Position 70, page 126
From Backgammon for Blood, by Bruce Becker

White to play 5-1.

The general rule would have you break from the 6 point, moving one man to your 1 point and one man to your 5 point. But this would leave you with three men on your 5 point. Now, if Black does not get in on his next throw, there are seventeen ways you can be in danger on your next roll by having to leave a blot.

However, suppose instead you were to break your 5 point. Assuming Black does not get in on his next throw, you can then be in trouble only in seven ways.

Thus you can see that a third man on your highest point, other than the 6 point, can be a danger and is to be avoided. And don’t forget that if you have three men on your 6 point, you better have three men on your 5 point too.

5/off, 5/4  *
Not: 6/1, 6/5
Rollout 
XG logo
Tom Keith 2013 
Money play
Black owns 2-cube
White rolls 5-1

1296 games with VR
Checker play: 3-ply
Cube play: XG Roller
XGID=aCBBBBB---------b--bcbbc--:1:-1:1:51:0:0:0:0

5-1: Game BG   Equity
1 5/4, 5/off W
L
.9446
.0554
.1088
.0000
.0007
.0000
+0.9726 x  *
2 6/5, 6/1 W
L
.8970
.1030
.0841
.0000
.0004
.0000
+0.8298 (0.1428)  Not
3 5/off, 1/off W
L
.6630
.3370
.1382
.0000
.0012
.0000
+0.3020 (0.6706) 
4 6/off W
L
.6644
.3356
.1190
.0000
.0009
.0000
+0.2900 (0.6826) 

Previous Position
No. 69, page 124
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No. 73, page 128

List of Positions from Backgammon for Blood

Backgammon for Blood (1974), by Bruce Becker

Backgammon Galore : Books