TUTORIALThe Crawford Rule and the Gammon That Follows
One game without the cube changes the entire match — the most dramatic single-game dynamic in backgammon.
The Cube Room · Intermediate
World Championship, Monte Carlo · 2017
Down 0–8, not out
MATVEY “FALAFEL” NATANZON — CHAMPIONSHIP OPPONENT · 11–10
The most beloved player in the modern game, eight points down in a match to 11, grinding back game by game — including a Crawford-game gammon — to the most popular title in years.
The moment
The Crawford-game gammon that flipped the entire match equity table.
THE POSITION
Study the decision point — then take it into the Position Lab and argue with it.
OPEN IN POSITION LABWatch analysis
Someone has already explained this.
TUTORIALConnected
Where this match leads.
ISRAEL / USAMatvey “Falafel” Natanzon
1968–2020 · Pure feel for the game
The most beloved player of the modern era — self-taught on a beach in Tel Aviv, world number one, and the heart of every room he entered.