Position 27, page 65
From Backgammon for Blood, by Bruce Becker

White to play 4-1.

The 4-1 opener is treated the same way as 2-1: move a man from B12 to W9 and a man from W6 to W5.

There are nineteen ways that one or the other of my two blots can be hit (the fifteen ways to hit the W5, plus 5-3, 3-5, 6-2, and 2-6); only one (a 4-4 throw) can hit both. Again, six of these throws would keep my opponent from making an otherwise strong move. And there are now twenty-nine ways in which I can cover the W5 blot if I am not hit. Therefore, here too the move is very well worth the risk.

13/9, 6/5  *
24/23, 13/9 x
Rollout 
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Tom Keith 2013 
Money play
Centered cube
White rolls 4-1

1296 games with VR
Checker play: 3-ply
Cube play: XG Roller
XGID=-b----E-C---eE---c-e----B-:0:0:1:41:0:0:0:0

4-1: Game BG   Equity
1 24/23, 13/9 W
L
.4979
.5021
.1442
.1391
.0059
.0059
−0.0080 x 
2 13/9, 6/5 W
L
.4996
.5004
.1428
.1481
.0065
.0091
−0.0090 (0.0010)  *
3 24/23, 24/20 W
L
.4890
.5110
.1284
.1386
.0060
.0059
−0.0465 (0.0385) 
4 13/8 W
L
.4877
.5123
.1381
.1493
.0069
.0061
−0.0563 (0.0483) 
5 24/20, 6/5 W
L
.4892
.5108
.1279
.1478
.0060
.0071
−0.0592 (0.0512) 

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No. 28, page 66

List of Positions from Backgammon for Blood

Backgammon for Blood (1974), by Bruce Becker

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