677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves?
6/12/202659 min
It brings strangers together. It teaches probability, strategy, and emotional control. It has even helped N.F.L. teams win the Super Bowl. Stephen Dubner explores why this ancient game is having a renaissance. (Part two of a series, “We Are All Gamers Now.”)
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SOURCES:
- Remington Davenport, founder of NYC Backgammon Club.
- Frank Frigo, game strategy expert & two-time world backgammon champion.
- Masayuki "Mochy" Mochizuki, professional backgammon player.
- Marc Olsen, C.E.O. of Backgammon Galaxy.
- Robert Wachtel, author and professional backgammon player.
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RESOURCES:
- The Backgammon Chronicles: A Pro's Adventures on Tour Volume 1, by Robert Wachtel (2019).
- In the Game Until the End*, by Robert Wachtel (*1993)
- "Tric Trac, Clic Clac," (The New Yorker, 1930).
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsStephen Dubner· Host0:00
[upbeat music] There is an ancient board game that you can learn in 15 minutes and then think about for the rest of your life.
Speaker 10:11
I haven't met a human being yet that plays backgammon that the game doesn't get under their skin. That game will get to you.
Stephen Dubner· Host0:20
[laughs] Backgammon has had a few heydays in modern history, especially among gamblers.
Speaker 10:25
She paid me in drugs and a Gucci sweater that her friends had boosted from Rodeo Drive.
Stephen Dubner· Host0:33
NFL teams have used backgammon theory to win the Super Bowl.
Speaker 10:38
They're risk-averse, at least they used to be before we came onto the scene.
Stephen Dubner· Host0:41
And now backgammon is having a whole new renaissance.
Remington Davenport· Guest0:45
People want in-person experiences. They wanna get off dating apps. They wanna make new friends.
Stephen Dubner· Host0:51
Today on Freakonomics Radio, we continue our occasional series on games with a simple question: Can backgammon save us from ourselves? [audience cheering] Okay, the dice are yours.
Amy Cervini1:06
[dice rolling] [upbeat music] This is Freakonomics Radio, the podcast that explores the hidden side of everything, with your host, Stephen Dubner. Oh-oh, oh-oh.