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BGonline.org Forums
Paul Money, on playing on
Posted By: Daniel Murphy In Response To: Paul Money, on playing on (Timothy Chow)
Date: Friday, 16 March 2012, at 6:14 p.m.
Tim writes:
On his blog today (14 March), Paul Money basically gives the following advice about playing on: If in the slightest doubt, cash. I've argued this point with Paul before but without success. For example, I've pointed out that playing on is not a decision to play the game out to the bitter end, but a decision for one roll only.I believe Tim refers to what Paul wrote in his 23 February blog entry:
I only play on for a gammon if I am 100% certain that I am too good and if I do, I make sure that I keep reviewing that decision on every roll. How does this work in practice? It means that I make some small errors when I am technically too good (i.e. worth more than a point a game on this roll). However there are two compensating factors that more than make up for these errors. The first is the possibility of wrong takes, which are always huge blunders. [...] The second is that when they correctly pass, it puts a concrete point on to the scoresheet....In the same entry Paul wrote:
World Class players, without exception, are eager to turn the cube at the first reasonable opportunity. They actively look for chances to double very early, as early as the bots and much earlier than players below expert level. There attitude is, “I think that this might be a cube, it’s certainly very close, so even if it is a small mistake, I’ll turn it now.”If you are not actively looking for these opportunities as soon as you think that you have an advantage in the game, you are certain to miss them. Bear in mind that they adopt this policy even when they are playing another player of their own standard, so they have worked out that this attitude is technically correct. For the rest of us playing opponents that are anything but World Class, it is even more likely to be the right policy.
So, Paul's advice to aspiring experts is: double on the first roll you think you might have a double. Cash on the first roll you're not sure you should play on.
I think this is good advice, especially for players for whom Paul's 6 March observation that
It's something of a truism that people playing on for an undoubled gammon against an ace point anchor are either making a mistake or have already made one!rings true. And that's a lot of intermediate players. They miss the double/take. They miss the double/pass. They correctly play on for gammon, but are unsure whether they should. And finally they double when they are clearly too good.
I still don't think, however, that the position in Paul's 14 March entry is a good example of a position that an intermediate player (or anyone) should be eager, willing or satisfied to cash.
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