Is this the biggest blunder in checkers history?

Marion Tinsley is regarded as the greatest checkers player of all time, and he played nearly perfectly in every single one of his games. However, in Game 1 of the 1958 World Championship Match against Derek Oldbury, he made perhaps one of the biggest blunders of all time. I provide some context around the match, so you can decide if you believe it's one of the biggest mistakes in the history of the game.
I highly recommend checking out ZoeZap Software's CheckerPlayer program. It has a great interface and I've been enjoying some of its unique features. it's free to download, which you can do so at the following site: zoezap.com/che...
Sources:
The American Checker Federation Bulletin, issue No. 270, "Marion Tinsley - The Inside Story" By RLF-Part 16
"America's Best Checkers," Marion Tinsley and Walter Hellman photos
The Sanford News-Herald, Saturday, July 17, 1976, "City hosts record-breaking National Checkers Tourney." Derek Oldbury photo by Jimmy Haire

[@joedoe783]

I wish that was my worst blunder in eight years.

[@azcheckers]

Same here!

[@Vincentdbs]

I'm sure it haunted him for days. Someone who has dedicated his time at the game to be that good does not usually make such errors. But I guess the lesson to be learnt here is that it can happen to anyone and it's part of the game, but also the fact that he went on to win shows how he did not allow it to consume him during the game. Life lessons right there

[@azcheckers]

Yes, you are absolutely right! The lessons learned here can be applied in many aspects of life, and it shows that even the best can still make mistakes. It's the privilege of being human! Regarding this 5-9 blunder, Marion Tinsley later told Richard Fortman the following: "To say that it shocked the onlookers is an understatement. On me the effect was such that several days passed before I regained any measure of confidence in my ability."

[@Bfdifan-j8x]

I'm a chess player Just dabbing into checkers a bit, however I don't know checkers notation, any Good resources to learn Square names?

[@azcheckers]

Welcome to checkers! The good news is the squares are in numerical notation (as opposed to algebraic notation in chess), and there are several websites such Bob Newell's Checker Maven that have literature showing the numbered boards.

[@deniscote4593]

It’s incredible blunder for him , but it was an human. Tanks for the video always interesting ✌️

[@azcheckers]

Thank you, and you're absolutely correct! Tinsley was the greatest player to ever play, but he was still human after all.

[@taimoorali2088]

You are great man thank you for this channel

[@azcheckers]

You're very welcome, and I appreciate the kind feedback!

[@taimoorali2088]

@@azcheckers I would like you to upload a complete game video between 2 good players

[@azcheckers]

​@@taimoorali2088 I'll continue to upload games, along with opening play, endings, tactics, strategy, etc. I think variety is good, as this channel covers all things checkers (as opposed to just being dedicated only to beginners). I think you'll enjoy my Famous Checkers Games playlist, which includes games played by grandmasters.

[@taimoorali2088]

@@azcheckers thank you so much I really appreciate your quick and positive response

[@azcheckers]

@@taimoorali2088 Thank you!

[@abryan3228]

How I Play we do mandatory moves I realized in the last part the king didn't take the mandatory jump

[@azcheckers]

Jumping is mandatory, but there are no flying kings in this variation of checkers.

[@themysticalguide]

Hello. I am new to checkers. Can you recommend good Opening, middle game, end games and puzzle books in checker. Secondly is there any database of games available for reference just like chess ( chess base database)

[@azcheckers]

Absolutely -- there is the OCA database which you can find on both the Kingsrow and Cake websites. As for puzzles and other literature, I recommend checking out Bob Newell's Checker Maven. The Richard Pask publication page specifically should prove helpful!

[@ViniciusOliveira__]

I really like your channel, learning more every day, but I have a question. Is there a way to beat the Kingsrow program?

[@azcheckers]

Hello! Thank you very much for the kind words and you ask a really great question. I would say Kingsrow out of the box (downloaded directly from the Kingsrow website) with the 4 or 6 piece database can be defeated. But with the 8 piece database and certainly with the 10 piece database, I am not sure if there is anyone living today that can beat it.

[@ViniciusOliveira__]

@@azcheckers thanks, I asked the question because I was beaten by an opponent even using Kingsrow with 8 pieces, so I was left with this incognito of which software he must have used.

[@azcheckers]

​@@ViniciusOliveira__ Ah, OK this helps. Do you recall the Level / thinking time you set Kingsrow? If it's set to instant or just a few seconds, that can certainly have an impact on how it plays. The database will only play perfectly once it gets to 8 total pieces on the board (or 10 if you have the 10 piece database).

[@ViniciusOliveira__]

@@azcheckers Yes, I remember using 5 seconds of thinking, and he probably used the same amount of time as well. I contacted Ed Gibert by email and he told me that Murray Cash's Nemesis program and Martin Bryant's Colossus 95 can beat him but I couldn't find the download link.

[@azcheckers]

​@@ViniciusOliveira__ Fascinating! Nemesis hasn't been on the market for almost two decades and Colossus even longer than that. Nemesis was available to purchase in the early 2000s but unfortunately that is no longer the case (I believe Murray Cash took everything down probably around 2005?). I'm not sure about Colossus, but it's really interesting that you may have run into either of those two programs.

[@mattseguin9833]

Great Video!

[@azcheckers]

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@jeffwebster7091]

I think the scope of when this move was made makes it the biggest Checkers blunder ever . Game 1 of a world championship match

[@azcheckers]

Hi Jeff! Always great to hear from you and I hope you are doing well! I completely agree, and from the lens of historical context really drives that point home!

[@nickkizziah9064]

No, it's not the biggest blunder in checker history. Nevertheless it's probably the biggest blunder by Tinsley in Match or Tournament play. The man, simply put, was the greatest checker player in the history of the game! 😊

[@azcheckers]

It's a good discussion! There certainly are other candidates for "biggest blunder" in checkers history. Tinsley's 5-9 blunder rocked the checkers world, for sure.

[@robtaylor9782]

Ok silly question time, what is an elbow in checkers and why is it (if it is) significant

[@azcheckers]

Not a silly question at all! It's a complicated checkers development, so I created a video in which I explain all about it in detail. You can find it here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jKqkqKhupMaXbsU

[@FoxBox923]

I’m looking for more information on tinsley’s life and games, any recommendations?

[@azcheckers]

Hello! Much of the information about Marion Tinsley that can be found online revolves around his matches against Chinook. The Atlantic has a nice article, and Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer talks about Tinsley in detail in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jIjUpYGJbtWghas . Additional information about Tinsley can be found in various checkers books, American Checker Federation bulletins and various newspaper clippings, scattered throughout the decades. Unfortunately nothing has been compiled in one central location. There is a book by Robert Shuffett called "Checkers the Tinsley Way" which contains a number of his games, covering each 3-move opening. The CheckerBoard program includes a database with Tinsley's games, which is probably the easiest way to access a number of his games. I hope this helps!

[@azcheckers]

Actually, I just remembered that Richard Pask wrote a book called "The Legendary MFT" which can be found here: startcheckers.com/the-legendary-mft/

[@FoxBox923]

@@azcheckers thank you very much, as someone who is new to the checker world, this helps tremendously

[@azcheckers]

​@@FoxBox923 You got it, and welcome to checkers! There's a lot of content on this channel, and I've tried my best to organize it in a way that is helpful to players all of classes. So please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any specific or even general questions about any aspects of the game.

[@kassimdadi5406]

Nice move

[@watchguy7986]

“Ahh checkers, the thinking man’s game”

[@azcheckers]

Just rewatched that episode not too long ago :)

[@themysticalguide]

I need reference books for both 8*8 and 10*10 checkers

[@azcheckers]

There are a lot of options! I recommend Bob Newell's Checker Maven. A lot of great resources for this 8x8 variant of checkers. For 10x10, I believe there are several KZbin channels that can provide recommendations -- I unfortunately cannot!

[@user-je4vw7hp3t]

on a board with 64 fields you only play on 32 fields, what nonsense

[@fredrickodhiambo4982]

Hello I would like to have a discussion with you on this variation in flora temple line. 11-15, 22-18,15×22,25×18, 9-13,23-19 variation

[@azcheckers]

It's an interesting line of play, for sure! I will feature it in a future video.

[@yusufsenyuz]

at 6:22, how did not white jump with king ? Is not jumping mandatory?

[@azcheckers]

Jumping is mandatory, but there are not flying kings in this game.

[@soap194]

what about 18-23

[@azcheckers]

18-23 instead of 5-9 would also lose. If 18-23, then 7x16, 12x19, and 27x11, white wins.

[@isaacharton7851]

I just started checkers and I suck at Brazilian checkers massively.

[@azcheckers]

All checker variants are pretty tough! Keep practicing and have patience and you will start to find success!

[@ayepapito8490]

something like this happened to me on flyordie a few nights ago az lol. Ofc it isnt that uncommon for me =-)

[@azcheckers]

Hello my friend! I've seen all classes of players fall into these types of traps. Not easy to avoid, sometimes!

[@spidaman0112]

Lowder vs king bigger blunder?

[@azcheckers]

It's certainly up for debate! I selected Tinsley-Oldbury game as it took place during a world championship, and it's beyond rare for Tinsley to make any mistakes. The Lowder-King blunder was during the 1994 National (during the last game of the last round!), and also had a significant impact on checkers history. There's also the famous Horr-Jordan blunder in the semifinals of the 1924 American tournament, or even the Moiseyev-King blunder during the 2000 unrestricted world championship match. Maybe I'll publish a blunder compilation video in the future.

[@spidaman0112]

@@azcheckers though far less significant. I could give you 20 or so from my own games. A recent one about a year ago got an immediate I can't believe you did that from Michael Holmes:--)

[@azcheckers]

@@spidaman0112 Ha! We've all been there, my friend. And for some reason, they are always the easiest ones to recall!

[@VonKaiserMrvonds]

I'm a 1500 rated chess player but I kinda don't understand I can easily defend that in our high school I'm the chess and checkers champion but like man what's the idea

[@azcheckers]

Congratulations! Both games can be lifelong hobbies and I hope you'll continue playing them!

[@yashpallalas8409]

you can use AI to get your audio clear... that makes a 10$ mike soubd like 400$ one

[@azcheckers]

I appreciate the feedback, thank you!

[@profoundmoves]

I made worse, lol, then there is Barker's Blunder.

[@azcheckers]

I hear you, my friend!

[@profoundmoves]

@@azcheckers however, I am nowhere near Tinsley's level. lol.

[@profoundmoves]

@@azcheckers very enjoyable video, I love watching them all.

[@azcheckers]

@@profoundmoves Not sure any person in history could be at his level!

[@azcheckers]

@@profoundmoves Thank you!!

[@thetruths7389]

Where's the blunder? Red play 20x27. White 31x24. Red continue 19 to 23.

[@MrEdwardCollins]

31-24? Uh, no. You're missing White's better move. After Red makes the compulsory capture 20-27, White, as mentioned in the video, has a three-for-one, or otherwise a triple jump, 32-5.

[@azcheckers]

Thank you for the insight and analysis, Edward!

[@michaelmcgee335]

Seems he got outplayed.

[@azcheckers]

Even the greatest have their moments!