🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Oct12.124313.1@sara.cc.utu.fi>, johnsson@sara.cc.utu.fi (MIKA JOHNSSON) writes:
	[line muncher was here]
|> the question is should O move to 18 or stay back at 20:
	[line muncher was here]
|>   +-------------------------------------------------------------+         
|>   |\------------------------+-----+----------------------------/|
|>   || 13  14  15  16  17  18 |     | 19  20  21  22  23  24 ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |  X   O   X   X   X   X ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |  X       X   X   X   X ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |  X       X       X     ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |  X                     ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        | B 64|                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |  A  |                        ||--||
|>   ||                        |   R |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |                        ||  ||
|>   ||                        |     |          O             ||  ||
|>   ||                  O     |     |  O   O   O       O   O ||  ||
|>   ||  X   O           O     |     |  O   O   O       O   O ||  ||
|>   || 12  11  10  09  08  07 |     | 06  05  04  03  02  01 ||  ||
|>   |/------------------------+-----+----------------------------\|
|>   +-------------------------------------------------------------+
|> 		O to move 5-2:

Mika, the question is really academic, because X should double
regardless of what O does.

But let's assume that O has the cube in a money game.  I would stay on
the 20 because:
  *  I'm well behind in the race.
  *  This gives me the best chance of hitting X.
  *  I can use the numbers efficiently to enter my home board, so if I
      get doubles next turn I'm ready to bear off.
In other words, I have more ways to win from the 20.

- Phil