This March will mark the first ever European Series of Backgammon as the inaugural online tournament launches with an estimated prize of 15,000 Euros. This moves backgammon up in to the ranges of poker and other popular games of skill with online tournaments and prizes and is sure to please fans of the game. The tournament has been organized by a non-profit group with the support of many gaming companies who want to explore opportunities to reach fans of this long popular game.
The tournament will take place on March 28 and is limited at this point to seventy participants who will buy in at 220 Euros. But for skilled players, there is a way around the hefty buy in for the game. Players can register at ESOB.com and take part in qualifying rounds that start as low as E2.20.
The ESOB currently has four online tournaments scheduled for 2010 and hopes to offer a similar schedule in the future. The current dates are March 28 for the Spring tournament, June 27 for the Summer event, September 26 will bring the Autumn tournament and December 19 will herald the Winter event. Qualifiers are expected to be held for each of the tournaments and fans of backgammon can keep track of dates and upcoming events at ESOB.com.
The ESOB site also offers articles on backgammon strategy from some of the top Backgammon writers and news from around the world, at least the world of backgammon. The site is still fairly new but plans to offer a Community forum where players can discuss backgammon. So the site will have plenty to offer even for players who don’t take part in the tournaments themselves.