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This position shows a pretty normal-looking mutual holding game. White was two pips down in the race (114-112) prior to rolling. But he fired a great shot, double-fives, which moved him to an 18-pip lead. What should he do?
Money game, center cube, White on roll.
White to play 5-5.
These next two positions show a couple of closely related holding game situations. Black has the 20-point, but now he’s got a man stuck on the bar. White has a nice 5-point board, and a couple of blots not in direct range of Black’s anchor. He also has the 9-point, which was an asset for a while, but is now a liability to be cleared. How much risk should he be willing to take while Black is on the bar?
Money game, Black owns the cube, White on roll.
(A) White to play 6-5, 6-3, 5-4, 5-3, 5-2, and 3-2.
(B) Slightly different position, White to play all the same numbers as in (A).
White is off to a good start in this position. He’s neatly filled in his 3, 4, and 5-points, making a strong home board. Black has only managed to escape one back checker, getting it as far as his 8-point.
Money game, center cube, White on roll.
(a) Should White double? If he does, should Black take?
(b) Assume White doubles and Black takes. How should White play the following rolls:
6-6
4-4
2-2
6-4
6-2
4-3
These next two positions show an unusual holding game situation, with Black’s board somewhat collapsed while he still has outfield points to clear. As compensation for his messy position, Black is ahead by 35 pips in the race, and as such is a solid favorite no matter how White plays.
(A) Money game, White owns a 2-cube.
White to play 6-4.
(B) Money game, White owns a 2-cube.
White to play 6-4.
Here are two closely related positions which illustrate an idea called diversification, which is the opposite of duplication. Duplication enables us to reduce our opponent’s good shots by moving so that the same number works for him in different parts of the board. Diversification increases our own good shots by giving us different numbers working in separate parts of the board. It’s a quick and useful tool that will generally point to good plays.
This position is a fairly typical mutual holding game, a holding game where both sides have an anchor in the other player’s territory. Your first job in these games is to count the race and see where you stand. Here the pip count is 124 for White, 121 for Black. White trails by 3 pips, but after he plays his 5-2 he’ll actually lead by 4 pips.
Money game, center cube.
Black to play 5-2.
