Position 472

 How should White play 54 here:

There are many rules of thumb in Backgammon. But there are exceptions to those rules of thumb. We talk about the exceptions a lot, but sometimes those simple rules of thumb work well for a position. This is one such position.

The first move you consider is 15/11 8/3:

The first rule you consider is – it is usually wrong to put checkers behind an anchor, especially a double anchor.

This rule applies perfectly here, and you have stripped 2 points in your outfield. You should just follow the rule.

Consider 15/11 13/8:

The second rule you should consider is – when you are ahead in the race, you do not want to make a point 6 or 5 pips in front of an anchor. This is because the hardest anchor to clear is the one 6 pips in front of an anchor. A point 5 pips in front of an anchor is also hard to clear.

After the roll you will be 33 pips ahead in the race, so you would want to dismantle anchors rather than make them.

Consider 24/15:

This leaves you 3 builders to make your 10, 9 or 7 points. When you are playing against a backgame, you should be trying to prime that back game as much as possible.

Running 24/15 is in line with the third rule – when ahead in the race – race, when behind in the race – seek contact.

As all three rules point to this move, it is the correct move.



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Position 467

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