When looking at any match play problem you should first seek to determine what the correct action in a money game would be.
Bray's Learning Curve
Each week, author Chris Bray lends his sharp insight and easy-to-understand analysis to help you improve your game.
Chris is the author of multiple backgammon books, including Backgammon for Dummies, and is the backgammon columnist for The Times of London.
A New Puzzle Every Week
Every Monday Chris posts an interesting backgammon position on our Facebook page. We encourage you to join in the lively discussion and return here to our website on Tuesdays to read his extended analysis.
Bray’s Learning Curve in-depth analysis is one of the great benefits of a USBGF membership.
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Early double fives blitzes are very common in backgammon, so it is useful to know how to handle them.
A highly volatile position that looks very scary for White but in fact it is a comfortable take.
The bots have taught us a lot about containment. Before the early 1990s we really weren’t very good at containing hit checkers!
When we study bear-off doubling we learn about ‘roll’ positions.
Money double is not necessarily the same as a match double.
Small doubles nearly always generate a lot of possible move and hence are difficult to play.
The two blots in White’s home board give Red the licence to make a bold play. The question is what is the right game plan?