FlintClubLogoFLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB

CAROL JOY COLE, Director
810-232-9731
TOURNAMENTS EVERY THURSDAY

NEW START TIMES:
6:00 pm - Registration. ~ ~ ~ 6:30 pm - Tournament begins.

FREE LESSONS by appointment: cjc@flintbg.com
Ask about our FREE ENTRIES!

~ BACKGAMMON A LA CARTE BOUTIQUE ~

Come join us on Thursdays at
SHARKY'S SPORTS BAR & RESTAURANT
4050 S. Center Road at E. Bristol Road, Burton, Michigan 48519
~ located near the southwest corner of Center & Bristol Roads
810-742-6185

Congratulations to the Flint Club's Top Players of 2022
led by CAROL JOY COLE!

#3 - Frank Talbot, # 1 - Carol Joy Cole, # 2 - Jim Airgood

[photo by Steve Grob]

The next Flint Club tournament is set for
Thursday, February 2nd, at Sharky's.

For more details, contact cjc or text Michelle at 810/441-1519.

SAVE THE DATE: APRIL 30, 2023 ~
PAUL BERG MEMORIAL CHARITY TOURNAMENT
Best Western Plus ~ Flint Airport Inn

2023 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB
Top 20 Standings through 1/26/23:

01. John Carrico........05.87
02. Doug Parson.........03.03
03. Greg Merriman.......02.46
04. Brad King...........02.37
05. Jim Airgood.........02.33
06. Richard Hunt........02.25
07. Frank Talbot........02.24
08. Carol Joy Cole......00.90
09. Michel Hamati.......00.83
10. Michelle Nassar.....00.64
11. David Emerson.......00.50
12. Paul Farah..........00.48
13. Rick Todd...........00.48
14. Jim Slomkoski.......00.40
15. Steve Grob..........00.16
16. Greg Marciniak......00.16
17. Mike Charison.......00.00
18. Karam Nassar........00.00
19. Tal Siegmann........00.00
20. David Todd..........00.00

PLAYER OF THE MONTH

JANUARY....John Carrico.....5.87

2022 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB
Top 40 Final Standings through 12/31/22:

01. CAROL JOY COLE......32.93
02. Jim Airgood.........32.07
03. Frank Talbot........28.61
04. Richard Hunt........22.34
05. Michel Hamati.......21.47
06. Doug Parson.........21.25
07. John Carrico........20.36
08. Curtis Melville.....18.24
09. Greg Merriman.......17.13
10. Steve Grob..........16.59
11. Paul Farah..........14.65
12. Jim Slomkoski.......12.81
13. Rick Todd...........08.85
14. David Todd..........08.07
15. Ben Friesen.........08.05
16. Greg Marciniak......06.26
17. Michelle Nassar.....05.66
18. Tal Siegmann........05.53
19. Dmitriy Obukhov.....05.34
20. Brad King...........05.17
21. David Emerson.......03.65
22. Jeff Clark..........03.25
23. Ken Johnson.........02.92
24. Troy Longman........02.81
25. John Gislason.......02.65
26. Ricky Griggs........02.63
27. Tiffany Van.........02.50
28. Phil Freiberger.....02.43
29. Bruce Greig.........02.24
30. Felix Yen...........02.16
31. Bill Calton.........02.01
32. Michael Sulaka......02.00
33. Paul Bortell........01.85
34. John Quinn..........01.82
35. Mike Charison.......01.79
36. Joe Feldman.........01.66
37. Gary Fritzsche......01.66
38. Gary Koscielny......01.66
39. Marcy Kossar........01.66
40. John O'Hagan........01.66

PLAYER OF THE MONTH

JANUARY....Richard Hunt.....4.53
FEBRUARY...Carol Joy Cole...3.58
MARCH......Greg Merriman....5.50
APRIL......Frank Talbot.....6.00
MAY........Jim Airgood......4.75
JUNE.......Doug Parson......5.45
JULY.......Carol Joy Cole...6.62
AUGUST.....Carol Joy Cole...4.62
SEPTEMBER..Jim Slomkoski....4.48
OCTOBER....Carol Joy Cole...7.20
NOVEMBER...Michel Hamati....4.24
DECEMBER...Frank Talbot.....8.00

44th Flint Club Championships, October 16, 2022
Best Western Plus Hotel, Flint, Michigan.

Club Director CAROL JOY COLE is celebrating
her win as FLINT CLUB CHAMPION!

Open Champ Carol Joy Cole ~ Open Finalist Michael Sulaka ~ Intermediate Champ Jeff Clark

OPEN (19)
1-CAROL JOY COLE (Flint)
2-Michael Sulaka (Troy)
3/4-John Carrico (Flint) /
3/4-Doug Parson (Bloomfield Hills)

INTERMEDIATE (11)
1-Jeff Clark (Benzonia)
2-Greg Marciniak (Saginaw)
3-Konstantine Malekas (Livonia)

LIMITED (2)
1-Fran Miller (Ohio)

Congratulations to MARTY STORER (NH),
our 2022 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPION!

47th MICHIGAN SUMMER BACKGAMMON CHAMPIONSHIPS
July 1-4, 2022

Open Champion Marty Storer ~ Michigan Master Kit Woolsey ~
Women's Fireworks Champ Tiffany Van ~ Limited Champ Victoria Fung

See the full Michigan Summer Championships results here

Congratulations to Dmitriy Obukhov,
our 2022 Paul Berg Cup Champion for the 4th time!

Open Champ Dmitriy Obukhov ~ Intermediate Champ David Emerson

5th Paul Berg Memorial Cup to benefit the refugees of Ukraine ~

Full tournament results: March 13, 2022

OPEN (20)
1-DMITRIY OBUKHOV (Royal Oak)
2-Curtis Melville (Birmingham) /
3/4-Carol Joy Cole (Flint) / Ricky Griggs (Warren)

INTERMEDIATE (18)
1-David Emerson (Byron Center)
2-Paul Belsito (Grand Rapids)
3/4-Steve Grob (Fenton) / Troy Longman (Kenockee)

$500 was collected for the refugees and families of Ukraine.

CONGRATULATIONS to FRANK TALBOT,
the Flint Club's PLAYER of the YEAR 2021!

Flint's TOP THREE in 2021:
#1 - Frank Talbot (left), #2 - Paul Farah (right), #3 - Jim Slomkoski (center)

[Photo by Michelle Nassar]

Sunday, November 28th:

4th Paul Berg Memorial Club Championships
to benefit the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.

Congratulations to GREG MERRIMAN,
our 2021 FLINT CLUB CHAMPION
in memory of Paul Berg.
$500 + $500 was collected for the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.

Open Champ Greg Merriman ~ Intermediate Champ Paul Belsito ~ Novice Champ Zena Farah

Full tournament results:

OPEN (30)
1-GREG MERRIMAN (Ann Arbor)
2-Karen Davis (Florida)
3-Dmitriy Obukhov (Royal Oak)
4/6-Paul Farah (Flint) /
Michael Kurtz (Sterling Heights) /
Frank Talbot (Troy)

INTERMEDIATE (17)
1-Paul Belsito (Grand Rapids)
2-Brad King (Howell)
3-Karen Camilleri (Plymouth)

NOVICE (4)
1-Zena Farah (Clinton Township)

2021 FLINT BACKGAMMON CLUB
Top 32 Standings thru 12/31/21

01. FRANK TALBOT........37.85
02. Paul Farah..........25.77
03. Jim Slomkoski.......23.72
04. Jim Airgood.........21.57
05. John Carrico........19.64
06. Carol Joy Cole......19.53
07. Richard Hunt........14.42
08. Dmitriy Obukhov.....13.14
09. Brad King...........12.80
10. Dean Adamian........12.55
11. Rick Todd...........12.29
12. Curtis Melville.....11.33
13. Michelle Nassar.....10.47
14. Michel Hamati.......09.86
15. Doug Parson.........09.81
16. Greg Merriman.......09.00
17. Tal Siegmann........08.05
18. Paul Bortell........07.49
19. Gyl Savoie..........06.83
20. John Quinn..........06.10
21. Jeffe Boats.........06.08
22. Ben Friesen.........05.98
23. Karen Davis.........05.14
24. Lorenzo Morales.....04.00
25. Linda Pohly.........03.93
26. Steve Grob..........03.80
27. Joe Miller..........03.20
28. Bob Denton..........03.05
29. Paul Belsito........03.00
30. Diane Kropelnitski..02.98
31. Ricky Griggs........02.76
32. Marty Cerezo........02.66

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
JANUARY...Frank Talbot.....7.34
FEBRUARY..Richard Hunt.....6.67
MARCH.....Frank Talbot.....5.34
APRIL.....Jim Airgood......4.65
MAY.......Dean Adamian.....4.01
JUNE......Frank Talbot.....5.75
JULY......Dmitriy Obukhov..7.30
AUGUST....Brad King........4.16
SEPTEMBER.Greg Merriman....4.00
OCTOBER...Paul Farah.......4.08
NOVEMBER..Greg Merriman....5.00
DECEMBER..Rick Todd........4.40

MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPIONSHIPS
July 2021 at the Sheraton Detroit Novi Hotel

CONGRATULATIONS to GYL SAVOIE
& DMITRIY OBUKHOV, MICHIGAN'S
2021 SUMMER CHAMPIONS!

Open Champion Gyl Savoie ~ Masters Champion Dmitriy Obukhov

See full results here: chicagopoint.com/results2021.html

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLINT'S
2020 PLAYER OF THE YEAR ~
PAUL FARAH!

Paul was a leading contender all year long. He finished strongly with more than a 4-point lead.
He was our Michigan Summer Champion in 2017 and Flint Player of the Year in 2015.

2020 Flint Club: 2nd place – Frank Talbot, 3rd place – Dean Adamian.

December 27th: Flint's 42nd Club Championships Online
Open bracket: https://challonge.com/FlintClubChampOpen
Intermediate: https://challonge.com/FlintClubChampINT

DMITRIY OBUKHOV WINS OUR FLINT
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP for the Third time!

December 27, 2020 (played on GridGammon.com)

OPEN (18)
1-DMITRIY OBUKHOV (Royal Oak)
2-Dean Adamian (Canton)
1C-Frank Talbot (Troy)
2C-Jim Slomkoski (Lansing)

INTERMEDIATE (4)
1-Richard Irvine (Mason/Ireland)
2-Paul Bortell (Plymouth)

Dmitriy was awarded a long-sleeved shirt with the Flint Club logo.
He also qualified for the USBGF Spring Playoffs where first prize
is a Free Entry into any ABT Online tournament in 2021.

2020 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB TOP 25
Final Standings through 12/31/20

01. PAUL FARAH..........27.67
02. Frank Talbot........23.37
03. Dean Adamian........22.81
04. John Carrico........19.98
05. Jim Airgood.........19.65
06. Jim Slomkoski.......18.90
07. Carol Joy Cole......17.86
08. Curtis Melville.....15.88
09. Dmitriy Obukhov.....14.72
10. Ben Friesen.........13.55
11. Ricky Griggs........11.66
12. Doug Parson.........10.33
13. Richard Hunt........10.28
14. Paul Bortell........09.50
15. Michel Hamati.......07.53
16. Michelle Nassar.....07.07
17. Walt Smith..........06.47
18. Dennis Culpepper....04.75
19. Rick Todd...........04.67
20. Brian Vance.........04.46
21. Brad King...........03.95
22. Dirk Hogan..........03.13
23. Michael Gellings....03.00
24. Richard Irvine......02.50
25. Cary Hoarty.........02.00

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
JANUARY....Dennis Culpepper..4.75
FEBRUARY...Paul Farah........4.96
MARCH......Dmitriy Obukhov...5.00
APRIL......No tournaments....0.00
MAY........Jim Slomkoski.....4.40
JUNE.......John Carrico......4.41
JULY.......Paul Farah........5.58
AUGUST.....Jim Slomkoski.....4.25
SEPTEMBER..Curtis Melville...4.08
OCTOBER....Frank Talbot......5.66
NOVEMBER...Dean Adamian......4.75
DECEMBER...Ben Friesen.......4.08

CONGRATULATIONS TO TEAM MICHIGAN!
We won the 2020 Challenge Against OHIO, 41-23!

October 18th RESULTS: 10th Michigan-Ohio Team Challenge Online

Dmitriy Obukhov had the best match record of 7-1 with a PR of 3.2.
He won the Side Pool plus the MVP Award extending his USBGF membership.
Dean, Ben and Frank had the next best match records of 6-2.

Team Michigan: Captain Carol Joy Cole / Dean Adamian / Paul Farah /
Ben Friesen / Ricky Griggs / Dmitriy Obukhov / Jim Slomkoski / Frank Talbot .

Team Ohio: Captain Joe Miller / John Baron / Stephen Benjamin /
Ray Cifani / Karen Davis / Mike Hendrickson / PJ Macali / Chris Yep .

CONGRATULATIONS to RAY FOGERLUND,
& ANDY FAZEKAS, our 2020 MICHIGAN
SUMMER ONLINE CHAMPIONS!

July 5-6, 2020 [on GridGammon.com]

Open Champion Ray Fogerlund
Intermediate Champion Andy Fazekas

OPEN (76)
1-RAY FOGERLUND (NV), 2-Howard Markowitz (NV)
3/4-Aaron Foust (NV) / Rambiz Khalili (Iran/South Africa)
1C-David Staggs (IN), 2C-Art Benjamin (CA)
3C/4C-Phil Simborg (FL) / Rich Sweetman (NH)

INTERMEDIATE (44)
1-Andy Fazekas (CT), 2-Cem Aslan (TX)
3/4-Joe Miller (OH) / Igor Moraes (Brazil)
1C-Irina Litzenberger (VA), 2C-Douglas DeWitte (NV)
3C/4C-Frank Costello III (CA) / Fabian Melnik (FL)

CONGRATULATIONS to DMITRIY OBUKHOV
& other winners of the 3rd
PAUL BERG MEMORIAL CUP & BENEFIT!
March 8, 2020

Open Champ: Dmitriy with Richard ~ Intermediate Champ: Michael with Paul

OPEN (26)
1-DMITRIY OBUKHOV (Royal Oak)
2-Richard Hunt (Swartz Creek)
3-Brian Vance (Okemos)
4/6-Dean Adamian (Canton) /
Carol Joy Cole (Flint)
/ Frank Talbot (Troy)

INTERMEDIATE (25)
1-Michael Gellings (Traverse City)
2-Paul Bortell (Plymouth)
3-Terry Culpepper (Grand Blanc)
4/6-Paul Belsito (Grand Rapids) /
Ted Clark (Redford) /
David Pagnier (Grand Blanc)

NOVICE (2)
1-Ed Seczney (Leslie)

Worldwide Tournament Schedule: Mark Your Calendar

The 2019 GIANTS of Backgammon

A LA CARTE BACKGAMMON BOUTIQUE:

BACK CHECKER STRATEGY, by Michy & Roland Herrera, 2021.
BACKGAMMON: Adjusting to Match Play, by Nick Blasier, 2022
BACKGAMMON – THE FINAL WIND, by Chris Bray, 2021
 BACKGAMMON SUPER GENIUS QUIZ, by James Vogl, 2022
HOLDING GAME GURU: Cube Mastery..., by Stick, 2021
 HOW TO PLAY THE OPENING, Part 2, by Bill Robertie, 2021
THE THEORY OF BACKGAMMON, by Dirk Schiemann, 2021
THE ZIZKA METHOD: Dominating BG, by Zdenek Zizka, 2021

IN MEMORIAM 2022-23

Al Branham, Flint, Michigan, 5/22
Bob Ciaffone, North Carolina, 5/22
Alberto da Pra, Milan, Italy, 4/22
Jeff Flowers, Indianapolis, Indiana, 3/22
Billy Horan, New York, New York, 4/22
Brian Lever, Manchester, England, 1/23
Emil Mortuk, St. Clair Shores, Michigan, 11/22
Wanda Roberts, Gloucester, Massachusetts, 4/22
Chen-Fu Yu, Clarksville, Maryland, 2/22

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLINT'S
2019 PLAYER OF THE YEAR ~
JIM SLOMKOSKI!

Flint Top 3 in 2019:
1-Jim Slomkoski, 2-Paul Farah, 3-John Carrico

[Photo by Michelle Nassar]

December 14-15, 2019: 9th Ohio-Michigan Team Challenge
hosted by Karen Davis in Toledo, Ohio

CONGRATULATIONS TO TEAM MICHIGAN!
We won the 2019 Challenge Against OHIO!

[Photo by Karen Davis]

Team Michigan: Bill Calton / Ricky Griggs / Dmitriy Obukhov / Captain
Carol Joy Cole / Ben Friesen / Jim Slomkoski / Paul Farah / Joe Feldman.

Team Ohio: John Baron / Karen Davis / Farhad Forudi / Mary Hickey / P.J. Macali / Captain Joe Miller / Mike Vasilatos / Chris Yep

Michigan won 40–22 for their sixth victory in the nine years of the Team Challenge. Michigan's Bill Calton, Ben Friesen & Dmitriy Obukhov won the Side Pool with top match records of 6-2.

2019 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB TOP 25
Standings through 12/26/19 (preliminary)

01. JIM SLOMKOSKI.......27.06
02. Paul Farah..........25.56
03. John Carrico........24.06
04. Carol Joy Cole......21.55
05. Richard Hunt........21.16
06. Frank Talbot........14.21
07. Michelle Nassar.....13.65
08. Michel Hamati.......13.41
09. Dirk Hogan..........12.64
10. Jim Airgood.........12.24
11. Rick Todd............9.51
12. Frank Raposa.........9.25
13. Brad King............9.19
14. Diane Kropelnitski...8.96
15. Ricky Griggs.........8.12
16. Greg Merriman........8.04
17. Curtis Melville......7.71
18. Linda Pohly..........7.54
19. Ben Friesen..........7.39
20. Joe Feldman..........7.08
21. David Todd...........6.07
22. Lorenzo Morales......6.03
23. Terry Culpepper......5.69
24. John Quinn...........5.64
25. John O'Hagan.........5.00

FLINT 2019 PLAYERS OF THE MONTH

JANUARY....Paul Farah.........7.00
FEBRUARY...Richard Hunt.......4.90
MARCH......Lorenzo Morales....5.00
APRIL......Linda Pohly........4.75
MAY........Carl Bommarito.....4.00
JUNE.......Ricky Griggs.......4.00
JULY.......Frank Raposa.......9.25
AUGUST.....Greg Merriman......4.00
SEPTEMBER..John Carrico.......4.62
OCTOBER....Paul Farah.........6.91
NOVEMBER...Rick Todd..........3.50
DECEMBER...Ben Friesen........4.16

INDIANA'S JOHN O'HAGAN WINS OUR
41st FLINT CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP!!

2019 Flint Club Champion John O'Hagan
[Photo by Joe Feldman]

October 20, 2019

OPEN (31)
1-JOHN O'HAGAN (Indiana)
2-Joe Feldman (Bloomfield Hills)
3-Greg Merriman (Ann Arbor)
4/6-Jim Airgood (Swartz Creek) /
Lorenzo Morales (Harrision Twp)
/ Duane Salinas (Grand Rapids)

INTERMEDIATE (20)
1-Nancy Takala (Royal Oak)
2-Diane Kropelnitski (Grand Blanc)
3/4-Brad King (Howell) / Bill Toth (Plymouth)

NOVICE (6)
1-Richard Irvine (Mason)
2-Jeannette De Oliveira (Canada)

John O'Hagan won Added Money from the USBGF.
He also qualified for the Spring Playoffs where first prize
is a Free Entry into any ABT tournament in 2020.

Many thanks to Flint Club artist Michelle Nassar
for her painting which became John's first-place trophy.
Director Carol Joy Cole also thanks Nathaniel Field, Dirk Hogan,
Troy Longman and Ben Friesen for all their help with the tournament.

CONGRATULATIONS to FRANK RAPOSA of Virginia,
OUR 2019 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPION!!


Michigan Open & Doubles Champions: Frank Raposa with John Klein

July 4-7, 2019: 44th MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPIONSHIPS - ABT

Complete Results from Novi, Michigan

ABT on Facebook ~~~~~~ US Backgammon Federation

CAROL JOY COLE, Editor
3719 Greenbrook Lane, Flint, Michigan 48507-1400 USA
Phone/Fax: 810-232-9731
E-MAIL: cjc@flintbg.com

INTERNATIONAL BACKGAMMON NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

2021

Feb. 18-21: RUNE FÆRVÅG OF NORWAY WINS BOSTON OPEN - ABT ONLINE
Chris Trencher Wins Masters Jackpot / Results

Feb. 3-7: ALFRED MAMLET WINS THE BIG FREEZE-OUT - ABT ONLINE
Michael Neagu of Canada Wins Melting Masters Jackpot / Results

Jan. 13-17: ALBERT STEG WINS NEW YORK METRO OPEN - ABT ONLINE
Victor Ashkenazi Wins Super Jackpot / Results

ART BENJAMIN IS THE 2020 ABT ONLINE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Plus REGULAR MONTHLY FEATURES

2021 INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (Daily updates)

2021 AMERICAN BACKGAMMON TOUR ONLINE! (Current Standings)

2021 WINNING IS MORE FUN!!! (Tournament results from around the world)

2021 FLINT GAMMON POINT STANDINGS (plus Weekly Winners)

2016 AMERICAN BACKGAMMON TOUR (2016 Standings & Winners)

BACKGAMMON A LA CARTE (New books by Bill Robertie, Bob Wachtel, Michihito Kageyama and Chris Bray)

CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the
2nd PAUL BERG MEMORIAL CUP & BENEFIT!

March 17, 2019, Flint Michigan

Lorenzo Morales – Open Champion for the 2nd year in a row!

OPEN (30)
1-LORENZO MORALES (Harrison Township)
2-Joe Feldman (Bloomfield Hills)
3/4-Sterling Heights / Walt Smith (Madison Heights)
5/6-Jim Airgood (Swartz Creek) / Gary Fritzsche (Ypsilanti)

INTERMEDIATE (22)
1-John Baron (Ohio)
2-David Emerson (Byron Center)
3/4-Ted Clark (Redford) / Michelle Nassar (Metamora)
5/6-Wes Burgar (Ann Arbor) / Linda Pohly (Flint)

$300 was raised for the Heart Association of Mid-Michigan.

2018 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB TOP 20
Standings through December 27th*
*(Michigan Summer Points partially added)

01. CAROL JOY COLE......36.47
02. Frank Talbot........27.18
03. Jim Slomkoski.......21.56
04. Richard Hunt........18.78
05. Michelle Nassar.....16.58
06. Rick Todd...........14.70
07. Dirk Hogan..........14.14
08. Brad King...........13.97
09. Paul Farah..........13.21
10. Ben Friesen.........12.93
11. Judy Field..........11.21
12. Michel Hamati.......10.45
13. John Carrico........09.63
14. Steve Grob..........08.84
15. Greg Merriman.......08.22
16. Audronis Zunde......08.16
17. Curtis Melville.....07.51
18. Gary Tong...........07.40
19. Lorenzo Morales.....06.73
20. Dmitriy Obukhov.....06.66

CONGRATULATIONS to AUDRONIS ZUNDE of Colorado,
OUR 2018 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPION!!



Open Champ: Audronis Zunde / Intermediate: Garry Kallos / Novice: Diane Rebottaro

July 4-8, 2018: 43rd MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPIONSHIPS - ABT

Complete Results from Novi, Michigan

CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the 1st PAUL BERG
MEMORIAL CUP & BENEFIT!

March 4, 2018, Flint Michigan

Open Champ: Lorenzo Morales ~ Intermediate: Mark Van Poucker ~ Novice: Daniel Posen


OPEN (32)
1-LORENZO MORALES (Harrison Township)
2-Frank Talbot (Troy)
3/4-Farhad Forudi (Ohio) / Ricky Griggs (Westland)
5/6-Greg Merriman (Ann Arbor) / Brian Vance (East Lansing)

INTERMEDIATE (19)
1-Mark Van Poucker (Harper Woods)
2-Michelle Nassar (Metamora)
3-Hector Rios (Canada) /
4/6-Ted Clark (Redford) / David Pagnier
(Grand Blanc) / Gary Tong (Davison)

NOVICE (10)
1-Daniel Posen (Oak Park)
2-Kirk McCollins (Detroit)
3-Brenda Miliken (West Bloomfield)

$400 was raised for the Heart Association of Mid-Michigan.
The USBGF awarded a Premium Membership to new Champion Lorenzo Morales.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLINT'S 2017
PLAYER OF THE YEAR ~~ JOHN CARRICO!


Flint Top 3 in 2017:
1-JOHN CARRICO, 2-Richard Hunt, 3-Paul Farah

2017 FLINT AREA BACKGAMMON CLUB TOP 20
Final Standings through December 31st

01. JOHN CARRICO........34.60
02. Richard Hunt........31.66
03. Paul Farah..........29.13
04. Carol Joy Cole......21.45
05. Jim Slomkoski.......16.86
06. Dirk Hogan..........16.41
07. Jim Airgood.........16.19
08. Michel Hamati.......15.58
09. Troy Longman........14.22
10. Ben Friesen.........11.95
11. Rick Todd...........11.95
12. Michelle Nassar.....11.62
13. Judy Field..........11.08
14. Greg Merriman........9.95
15. Carl Sorg............9.24
16. Gary Tong............9.23
17. Michael Kurtz........9.03
18. Brad King............8.37
19. Dmitriy Obukhov......8.12
20. Basil Farah..........7.74

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLINT'S 2017
CLUB CHAMPION ~~ MICHAEL KURTZ!



Flint Club Champion Michael Kurtz and USBGF Open Winner Dan Wittkopp


Flint Intermediate Champion Duane Salinas, USBGF Intermediate Winner Ray Cifani


Flint Novice USBGF Champion Norma Lunsford
39th Flint Area Club Championships
November 12, 2017, Flint Michigan

OPEN (32)
1-MICHAEL KURTZ (Sterling Heights)
2-Dan Wittkopp (Traverse City)
3-John Quinn (Westland)
4/6-Jim Airgood (Swartz Creek) / Gary Fritzsche
(Ypsilanti) / Greg Merriman (Ann Arbor)

INTERMEDIATE (24)
1-Duane Salinas (Grand Rapids)
2-Ray Cifani (Westlake, Ohio)
3/4-John Baron (Ohio) / Darryl Newsom (Clinton Twp)
5/6-Paul Bortell (Plymouth) / Jim Lawrence (Clinton Twp)

NOVICE (3)
1-Norma Lunsford (Macomb)
2-Zack Fejeran (Milford)

CONGRATULATIONS TO OHIO'S 2017 TEAM ~ ~
WINNER OF THE 7th MICHIGAN-OHIO CHALLENGE!

Toledo, Ohio ~ September 30-October 1, 2017

Team Ohio: Mary Hickey / Mike Rezai / Mike Vasilatos / Captain Joe Miller /
Ray Cifani / Farhad Forudi / Chris Yep / Karen Davis.

Team Michigan: Bill Calton / Captain Carol Joy Cole / Ben Friesen / Faris
Gabbara / Richard Hunt / Dmitriy Obukhov / Jim Slomkoski / Frank Talbot.

Ohio won 33-29 for their second win in the 7 years of the Team Challenge.


Karen Davis, our hostess in Toledo, won the Saturday Warm-Up
Tournament, with Ohio's Mike Vasilatos as the finalist.
Mary Hickey had the best individual record of 7-1,
earning her a USBGF membership extension.

Thanks to Ben Friesen for helping to direct the tournament,
and thanks to Karen for hosting our annual event in her Ohio home.

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLINT'S PAUL FARAH,
OUR 2017 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPION!!



Open Champ: Paul Farah / Intermediate: Patty Knapp / Novice: Laura Grigorian

Full results here.

DMITRIY OBUKHOV WINS HIS SECOND UNDERWOOD TITLE


Open Champ: Dmitriy Obukhov ~ Intermediate: Brian Vance ~ Novice Champ: Dan Quinn

March 19, 2017, Flint Michigan

OPEN (30)
1-DMITRIY OBUKHOV (Royal Oak)
2-Bill Calton (Harper Woods)
3/4-Jim Airgood (Swartz Creek) / Faris Gabbara (Westland)
5/6-Reggie Harvel (Detroit) / Stick Rice (Columbus, Ohio)

INTERMEDIATE (21)
1-Brian Vance (Okemos)
2-Wes Burgar (Ann Arbor)
3-Christa Solovey (Westland) /
4/6-Dirk Hogan (Swartz Creek) /
Darryl Newsom (Clinton Twp) / Bill Toth (Westland)

NOVICE (8)
1-Dan Quinn (Westland)
2-Fran Miller (Akron, Ohio)
3-Elizabeth Luther (Detroit)

$300 was raised for the United Way Flint Water Fund.


IN MEMORIAM: PAUL BERG of Lincoln Park, Michigan


January 17, 1969 - March 16, 2017

Paul Berg collapsed on March 16th while playing at the Flint Club. He passed away on the way to the hospital. He had a congenital heart condition. He was only 48.

Paul directed the Metro North BG Club near Detroit, and he was Assistant Director of the Flint Club. He was an excellent staffer at ABT tournaments in Michigan and Ohio, and a valued member of the USBGF Rating Team.

Paul was also a strong player, being Flint Club Champion and Player of the Year several times, as well as our Fleet Underwood Champion. He won two ABT titles in Ohio in 2000 and 2001.

Most of all, Paul was a dear friend, kind, witty, smart, and highly knowledgeable about sports, computers, politics -- and drawsheets. He will be greatly missed.

The funeral service was held on March 24th at the J.L. Peters Funeral Home at 3880 Fort Street in Lincoln Park, MI 48146
-- Phone 313/928-6500.

Here is the GoFundMe link to help cover the funeral costs:
https://www.gofundme.com/burial-and-memorial-for-paul-berg

If you prefer to send a check, please make it payable to
Carol Joy Cole
Flint Area Backgammon Club
3719 Greenbrook Lane
Flint, MI 48507-1400  USA

Meanwhile, we celebrated Paul's life at the Fleet Underwood Memorial Tournament in Flint on March 19th. Paul was the Defending Underwood Champion this year, and we dearly missed him.

64 players gathered at the Holiday Inn on Sunday, while 59 of them entered the tournament. Congratulations to Dmitriy Obukhov and all the other winners!

CONGRATULATIONS to PAUL BERG,
FLINT'S 2016 PLAYER OF THE YEAR!

Flint Top 3: 1-Paul Berg, 2-Richard Hunt, 3-Carol Joy Cole

2016 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10
Final Standings as of December 31st
(Win/Loss & Nemesis Reports here.)

01. PAUL BERG...........37.66
02. Richard Hunt........25.83
03. Carol Joy Cole......23.45
04. Jim Slomkoski.......22.91
05. Dirk Hogan..........20.39
06. Greg Merriman.......20.02
07. Rick Todd...........19.73
08. Troy Longman........19.53
09. Paul Farah..........19.08
10. John Carrico........18.81

CONGRATULATIONS to DMITRIY OBUKHOV,
FLINT'S 2016 CLUB CHAMPION!


Open Champion: Dmitriy Obukhov ~ Intermediate: Rick Schuman
~ Novice Champion: Fran Miller

October 9, 2016, Flint Michigan

OPEN (27)
1-DMITRIY OBUKHOV (Royal Oak)
2-Rick Todd (Saginaw)
3-John Quinn (Westland)
4/6-Reggie Harvel (Detroit) /
Jim Slomkoski (Lansing) /
Dan Smith (Berkley)

INTERMEDIATE (19)
1-Rick Schuman (St. Clair Shores)
2-Mark Van Poucker (Harper Woods)
3/4-John Claybourne (Detroit) /
Dirk Hogan (Swartz Creek)
5/6-Victor De Oliveira (Canada)
Tony Zimbalatti (Novi)

NOVICE (3)
1-Fran Miller (Akron, Ohio)
2-Christa Solovey (Westland)

SEPTEMBER 17-18, 2016:
6TH OHIO-MICHIGAN TEAM CHALLENGE

OHIO WINS 33-30!

Team Ohio: Karen Davis / Mike Vasilatos / Chris Yep / Captain Joe Miller / Mike Rezai / Mary Hickey / Ray Cifani / Farhad Forudi (sitting).


Paul Farah (Flint) & Ray Cifani (OH) tied for the best individual records of 6-2, winning USBGF prizes and splitting the Side Pool.

Team Michigan: Paul Berg / Bill Calton / Carol Joy Cole (Captain) / Paul Farah / Faris Gabbara / Dmitriy Obukhov / Jim Slomkoski / Frank Talbot.

Susan-Jane Berson (OH) won the Warm-Up Tournament.

Hosted by Karen Davis in Toledo, Ohio.

CONGRATULATIONS to ED O'LAUGHLIN,
our 2016 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMP!

July 1-4: 41st Michigan Summer Backgammon Championships
Sheraton Detroit Novi Hotel, Novi, Michigan

Open Champ: Ed O'Laughlin ~ Intermediate: Mike Rezai
~ Novice: Tony Zimbalatti

Congratulations to Paul Berg,
Flint's 2016 Fleet Underwood Champion!

March 13, 2016, Flint Michigan

Open Champion: Paul Berg ~ Intermediate: Carl Bommarito
~ Novice: Brenda Miliken

OPEN (32)
1-PAUL BERG (Lincoln Park)
2-Gary Fritzsche (Ypsilanti)
3/4-Harold Rex (Swartz Creek) / Steven Sherbel (West Bloomfield)
5/6-Jim Slomkoski (Lansing) / Mike Vasilatos (Barberton, Ohio)

INTERMEDIATE (25)
1-Carl Bommarito (Harper Woods)
2-Duane Salinas (Grand Rapids)
3/4-Ricky Griggs (Westland) / Rick Schuman (St. Clair Shores)
5/6-Mike Clapsadle (Livonia) / Victor De Oliveira (Canada)

NOVICE (3)
1-Brenda Miliken (West Bloomfield)
2-Christa Solovey (Westland)

$300 was donated to the United Way FLINT WATER FUND.

2015 FLINT AREA CLUB TOP 10
(Final Standings as of December 31st)

(Win/Loss & Nemesis Reports here.)

01. PAUL FARAH.........32.81
02. Paul Berg..........32.02
03. Carol Joy Cole.....27.01
04. Richard Hunt.......24.74
05. Rick Todd..........24.46
06. John Carrico.......22.06
07. Jim Airgood........21.59
08. Steve Grob.........19.44
09. Greg Merriman......15.63
10. Troy Longman.......13.09

CONGRATULATIONS to
~ PAUL FARAH ~
Flint's 2015 Player of the Year!

1st: Paul Farah ~ 2nd: Paul Berg ~ 3rd: Carol Joy Cole
[Photo by Steve Grob]

September 26-27, 2015: 5th OHIO-MICHIGAN TEAM CHALLENGE

MICHIGAN WINS: 34-29!

Team Michigan: Paul Farah / Dmitriy Obukhov / Paul Berg / Ben Friesen /
Bill Calton / Rick Todd / Dan Smith (not in photo) / Carol Joy Cole (Captain).



[Photo taken by the Flint Club's Steve Grob at the Holiday Inn-Flint.]



Bill Calton, Ben Friesen & Christopher Yep (OH)
tied for the best individual records of 6-2,
winning USBGF prizes and splitting the Side Pool.
[Photo taken by our hostess Karen Davis in Toledo, Ohio.]

Team Ohio: Karen Davis / Farhad Forudi / Mary Hickey / Captain Joe Miller / Alireza Saatchi / Howard Shirey / Mike Vasilatos / Christopher Yep.

CONGRATULATIONS to MARTY STORER,
our 2015 MICHIGAN SUMMER CHAMPION!

July 2-5: 40th Michigan Summer Backgammon Championships
Sheraton Detroit Novi Hotel, Novi, Michigan

Open Champ: Marty Storer ~ Intermediate: Steven Sherbel ~ Novice: Fran Miller

2014 FLINT AREA CLUB TOP 10

1st: John Carrico ~~ 2nd: Ben Friesen ~~ 3rd: Carol Joy Cole [Photo by Steve Grob]

(See Win/Loss & Nemesis Reports here.)

01. JOHN CARRICO.......34.38
02. Ben Friesen........30.62
03. Carol Joy Cole.....27.08
04. Jim Slomkoski......25.90
05. Paul Farah.........24.22
06. Harold Rex.........22.93
07. Rick Todd..........22.12
08. Jim Airgood........19.91
09. Paul Berg..........15.56
10. Steve Grob.........11.92

2013 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. BEN FRIESEN........32.75
02. Paul Farah.........31.43
03. Carol Joy Cole.....29.60
04. Jim Slomkoski......23.18
05. Jim Airgood........22.75
06. Rick Todd..........22.43
07. Steve Grob.........22.40
08. Harold Rex.........21.04
09. John Carrico.......19.77
10. Paul Berg..........17.12

2012 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. BEN FRIESEN........32.11
02. Paul Farah.........27.58
03. Carol Joy Cole.....26.24
04. John Carrico.......25.31
05. Rick Todd..........24.93
06. Paul Berg..........21.21
07. Jim Slomkoski......20.46
08. Steve Grob.........19.78
09. Harold Rex.........14.87
10. Brad King..........13.03

2011 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. CAROL JOY COLE.....33.53
02. Paul Farah.........32.06
03. John Carrico.......25.98
04. Rick Todd..........25.46
05. Paul Berg..........23.39
06. Steve Grob.........22.90
07. Ben Friesen........21.52
08. Harold Rex.........13.40
09. Frank Talbot.......12.56
10. Judy Field.........12.32

2010 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. CAROL JOY COLE.....34.18
02. Paul Berg..........31.45
03. Rick Todd..........31.09
04. John Carrico.......25.62
05. Paul Farah.........25.56
06. Frank Talbot.......20.30
07. Art Gillis.........17.95
08. David Pagnier......17.47
09. Richard Hunt.......15.13
10. Jim Slomkoski......12.69

2009 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. CAROL JOY COLE.....33.82
02. Jeff Clark.........28.32
03. Paul Berg..........26.56
04. John Carrico.......23.28
05. Greg Merriman......23.27
06. Paul Farah.........19.04
07. Art Gillis.........18.50
08. Richard Hunt.......18.16
09. Brad King..........17.85
10. Jim Airgood........17.43

2008 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. JIM SLOMKOSKI.......32.90
02. Carol Joy Cole......28.75
03. Paul Berg...........27.37
04. John Carrico........22.89
05. Rick Todd...........22.08
06. Miriam Bureson......16.64
07. Brad King...........14.98
08. Gary Fritzsche......14.78
09. Greg Merriman.......13.26
10. Jim Airgood.........12.74

2007 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. DAN KIURSKI......39.65
02. Frank Talbot.....26.63
03. Paul Berg........24.94
04. John Carrico.....23.92
05. Rick Todd........21.28
06. Jim Slomkoski....20.31
07. Carol Joy Cole...19.95
08. Greg Merriman....18.79
09. Brad King........18.57
10. Miriam Bureson...14.23

2006 FLINT AREA CLUB TOP 10

01. GARY FRITZSCHE...35.01
02. Greg Merriman....34.00
03. Paul Berg........26.50
04. Frank Talbot.....25.98
05. Carol Joy Cole...23.95
06. John Carrico.....23.36
07. Rick Todd........22.00
08. Dan Kiurski......15.90
09. Dave Brotherton..15.24
10. Jim Slomkoski....13.88

2005 FLINT AREA CLUB TOP 10

01. JIM SLOMKOSKI.....29.62
02. Paul Berg.........28.64
03. Carol Joy Cole....28.05
04. John Carrico......25.79
05. Frank Talbot......22.31
06. Greg Merriman.....20.04
07. Dan Kiurski.......19.94
08. Dave Brotherton...18.33
09. Brad King.........15.77
10. Gary Fritzsche....14.48

2004 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. FRANK TALBOT......40.97
02. Greg Merriman.....36.98
03. John Carrico......35.05
04. Dave Brotherton...21.91
05. Paul Berg.........21.18
06. Art Gillis........20.49
07. Carol Joy Cole....20.37
08. Jim Slomkoski.....18.19
09. Gary Fritzsche....17.34
10. Walt Smith........16.92

2003 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP 10

01. FRANK TALBOT......34.13
02. Paul Berg.........33.40
03. Carol Falk........23.44
04. Dave Brotherton...22.33
05. Rick Todd.........21.23
06. Jim Slomkoski.....20.20
07. Carol Joy Cole....20.07
08. Dan Kiurski.......19.29
09. Len Dangremond....18.64
10. John Carrico......18.33

2002 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP TEN

01. RICK TODD.........35.23
02. John Carrico......33.33
03. Jim Price.........29.23
04. Greg Merriman.....24.12
05. Len Dangremond....18.58
06. Jim Slomkoski.....18.43
07. Carol Joy Cole....17.66
08. Jeff Clark........17.37
09. Carol Falk........15.86
10. Gary Fritzsche....14.95

2001 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP TEN

01. RICK TODD.........33.30
02. Jim Slomkoski.....27.38
03. Len Dangremond....22.11
04. Gary Fritzsche....20.43
05. Dan Kiurski.......19.80
06. Paul Berg.........19.39
07. Carol Joy Cole....17.93
08. Frank Talbot......16.61
09. Dave Brotherton...14.84
10. John Carrico......14.58

2000 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP TEN

01. PAUL BERG.........41.74
02. Jim Slomkoski ....26.63
03. Rick Todd.........24.97
04. Dave Brotherton...24.31
05. John Carrico......22.31
06. Carol Joy Cole....22.02
07. Jim Price.........17.31
08. Art Gillis........16.75
09. Troy Longman......15.51
10. John Salomon......14.61

1999 FLINT AREA BG CLUB TOP TEN

01. JOHN CARRICO......30.30
02. Paul Berg.........29.45
03. Rick Todd.........25.51
04. Carol Joy Cole....24.45
05. Jim Slomkoski.....22.33
06. Art Gillis........21.13
07. Dave Brotherton...19.45
08. Maurice Barie.....18.34
09. Judy Field........14.94
10. John Salomon......13.85