The Backgammon Learning Center

3away/3away Red to play 4-2

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While it’s tempting to clear the 8 point and make the trap play, it’s simply too soon.  Blue needs to have a blot in his board, and/or fewer points for the play to be safe enough.  Just play quietly and be patient…there will be time for a trap play later.

TIP OF THE DAY:  There are three plays that intermediates often miss:  trap plays, switching points to hit, and the “banana split” play where you hit loose leaving 2 blots in your inner board.  Once you learn these plays however, knowing when NOT to use them is just as important as knowing when to use them.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:  “Life is full of misery, loneliness, and suffering – and it’s all over much too soon.”  –Woody Allen

Red leads 2away/4away and has to play 4-3

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Answer:  You should come in and hit.  Yes, this is a score where you are essentially playing as “gammon-save” but that doesn’t mean you should give up on trying to win the game.  If you don’t hit, there are just far too many good rolls for your opponent.

Tip of the Day:  When you are leading 2away/4away it is likely that your opponent will double you very quickly if there are reasonable gammon risks, so from the very start you should be playing to make an advanced anchor.  But as the position above proves, you still need to win the game and even if a play has increased gammon risks, the wins can outweigh those risks on a one-to-one value.  (The price of gammon with the cube turned is 1.0 and before the cube is turned the value is half that.)

Quote of the Day:  “When you roll doubles, look for a great play.  Then find a better one.”  –Phil Simborg

Red on roll, cube action?

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Answer:  Big double, big take.  It’s very scary to take cubes like this, and many people will drop it, but if Blue doesn’t get hit on the next roll, he’s got quite a game.

TIP OF THE DAY:  In money games, the value of gammons is always .5 (50 percent).  That number can vary greatly in match play.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:  “Man is a clever animal with an overinflated sense of self, and a mind focused not on the great truths, but only on life’s minutiae.”  Nietzsche

Red to play 3-3  (I won a bet on this one)

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Answer:  It’s nice to play neat and safe, but the 5 point is always an extremely valuable point to hold.

TIP OF THE DAY:  Never bet against making the 5 point.  It’s not always right, but it’s often right and not too often wrong by a lot.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “It’s the luck factor that seduces everyone into believing that they are good, that they can actually win. But that’s just wishful thinking.”  –Tim Holland

Red to play 1-1

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Answer:  make your opponent’s 3 point.  If you decide to make your bar point, odds are you will run out of timing before your opponent, so the anchor is much more important than the prime.

TIP OF THE DAY:  One of the most important considerations in prime vs. prime checker plays is timing.  That often tells you which side of the board you need to focus on.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:  “To fly you must have resistance.”

I lost a bet on this one.  Red to play 3-3

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Answer:  Making the ace point serves two purposes…you don’t get hit, and you make it more difficult for Blue to come in, meaning that he dances more and he has fewer options coming in with the 5′s and 4′s.  I played 24/18 with the other two, and lost the best to the best play, which is making the the 10 point.

TIP OF THE DAY:  If you are going to bet on backgammon plays, your odds are much higher if you bet against people you know are worse than you.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:  “Time flies like and arrow; fruit flies like a banana.”

Red to play 6-1

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Answer:  Play safely…both checkers to your 7 point.  Sometimes the boring play is right!  You just don’t want to get hit and don’t want to make it easy for your opponent to make his bar.  It’s also tempting to slot your 5 point (which is what my opponent did last Tuesday night)…it unstacks your 6 point and dupes a lot of his 2′s, but it just puts you back too far in the race if you get hit.

TIP OF THE DAY:  As usual, when you have to decide between several plays, Game Plan Theory will often guide you.  You don’t want to be in a hitting game…you are outboarded.  You can’t very well play a priming game when your opponent has one checker back, so even though you are behind in the race by a little, it might just be your best plan to win.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:  “If it looks like a cube, smells like a cube, and feels like a cube, it just might be a beaver!”  –Paul Franks