I have always been more into games than the actual act of playing and participating in sports. It was probably why I took to games like poker and backgammon really well. But there is an evolutionary process in all games and backgammon is no different. You obviously start off as a complete novice making horrendous mistakes and for this you get punished severely by better players. Once you take the next step and learn how not to leave shots for your opponent then you reach the other extreme and you become very defensive in your play.
Going to extreme measures not to leave shots means that you don’t get hit but your chances of beating a good player are massively reduced when you play like this! Also the process of playing so defensively has weaknesses as well and you end up leaving shots simply because your position lacks fluidity. The next stage is a stage that many advanced novices do not reach and it is the stage where you start to look at other basic strategic factors like blocking key strategic points and taking calculated risks to enhance your position. This is probably the intermediate level of play but this is a stage that is difficult to surpass without serious study and this means either buying very good books or using websites to actively improve your game.
The advanced stage is where you learn about equity and cube decisions. Also using psychology against your opponent and dovetailing your strategy for individual players also comes into it. However very few players reach this level because once they can play the intermediate level very well then they firmly believe in their own mind that they well and truly have the game cracked…….the top players of course know different.
