with a very long name. I suffered a brain hemorrhage that left me in a very bad way for over 13 months.

After undergoing 2 brain surgeries I was given another chance at life. While stuck in my lift chair recovering and gaining back my strength, I began playing games online.

I played some golf games, word games, and Mahjong. I stumbled on a Backgammon site or two and played some.

I had only played a few times when I was in college but didn't understand it. It was fun, but not my favorite of all the online games.

I played on a few sites before I stumbled on SimplyBG.com .

Very quickly I was drawn in by the banter going on in some of the matches.

Some just said gl and gm when it was over, but others engaged me in fun conversations.

I think the 1st conversation I remember was with member "Maclaren" from Canada.

I mentioned that I liked to golf. He told me that his best memory on a golf course was when he shot a buck on a fairway, hilarious!

I was fascinated by the back games between Paul C. and Thomas Z that I would watch live from the site.

Their dialogue with each other cracked me up. My ELO slipped 13 or something before I started getting the hang of it (thanks to my new friends Raymond and LDC).

In no time at all I was hooked! This site was awesome! It was a gaming site, but more than that, a community of a vast variety of souls who shared a love for backgammon.

I believe the owners, Frank, and right-hand man Hank, have done an amazing job creating an extremely unique environment to play an exciting game.

In my opinion, the community aspect they have created sets this site apart, along with the many tournaments that the community can participate in.

As in all communities, there are disagreements and misunderstandings.

I had a long chat with Frank a couple of hours ago and he explained some changes on the site that were being implemented which concerned me and other tournament directors, regarding some of the social aspects of the site.
He did a great job explaining his desire to balance the social and technical aspects of the site's future.
I can see clearly that his heart is in the right place with his vision for the site, and we discussed an idea I had pitched to Hank regarding a "private parlor" where the social aspect many of us have come to love can carry on as it has been all along.
Anyone who would choose could be invited into this Parlor, which would contain multiple tourneys, which would have a chat board that I would moderate and would welcome a variety of dialogue, opinions, critiques, jokes, pics, etc...

There is an annual fee that varies according to a number of tournaments in the parlour. The cost will be covered by members on a donation basis.
There are many who have expressed the desire to pitch in, but I want those who are lower income, or simply feel the annual fee they have already paid is all their experience is worth to them, that it is genuinely ok not to donate.
I received a call from a friend and fellow BG Junky on this site who has generously offered to pay whatever the donations fail to cover.
It was a Blast meeting and chatting with this guy after years of knowing him on this site.
He expressed his love for this site and his appreciation of the creators and all who make it the place it is.
Anyone who chooses to enter can do so and get this... you can join the parlor and play all the tournaments you'd like. NO TICKET Necessary!
The Openplay parlor is used primarily to direct people to casual games and tournaments. Lots of the live information about the site is accessible there.

Feedback tools to communicate w/higher ups and whatnot are available on every page of the site.

The community forum is easy to access once you get the hang of it.

The alert system recently implemented will keep you informed of things that pertain to you.
Chatting in matches will go on as usual, but please keep in mind that certain conversations can lead to problems just like in any community. Gossip and slander can lead to trouble...  

Well, I hope I didn't bore you. I am a trucker, not a writer. But like you, I like BG and I love this community.

My sincere thanks to Frank and Hank and all of you in SimplyBGville! Your's truly, BigMur 

Can you explain all the different numbers in the Exp. column? 1500.00, 47, 27, 1463

Evan - 5K. Margot 2869?

Answer from Hank Wrote:The "Exp" column is short for "Experience"

When this number is a decimal, like 1500.00 or 1650/9K ... this is the ELO for this member the "/9K" is 9000 matches for example.
The 1500.00 ... this is a new member, never played a match here yet.

The ELO value only shows in this tool when there is a "match type" to align it to. Since SimplyBG supports tracking on ELO based on types of matches being played.

So then this column "Exp" will show the ELO when the member has a "match-offer" active for the Openplay parlour. It's considered the players sort of standing offer.

But when the member does not have an active "match-offer" ... the "Exp" column will display the total matches played for this member.
This is a non-decimal value, like 1463

If you ever want to be reminded of what the column is showing, click on the "Exp" in the column header. It will show a small and brief reminder.
Your question is one that many probably have. Thanks for asking.

Beginning in July all public tournaments will now use a participant ticket system called Tournament Participant Tickets.

One ticket is required by each participant for each run of any of the publicly run tournaments.

These tickets are easily purchased in bulk as needed. Your tickets are held safely with your active Annual subscription account.

All currently active members have been allocated 10 Tournament Participant Tickets as a bonus. Thank you for your participation in our public tournaments.

You can always check your Tournament Participant Tickets bank total from your dashboard at this link: https://www.simplybg.com/dashboard/settings-subscription

The revenue from this is needed to help ensure the continued quality of the SimplyBG online backgammon venue. 

Thank you for your continued support.  /Frank

Tournament is underway.

 This tournament restarts every 7 days.

 Come join this Swiss Style Backgammon Tournament.

 All are welcome to join.

Join using this link:   Swiss II

We are underway! Good luck to all.

This Swiss Style Backgammon Tournament will restart in about 7 days.

All are welcome to join.


Join using this link:   Swiss I

For an annual fee I could open a private parlor w/2 tournaments(1 elim and 1 round robin).

There seems to be some concern regarding socializing on the site, due to the alert system Hank has put in place to hopefully increase tournament play.

The tournament msg boards are being limited to tournament related chat so that people won't be bombarded with people's personal comments in their alerts.

And the openplay msg board has been shut down all together for personal comments.

This brings up the idea of a private parlor. The parlor would have Chat rooms in which we could socialize freely. Of course, as in any community, there will be pushback on extreme rudeness.
We can discuss, debate, give our opinions, joke around, post pics of your ugly pets, recipes, quotes from your favorite Philosophers, and whatnot.

There would be as many people who are interested. Realistically, we could have 30-40 people. 16(elim) 8-12 round robin and several alternates(for when people need time off.
I would also bump 2-3 low players and no shows for 1 tour to make sure we always have enough players to fill the tourneys)).

At this point, I am only reaching out to get opinions. Also asking you to chime in w/ a yea or nay. As far as the cost, I will figure out if this seems to be something a good number of people wish to participate in.

If this doesn't fly w/a couple dozen or more people, I will bag on the idea. I personally think this would be fun and I would do my best to make this a fun place to hang out.

 Thank you for your consideration!           --BigMur--


Be sure to vote in the Poll and/or reply to this message.

Thank you all for playing in this tournament. The tournament will be open for registration the first week of August. Come join in.