True Confessions vol. 2

Can't top my scandalous confession of last week, but on top of being an Esperantist, I've been developing an addiction for the checkers.   I have been the most occasional of occasional players, often getting beaten by my young nephews and nieces before they became too sophisticated to play board games with their old uncle.   One nephew had the makings of a real checkers sharp when I played with him when he was young enough to need a sitter.  I'd lost so many checkers we had to play with quarters and nickles,  he figured out part way through one game - which he was winning - that we might play for the pieces.   I won't say he cleaned me out but he did pretty well.

Here's a real addiction, the Youtubes of the mild-mannered master, Checkers Cycle.  I've been watching one about every day for months.

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Here is the irrepressible Profound Moves, another great master player who has an entirely different style, playing with "Jimmy", another master.

There are Youtubes of Checkers Cycle replaying games by the greatest master of all, Dr. Marion Tinsley.   If you want some idea of how great a player he was, here's a description of him playing against what was the most advanced computer chess program of the time.

In one game, Chinook, playing with white pieces, made a mistake on the tenth move. Tinsley remarked, "You're going to regret that." Chinook resigned after move 36, fully 26 moves later. The lead programmer Schaeffer looked back into the database and discovered that Tinsley picked the only strategy that could have defeated Chinook from that point and Tinsley was able to see the win 64 moves into the future.