Quote:
Originally Posted by Fllecha
The pure play ... is harder to play: it may lead to confusing games and opponent has a strong board while we have already two dead checkers and if we are hit it’s our last breath.
You are putting your finger on what is hardest about this position. Black is an underdog. Any play he makes will lead to a loss more often than to victory. I think it is too harsh, however, to say that getting hit on the 2pt will be his last breath.
This may be where you have gone wrong. Indeed, if getting hit on the 2pt did mean game-over, then covering would be right.
Of course, getting hit on the 2pt certainly could be fatal. It is easy to see the many variations that follow where Black gets a second checker hit, and is quickly closed out. On the other hand, Black might anchor on the first try after being hit. He also might hit an immediate return shot.
Making the 2pt may allow Blue to string things out longer than jumping out would. There are only 5 immediate return shots after making the 2pt. Compare that with the 11 shots offered by the running play. If he makes the 2pt now, Black may be able to find some relatively safe plays in the turns that follow.
What he won’t find, however, is an easy way to stay safe while bringing his 6 outside checkers home. Furthermore, Black trails in the race. Getting home safely is not his only need. He must also hit and/or contain White to equalize the race.
Making the 2pt puts another checker behind White’s anchor. With three Black checkers out of play behind White’s anchor already, containing White will be a difficult chore. With four, it would only be harder. With so much work for Black to do, he must expect that White will enter before he brings all checkers around. The checker Black uses to cover the 2pt is a checker he won’t have available after White enters. Black needs that checker for containment.
In the long run, running a checker to the outfield now should be safer than making the 2pt.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fllecha
The duplication of 2 ...
I think Z has this right. The duplication is nice. It is real, and it helps. But running would still be correct without it. Push White’s checker on the 15pt back to the 14pt, and the duplication disappears. Running still looks right.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fllecha
Even the outfield contol does not compute imo: white has already no control because he has lost his midpoint.
You are right about this. As things stand, Black already has outfield control. I should have said that running will insure he keeps it. The tactics I think work best for Black are to get all his checkers into the outfield, and bring them around together. Along the way he should be able to make and break a couple of points. With luck he will get a hit.
Breaking the 8pt surrenders some outfield control. Black loses a safe landing spot for the checkers he needs to bring around. He also loses a direct shot on his 4pt in case White leaves a blot there. Holding the 8pt, which blocks White’s 4s, may make it harder for White to get off his anchor.
One of the things that has not been mentioned thus far is the direct shot Black buys by putting a checker on the 17pt. If White can’t hit, cleanup for him will not always be easy or even possible.
Mike
Last edited by Taper_Mike; 02-19-2015 at 12:37 AM.