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Research shows, Backgammon is not all luck !

September 7, 2006

(PRLEAP.COM) A supervised experiment of backgammon tournament was conducted by Play65.

The experiment’s aim was to provide empiric datum for quantities basis to discuss the question: “Does a backgammon player with ability andexperience have a significant advantage over a player with absent experience and/or weak ability”.

One of the participants in the research, replied when asked if he thinks Backgammon is only luck:

“I think Backgammon is just like soccer, you have to adjust and change your strategy depending on each throw of your dice and your opponent’s moves, not everything is under your control, just like a soccer team who has to defense against an offence of the opponet’s team”.

The experiment was supervised by a professor from the statistics department of Bar-Ilan University, Israel.

16 players participated in the experiment: 5 were top level (information taken from Play65 site), 2 intermediate and 9 with weak abilities.

Results: 3 out of the 4 finalists were top level and in the finals both players were high level.

Conclusion:

From the experiment datum and the analysis of its results rises a probability conclusion clear and certain:

As soon as a player stabilizes himself as a strong player, it is
possible to predict with very high probability his repeating winnings
over a player who stabilized himself as a weak player.

So, now if someone ever says to us that we are winning just because of lucky dice – we can say “your strategy just sucks”.