The Game of Checkers

Back on our early AI days, we looked closely at problem solving for games.  Notably the work of Arthur Samuel in machine learning.   This piece below on the seemingly simple game of checkers. Good about the people involved, but not enough about the nature of the AI.  See the last link for that, I apologize for the pay wall there.

How Checkers Was Solved
The story of a duel between two men, one who dies, and the nature of the quest to build artificial intelligence ..... " 

About Marion Tinsley, the world's greatest checkers player
by Alexis C. Madrigal in the Atlantic  .... 

Checkers was the first significant classic board game that had a non-human champion.  But it never defeated the long time human champion in a match.

See Checkers in Solved.  http://science.sciencemag.org/content/317/5844/1518  (Requires Login)