Mochy is considered the world’s best backgammon player, and the only
player categorised as a “Super Grandmaster” amongst professional
backgammon players. He has won the Backgammon World Championship title
twice, and the Japanese national championship Bansei also twice. He
held the champion title to UBC for 3 years in a row. He is the
president of the Japan Backgammon Society, and is active in educating
and promoting backgammon in Japan and around the world. He is the
co-author of “Masterclass”, an advanced level backgammon book, with a
pioneering in-depth treatment of back-games.
Q: So Mochy-san, How did you know this game? How did you start?
A: So I was playing Japanese chess, Shogi, in high school. I was the
Shogi guy playing Shogi everyday hahaha. When I finished high school,
I failed the entry exams to a good university. Now, getting into a
good university is a big deal for the Japanese. So when you fail, you
study one more year and try again, right. So I was in that spot, I was
off-study, but I should be studying, and I didn’t care. I was
thinking, maybe I have something else in my life, you know, rather
than just going to a university which I didn’t want to. Then, one day, one of my classmates in high school called me,
and said: “hey, there’s a game called backgammon, way better than
Shogi. It’s more fun, and more fashionable.” So, yeah, so we played,
and I was hooked. I liked it so much, OMG…
Q: How old were you? A: I was like, er, 19 years old? No 18 years old, 18. So anyway, I
liked backgammon so much, you know, and I played backgammon… In Japan,
backgammon was not so popular, so sometimes, er, I had to play by
myself, hahaha, playing right hand against left hand, something like
that…
So that year I was supposed to be
studying, and my parents were watching. Sometimes I would be reading a
backgammon book in my room, right, and then my mom would come into my
room, and then I had to put my textbook on top of the backgammon book,
and she would be like: “what’s going on?” you know, hahaha…
Q: …so which backgammon book were you reading? A: I think it was “Advanced Backgammon” by Bill Robertie… Also,
I had to go to school to study, not high school, because high school
is finished, but I had to go to a special school to study. So I had to
go to school, but I didn’t go to school to study at all, I went to the
backgammon club, you know, hahaha… anyhow, miraculously, it was just a
miracle, I got into university, a good university too okay, but I
never went to university, you know, because I didn’t care, you know
what I mean. I cared more about backgammon. So I went to university
for 2 days: the first day to enrol and enter, the second day to quit…
Q: Hahahahahaha (laughing hilariously) Which university was it?
A: It’s called Waseda University…it’s like a top-10 university, a good
school…it was a miracle.
Q: Oh waaaaah Mochy-san…and you quit… A: And I quit. I guess I was sorry about that… I actually had to
meet a professor to explain why I needed to quit, so I was a little
bit nervous, you know, the first time to meet with a professor, right,
so I told him, hey, I like backgammon, I am doing this, and I’m very
good…I was already, like, a champion, I was already the Japanese
champion then…that I wanted to be a professional, and so on. To my
surprise, the professor was very impressed, he was like; “oh great,
you have a good thing…I support you!”…well, he meant, moral and
emotional support. He told me that I didn’t have to quit university,
that I could just suspend, for a maximum of 7 years, entrance to the
university, and see later. Of course now I am quitting, not going
back. So this is how I met backgammon, and I have been playing ever
since.
Q: So you played for a couple of years, and you already became
champion…? A: Yep. So after the first year, no, after a year and a half maybe, I
won the national title.
Q: How is that possible? I mean, this game, you play for a year and a
half, you are still nowhere… A: Well, one, I played backgammon a lot, a lot, like…10 hours a day
everyday…
Q: …With yourself, left hand against right hand…? A: …No, also reading books, playing with friends, playing with strong
players, computer software and stuff like that. I played a lot, so
that’s one reason. The second reason, and probably the biggest reason,
is that the level of the Japanese Backgammon Association back then,
was very low. If you play a PR 6, you are like god. You know what I
mean? It was like that, 25 years ago. But now, of course, it is not
possible at all.
Q: 25 years ago…that was 199…. A: Yeah I think I started 199…7. Then I won the national championship,
Bansei, in 1998, and also in 1999.
Q: Amazing story Mochy. Absolutely amazing. And you never looked back?
Just backgammon, backgammon, backgammon. A: Right, yeah.
Mochy is considered the world’s best backgammon player, and the only
player categorised as a “Super Grandmaster” amongst professional
backgammon players. He has won the Backgammon World Championship title
twice, and the Japanese national championship Bansei also twice. He
held the champion title to UBC for 3 years in a row. He is the
president of the Japan Backgammon Society, and is active in educating
and promoting backgammon in Japan and around the world. He is the
co-author of “Masterclass”, an advanced level backgammon book, with a
pioneering in-depth treatment of back-games.
Q: So Mochy-san, How did you know this game? How did you start?
A: So I was playing Japanese chess, Shogi, in high school. I was the
Shogi guy playing Shogi everyday hahaha. When I finished high school,
I failed the entry exams to a good university. Now, getting into a
good university is a big deal for the Japanese. So when you fail, you
study one more year and try again, right. So I was in that spot, I was
off-study, but I should be studying, and I didn’t care. I was
thinking, maybe I have something else in my life, you know, rather
than just going to a university which I didn’t want to. Then, one day, one of my classmates in high school called me,
and said: “hey, there’s a game called backgammon, way better than
Shogi. It’s more fun, and more fashionable.” So, yeah, so we played,
and I was hooked. I liked it so much, OMG…
Q: How old were you? A: I was like, er, 19 years old? No 18 years old, 18. So anyway, I
liked backgammon so much, you know, and I played backgammon… In Japan,
backgammon was not so popular, so sometimes, er, I had to play by
myself, hahaha, playing right hand against left hand, something like
that…
So that year I was supposed to be
studying, and my parents were watching. Sometimes I would be reading a
backgammon book in my room, right, and then my mom would come into my
room, and then I had to put my textbook on top of the backgammon book,
and she would be like: “what’s going on?” you know, hahaha…
Q: …so which backgammon book were you reading? A: I think it was “Advanced Backgammon” by Bill Robertie… Also,
I had to go to school to study, not high school, because high school
is finished, but I had to go to a special school to study. So I had to
go to school, but I didn’t go to school to study at all, I went to the
backgammon club, you know, hahaha… anyhow, miraculously, it was just a
miracle, I got into university, a good university too okay, but I
never went to university, you know, because I didn’t care, you know
what I mean. I cared more about backgammon. So I went to university
for 2 days: the first day to enrol and enter, the second day to quit…
Q: Hahahahahaha (laughing hilariously) Which university was it?
A: It’s called Waseda University…it’s like a top-10 university, a good
school…it was a miracle.
Q: Oh waaaaah Mochy-san…and you quit… A: And I quit. I guess I was sorry about that… I actually had to
meet a professor to explain why I needed to quit, so I was a little
bit nervous, you know, the first time to meet with a professor, right,
so I told him, hey, I like backgammon, I am doing this, and I’m very
good…I was already, like, a champion, I was already the Japanese
champion then…that I wanted to be a professional, and so on. To my
surprise, the professor was very impressed, he was like; “oh great,
you have a good thing…I support you!”…well, he meant, moral and
emotional support. He told me that I didn’t have to quit university,
that I could just suspend, for a maximum of 7 years, entrance to the
university, and see later. Of course now I am quitting, not going
back. So this is how I met backgammon, and I have been playing ever
since.
Q: So you played for a couple of years, and you already became
champion…? A: Yep. So after the first year, no, after a year and a half maybe, I
won the national title.
Q: How is that possible? I mean, this game, you play for a year and a
half, you are still nowhere… A: Well, one, I played backgammon a lot, a lot, like…10 hours a day
everyday…
Q: …With yourself, left hand against right hand…? A: …No, also reading books, playing with friends, playing with strong
players, computer software and stuff like that. I played a lot, so
that’s one reason. The second reason, and probably the biggest reason,
is that the level of the Japanese Backgammon Association back then,
was very low. If you play a PR 6, you are like god. You know what I
mean? It was like that, 25 years ago. But now, of course, it is not
possible at all.
Q: 25 years ago…that was 199…. A: Yeah I think I started 199…7. Then I won the national championship,
Bansei, in 1998, and also in 1999.
Q: Amazing story Mochy. Absolutely amazing. And you never looked back?
Just backgammon, backgammon, backgammon. A: Right, yeah.
Mochy is considered the world’s best backgammon player, and the only
player categorised as a “Super Grandmaster” amongst professional
backgammon players. He has won the Backgammon World Championship title
twice, and the Japanese national championship Bansei also twice. He
held the champion title to UBC for 3 years in a row. He is the
president of the Japan Backgammon Society, and is active in educating
and promoting backgammon in Japan and around the world. He is the
co-author of “Masterclass”, an advanced level backgammon book, with a
pioneering in-depth treatment of back-games.
Q: So Mochy-san, How did you know this game? How did you start?
A: So I was playing Japanese chess, Shogi, in high school. I was the
Shogi guy playing Shogi everyday hahaha. When I finished high school,
I failed the entry exams to a good university. Now, getting into a
good university is a big deal for the Japanese. So when you fail, you
study one more year and try again, right. So I was in that spot, I was
off-study, but I should be studying, and I didn’t care. I was
thinking, maybe I have something else in my life, you know, rather
than just going to a university which I didn’t want to. Then, one day, one of my classmates in high school called me,
and said: “hey, there’s a game called backgammon, way better than
Shogi. It’s more fun, and more fashionable.” So, yeah, so we played,
and I was hooked. I liked it so much, OMG…
Q: How old were you? A: I was like, er, 19 years old? No 18 years old, 18. So anyway, I
liked backgammon so much, you know, and I played backgammon… In Japan,
backgammon was not so popular, so sometimes, er, I had to play by
myself, hahaha, playing right hand against left hand, something like
that…
So that year I was supposed to be
studying, and my parents were watching. Sometimes I would be reading a
backgammon book in my room, right, and then my mom would come into my
room, and then I had to put my textbook on top of the backgammon book,
and she would be like: “what’s going on?” you know, hahaha…
Q: …so which backgammon book were you reading? A: I think it was “Advanced Backgammon” by Bill Robertie… Also,
I had to go to school to study, not high school, because high school
is finished, but I had to go to a special school to study. So I had to
go to school, but I didn’t go to school to study at all, I went to the
backgammon club, you know, hahaha… anyhow, miraculously, it was just a
miracle, I got into university, a good university too okay, but I
never went to university, you know, because I didn’t care, you know
what I mean. I cared more about backgammon. So I went to university
for 2 days: the first day to enrol and enter, the second day to quit…
Q: Hahahahahaha (laughing hilariously) Which university was it?
A: It’s called Waseda University…it’s like a top-10 university, a good
school…it was a miracle.
Q: Oh waaaaah Mochy-san…and you quit… A: And I quit. I guess I was sorry about that… I actually had to
meet a professor to explain why I needed to quit, so I was a little
bit nervous, you know, the first time to meet with a professor, right,
so I told him, hey, I like backgammon, I am doing this, and I’m very
good…I was already, like, a champion, I was already the Japanese
champion then…that I wanted to be a professional, and so on. To my
surprise, the professor was very impressed, he was like; “oh great,
you have a good thing…I support you!”…well, he meant, moral and
emotional support. He told me that I didn’t have to quit university,
that I could just suspend, for a maximum of 7 years, entrance to the
university, and see later. Of course now I am quitting, not going
back. So this is how I met backgammon, and I have been playing ever
since.
Q: So you played for a couple of years, and you already became
champion…? A: Yep. So after the first year, no, after a year and a half maybe, I
won the national title.
Q: How is that possible? I mean, this game, you play for a year and a
half, you are still nowhere… A: Well, one, I played backgammon a lot, a lot, like…10 hours a day
everyday…
Q: …With yourself, left hand against right hand…? A: …No, also reading books, playing with friends, playing with strong
players, computer software and stuff like that. I played a lot, so
that’s one reason. The second reason, and probably the biggest reason,
is that the level of the Japanese Backgammon Association back then,
was very low. If you play a PR 6, you are like god. You know what I
mean? It was like that, 25 years ago. But now, of course, it is not
possible at all.
Q: 25 years ago…that was 199…. A: Yeah I think I started 199…7. Then I won the national championship,
Bansei, in 1998, and also in 1999.
Q: Amazing story Mochy. Absolutely amazing. And you never looked back?
Just backgammon, backgammon, backgammon. A: Right, yeah.
