Alan Alsop: 23/22, 13/9.Secure the back men and create trouble for White by bringing down a man on the 9 pt. This threatens White asking him to hit and escape.
Chuck Bower: 23/22, 13/9.
Make progress on both sides of the board and unstack theheaviest point in the process. Blue doesn't like gettinghit, but he's still in the driver's seat if that happens.
George Klitsas: 13/8.
Both 23/22 13/9 and 23/18, give White the chance to recover in race terms and this should be avoided, I think. 23/22 8/4, has two drawbacks : the rear checkers are not in big danger and should be kept diversified and the spare on Blue�s 8 point is more valuable there in order to make eventually the bar point. Remain the thematic 8/3*, which would probably be my choice, if Blue had direct or indirect covers, other than from the naked 8 point, and the quiet 13/8, overloading the 8 point. The latter is not the most attractive move in the world, still it takes my vote by a process of elimination of the alternatives.
Snowie: 13/8.
My forces are too thin to be attacking, and White isn't threateningmuch so hitting is not too important. Best is to bring in somemore ammunitiion for the future attack.
Marty Storer: 13/8.
Magriel's criteria favor a safe play, and 13/8is safe. Blue maintains the edge in the race and in numberof back checkers; many improvements are possible next time--such as running, anchoring, or attacking from the 8 pointwith a spare in place for covering.
Bob Stringer: 13/8.
My initial inclination was to hit with 8/5*, but that strips the 8point, and any follow-up is a couple rolls away. I don't like eitherplay that involves 23/22, since that makes it harder to get the backmen out of there. Since I currently have the better board and Whitehas 3 men back, I'm hoping that I won't need an anchor. As for 23/18 -well, I confess I just don't know how to assess that one. It could begood, and it could give White too much of a chance to get somethinggoing; I just don't know. 13/8 is solid, and while it doesn'timmediately add all that much to my flexibility, it does give meadditional ammo if I later get a roll that justifies hitting on the 3point.
Casper van der Tak: 23/18.
Blue is ahead in the race, so anchoring on the 22 should not be a high priority - the anchor is too deep. Three plays have merit: 13/8, 23/18 and 8/3*. 8/3* fights for the point at the edge of Blue�s prime, and would be my choice with another cover in place. As it is, although close, I think 8/3* risks too much in the race for too little positional gains. 13/8 is relatively safe, and keeps the back checkers split. Although a bit anti-climactic, this got to be a strong contender. 23/18 tries to make a break for it. This play is most in line with the status of the race, and hence is my choice. I expect that 13/8, 8/3* and 23/18 will be close together in the vote and in rollouts.
Steve Wood: 8/3*.
2 of the 3 criteria suggest a passive play. I don't like coming out into a triple shot with such an appealing alternative. Hit.
Kit Woolsey: 8/3*.
Why not? I have the stronger inner board, and the three point is at theedge of my blockade. The loose hit goes after the point I want to make,as well as putting White on the bar and preventing him from making anyoffensive progress for at least a roll.
Chris Yep: 23/18.
Blue really doesn't need an anchor. His back men are not in much danger. Furthermore, if he made the 22-point anchor, he would soon have to break it. 13/8 and 8/3* no doubt help Blue's position, but I believe that Blue's highest priority is to link up his back men with the rest of his checkers and convert the position into a race. I believe this is the right time to play 23/18. It connects Blue's back men with his midpoint and splits to an advanced anchor while Blue has a stronger board than White.
Summary: The concensus was clearly in favor of a waiting play, andmost popular was to leave the back checkers alone and bring down somemore reinforcement for the eight point. Maybe I'm getting impatient, butI still don't see it. Aren't we supposed to fight for points at the edgeof our blockade, particularly when we have the stronger inner board?
