The Riviera Cup is part of Eric Guedj’s annual Backgammon Summer Festival in Cannes, France which is held the week after the World Backgammon Championships in nearby Monte Carlo. It is also one of the many European Series of Backgammon (ESOB) events this year.

This year the Festival will take place at a new venue, the Pullman Cannes Mandelieu Royal Casino, a beautiful upscale hotel facing the Bay of Cannes. Check out the brochure on this event or visit the hotel website for more details on booking a room (the booking reference code is Riviera Cup).

The 7th Nations Cup team competition and other side events, such as a Ladies event, an Intermediate flight and the Doubles Consultation tourney, are also part of the schedule; however, these other events will be played using their regular formats.

“This premiere of CashPlay is sparking a lot of interest amongst players ever since it was suggested a few months ago,” Tournament Director Eric Guedj told GammonLife.com this week. “This format gives less skilled players more chances of reaching the money rounds, because they can play more conservatively against a top pro in the early levels.”

Last week, Matvey “Falafel” Natanzon, the world’s #2 Giant of Backgammon remarked that he was excited about playing this year in the Riviera Cup and that, “This new CashPlay format is a promising challenge. I believe it has a lot of potential.”

Matvey "Falafel" Natanzon

Eric Guedj has also offered players to test the format, through various live satellites in France. "This series of satellites will be announced soon, on our website and on FaceBook. I hope that tournament organisers in other countries will also perform live tests as well, and I’d be happy to provide them with any help they need" said Guedj.

When you’re not playing Backgammon during the tournament you can bask in the sun on the beaches of the French Riviera or if you like to get out and about, take a stroll along the picturesque Croisette known for its restaurants, cafés and boutiques. You can also climb up to the Le Suquet, the old quarter of Cannes, with its winding, cobbled lanes lined with local restaurants. Le Suquet has a clock tower and church that sits high facing east overlooking the Bay of Cannes and Cannes itself. There are also a few museums; you can visit the cell of “The Man in the Iron Mask” in Musée de la Mer on Île Sainte-Marguerite.

Here is a description on how a CashPlay tournament works.

At the beginning of the tournament you “buy in” to Level 1 paying an entry fee of €580 plus a registration fee of €140 (equals a total of €720) for which you get an “initial stack” of 2,500 in chips. However, actual chips will not be in use but rather points won or lost are tracked using a booklet of score sheets.

Participants are then paired randomly and play 10 money games in Level 1 at a value of 100 per point using Bronstein clocks set at 25 minutes (2.5 minutes per game) and 12 seconds per move. Jacoby Rule is in use but neither Automatics nor Beavers (Raccoons, etc.) are allowed.

After Level 2, players are sorted according to their stack, and then paired as follows: Largest stack against smallest stack, second largest against second smallest, etc. When there are an odd number of players, the largest stack doesn't play. If the largest stack has already skipped a level, the second largest doesn't play and so on. See more details in PAIRINGS section of the CashPlay Rules - download in PDF format here.

On Day 1, Levels 1 to 4 will be played. Levels 1 and 2 consist of 10 games while Levels 3 and 4, and onwards, consist of 8 games (same timer settings of 2.5 minutes per game and 12 seconds per move throughout).

The stakes increase per level, to 200 per point in Level 2, 300 in Level 3, 500 in Level 4 and so on. For example, at Level 10 the value is 3,500 per point and at Level 15, the value is 20,000 per point. See the full chart in the STRUCTURE - INCREASING STAKES section of the CashPlay Rules.

During Day 1, if you lose all your chips or forfeit them by timing out, you can rebuy for €360 (half of the original fees) and get another 2,500 in chips and have your timer reset according the number of games remaining in the level.

If you do not rebuy, you are eliminated from the competition.

You can also rebuy anytime during Levels 1 to 4 (except during a game) as long as your stack does not exceed 5000 chips. All players are also entitled to one Add-On of 5,000 chips for €360 after Level 4 ends (but before Level 5 pairings are posted on Day 2).

In this world premiere of Backgammon CashPlay tournament, eight players will share the prize pool with the Winner taking home 40% and the Runner-up 20%, while each Semis-Finalist gets 10% and each Quarter-Finalist 5%.

If 100 players participate in this CashPlay, one can easy estimate a Prize pool of well over €100,000.

For more information on this event visit www.RivieraCup.com