What Are the Odds? How Fate Reunited the Shore Backgammon Club

When Susan Levine Gardner., AKA "Suzy Backgammon," first came to the Shore Backgammon Club, we all immediately fell in love with her and knew she was in the right place. Months later, Susan has become part of our core group of members, effortlessly connecting with everyone she speaks to.

Last week, she brought in a magazine clipping to show us. It was an early 1970s article in *Like* magazine featuring a club she had founded named the Shore Backgammon Club. If that wasn't enough of a coincidence, it was also located in Long Branch, New Jersey!

The article featured a (still) young Susan Norman, who had started a backgammon club at the Harbor Island Spa, located at 701 Ocean Avenue in Long Branch.

I'm still at a loss for words over how fate brought us to cross paths over 50 years later—in a backgammon club in Long Branch, aptly named the Shore Backgammon Club.

The article reads:

NEW CLUB IN ACTION — A shore backgammon club has been formed at the Harbor Island Spa, Long Branch. Shown at a recent meeting of the club are Susan Norman, president of the group; Nancy Schweitzer; Pearl Katz; Richard Sweitzer and John Redding. The club meets four nights a week and membership is still open.

June 24th 2026
Week 22:  Absence makes the gammon grow fonder
The usual suspects gathered around for our weekly tournament. As the sun was setting two silhouettes emerged; Allen B and Artie S returning after some off weeks, ready to roll. Let's first start off with the talk of town match between Susan G and Leon M, word is she BG'd him in 2 games. Leon was asked for his side of the story his assistant said he was "unavailable for comment". Well done Susan G that was a big, well deserved boost on the leaderboards! I think you've added another nickname to your already impressive list, "Suzy BG".
Richard R squared up against his buddy ol' pal Joseph G. Joseph held in there, but I think with all the BG hubbub he may have gotten too liberal with the cube or Richard might have told him "if you give me that cube, ill pass (wink)".  Max S was paired with Artie S, it was a back and forth match, some weird rolls going on, ultimately we got to DMP and Artie "The Professor" did what he does and took the win.  During that round Allen B played Joseph G, they both received citations for cup slamming. Richard R vs Susan G respectively avenged his honor after his prior loss to Susan G. Semi-Finals: Richard R vs Artie S it was neck and neck, I glanced over at their final game, Richard on roll I believe he had checkers on his 4pt and 1pt. Artie S also has 2 checkers left. Richard rolls a 2-1 ! Artie moves on the to finals vs Allen B. these two couldn't wait to get back to the club after being out and it showed.
Allen B was down 6a and Artie S 3a, what unfolded was pretty wild. Artie owned the 2 cube, he had checkers on the 4pt and 2pt, Allen B had checkers on his 5pt and 1pt, after some consideration and math The Professor sends it and Allen scoops for all the marbles. Artie rolled a 4-1 only bearing off one checker and sliding to the ace! Allen B rolls his dice almost immediately, confidently and ill add with a grin, maybe he can share the song that was playing in his head at that exact moment. The dice come out of the "Precision Cup" (as Joseph would insist), hits the board, Allen B has rolled the same 4-1 !! Artie S takes first with a comfortable lead in the club standings. Well done gentlemen, glad to have you both back.

May 7th 2026
Week 15:  School in Session
Shore Backgammon Club would like to welcome Artie S, first time attendee, long time player who arrived and left 4-0 taking 1st place. Round 1 he took out his old friend Leon M, setting the tone for what's to come. Patiently and methodically Artie S moved through his opponents Round 2 - Max S, Round 3 - Allen B and Richard R in the finals. Leon M tried to take out Richard R to meet Artie in the finals to defend his honor but Richard wouldn't allow it. To end the night we had a fun, quick chouette!

April 30th 2026
Week 14:  New Guy Takes  Us Out
Always great to see a new face, and even better when they take 1st place. Shore Backgammon Club would like to give a warm welcome to Abe C ! Abe walked in all innocent looking but dont be fooled, he was able to take it all the way to the finals vs Joseph G who played outstanding tonight. Joseph G won a trophy of his own adding Richard R and Allen B to his mantle. Susan G was content with her win against Leon M in a who's teaching who match. Susan G schooled Leon M as she would the rest of us poor chaps. Congrats to Abe C. In other news we had our first Chouette! It was alot of fun!! Thank you Leon M our Chouette Coordinator for sucking us in to a Chouette that went on for 4 hours but we had a blast!

March 26th 2026
Week 11:  Richard Cookie Comeback
After a week off, Richard R. showed up as always with a smile and some goodies, this week fueled by Italian pastries. It started with a classic Italian rainbow cookie as he slid through his first victory vs Joseph G. I think he celebrated with a chocolate cookie while waiting for Allen B to get his weekly soup. In the meantime, Leon M had a lively match vs Susan G politely taking the win to move on to play Max S. AKA "This Guy" as Leon M referred to as "How did I lose to ... this guy?!" Sorry Leon even a broken clock is right twice a day. Richard R finished a green cookie and Allen B was back and ready to roll. He held off on drinking his soup until after a close win. Leon said "the reason you lost is because you didnt drink your soup first!" I personally think it was the cookie power. Joseph G coming off of a win against Suzy Backgammon met Max S in the semi-finals. Max was down 6-1, brought it to a tie game but was unsuccessful in closing the deal. He should have followed Richard and had a cookie. Joseph G met the undefeated Richard R in the finals, they had a nice back and forth but Richard prevailed in a 9-6 win, the hat trick!

March 5th 2026
Week 8: New place, who dis?
Our first opening night at our new home Peninsula Games and it was amazing. We were able to get to a proper final match, 9pt matches throughout the tournament!! Loved to see some new faces tonight, we hope you enjoyed your night. Newcomer to Shore Backgammon Club but definitely not to the game Michelle S made an impressive debut, picking up 2 wins until she met up with her old friend Leon M, in the next round. Leon broke Michelle's streak letting her know this was his turf and he's got a reputation to uphold around here.  Michael S  was next for Leon M but Michael S coming off a win continued his stride to the finals. Max S, 2-0 facing off with Allen B 2-0 were all smiles throughout their match. Max S still smiles even after being taught a lesson from Allen B. Michael S and Allen B in the finals (Yes we actually had a real final match!) Allen was relentless with the cube paving his way to his first finals win. Congrats Allen B welcome to the winner's circle! 

February 26th 2026
Week 7: Bittersweet
I would like to take this opportunity to thank The Blue Swan Diner for hosting us for the past 7 weeks. Not only is the Blue Swan Diner an institution in my hometown since I was born, as well as a fantastic family oriented diner but they were our first gracious host allowing us to plant our seed to grow our new backgammon club. The Shore Backgammon Club will forever be grateful to the owners and staff at the Blue Swan. Beginning next week we will begin our next chapter in our new location in Peninsula Games in Long Branch.
We had a small crew tonight but the matches were exciting! We played 9pt matches for the 1st round Richard R had a nice back and forth match with Leon M, pulling ahead by 2. Max S. was in the ring with Susan G. and boy did she put up a fight. Max S, squeaked out a 1 point win only to meet his match, Leon M. I'm pretty sure Max S blinked and it was over. Noah S was able to hold his own vs Susan G and then squared up with Richard R. they danced a bit but Richard R came out ahead. Richard vs Leon met in the finals, with a time constraint the match was swift, Leon the victor.

February 19th 2026
Week 6: Suzy BG:  "The Maneater"
All seemed normal tonight. We showed up ready to play some backgammon, maybe even win a match or two but little did we know Suzy G had a different plan in mind. What was that plan you ask? Well you had to sit in front of her to find out. Richard R happily matched up with Susan G ready for a pleasant game of backgammon. Richard R didnt know he was Victim #1. She took him out without hesitation, smiling the whole way through. Pulling out all the stops, accepted cubes, built a backgame and wiping the floor with him. "NEXT!" Max S, sat in front of a smiling Suzy Backgammon, unbeknownst to him, he was Victim #2. The whole match felt like she slow played a hand of poker, crossing Max S off the list. But wait, whats that lurking in the distance? Their fate...Suzy Backgammon devouring her first two courses, awaits her dessert. Richard R had all the right ideas but no matter what he threw at her, she threw it right back at him. 4a, 3a Suzy G is up Richard has the cube, he gives it back for the match. Susan G on the bar, 2 in Richard's broken 4 point board snaps it up without hesitation knowing he will fall victim to her 5 point prime. Richard managed to bring his spares back home but was forced to open where Susan G gladly threw him in to her prime for the match. 

February 12th 2026
Week 5: Word's getting out
What a night, some new faces and some great play. Allen B took out Noah S, but Noah met him again in a later round to avenge his honor. Mosey L was all smiles as he took down Leon M and then Cecilia R tying for 2nd! Leon M faced off against Allen B in a grudge match turning the tables around on last week's shutout.
Newcomer Anne B didnt waste any time showing us who's boss, taking out Richard R and Susan G! She faced off with Richard R in the finals , seeking his payback, with a 1 point win. 

February 5th 2026
Week 4: Our biggest turnout yet!
One month has gone by so quickly. We had 11 players tonight and growing! ShoreBG welcomes Michael A & Kent T !
Our first night with our new Shore Backgammon FMGammon Boards and wowww are they impressive. We're excited to get as much gameplay we can on them.
Michael A. came out swinging taking out Richard R and Max S, unfortunately had to leave a bit early, sparing the rest of us (hoping to see him again next week). Leon M vs Michael S in a nail-biting finish. Leon M pulled ahead, but in his next match couldn't get the dice to turn in his favor against Allen B, pushing Allen B up to the semi-finals. Noah S took Susan G out in the first round but with the beauty of rebuys she was back in action against Max S obliterating him in a shutout. Susan G vs Allen B who was 1 away but Susan G managed to rally back with a win (she's on fire)! The night got late, Richard R and Susan G decided to split tonight winnings (largest take so far!)

January 29th 2026
Week 3: Some more new faces!! Love it!
Newcomer Howie B started out fiercely taking out two opponents Allen B and Mosey L, Max S avenged them in a formidable 7 point match. Thanks to Richard R for allowing others to have a shot at the title this week :) Leon M pushed through the ranks to face off with Max S in the finals, he finished off the night 0-4 and took the 1st place win.  Susan Levine Gardner AKA Suzy Backgammon AKA Suzy Backgame thank you for coming out tonight, we know it was a cold one! Thank you everyone who showed and hope to see more of you next week.

1/29/26 Winners!
L to R: Max S (2nd place), Leon M (1st place)

January 22nd 2026
Week 2: Richard Reigns Supreme
ShoreBG ! We're on our way!! Exciting week, so happy to see some new members; please welcome Steve R and Leon M!
Leon M took it to the finals, in a battle against our champ Richard R. Richard in a comfortable lead 4-1 but Leon was persistent, cubing aggressively to bring the match to a DMP score. It was a close race but Richard defended his title and took first place for the 2nd week in a row! 

January 15th 2026