Alan Alsop: 11/7, 10/7.
Too many shots hit from Whites last man to leave the outfield alone by running. Blue could hit if he thought it helps. There is not sufficient cover to hit. I believe that making the bar pt is the stronger play.

Chuck Bower: 10/3*.
A tough decision, with three different themes to choosefrom. Running the back checker solves one problem butleaves White with 7 shots and 7 clean escapes whileholding the race lead. Making the barpoint adds a solidasset but leaves the back checker vulnerable to bothpoint-on-head and pick-and-pass rolls, or even loose hits.Hitting loose (I prefer 10/3* of the three choices) risksat least 14 return hits and 2-2 PoH.
Time's a wasting and I still don't have a clear choice."One back, attack." "When in doubt, hit." "Go for thegammon without cube access." Is that enough axioms?10/3*, but I'm far from sure.

George Klitsas: 10/3*.
The real choice is between 11/7 10/7 and 10/3*. Other candidates are either leaving too many blots strewn around or too much freedom for White. Making the five prime is strong (in general, stronger than one thinks) but the position of the cube and my race disadvantage sway me to the aggressive 10/3*. I believe (something very difficult to prove, tho), that after 10/3*, White will have fewer opportunities to use the cube efficiently against Blue (compared to 11/7 10/7), since, if things go well for White, he will often lose his market and, if things go badly, he might be closed out often enough (I hope!).

Snowie: 11/7, 10/7.
White's inner board is as strong as mine, so getting involved in a blot-hittingcontest doesn't make sense. The five-prime will go a long way towardcontaining White's back checker, and if White is unable to escape I willbe better positioned to attack next roll.

Marty Storer: 13/9, 6/3*.
Blue can run, but then White has a directshot, plus, to hit or escape. If White doesn't immediatelyescape, there may easily be future escape opportunities.Blue can make the five-prime, but I'd rather attack now,13/9 6/3*, maximizing builders and minimizing returns.If White misses, Blue is doing very well; if White hits,Blue is still alive.

Bob Stringer: 11/7, 10/7.
I'm not that far behind in the race, but I am behind, with three blotslying around. My position sure looks better if I pick up two of thoseblots and make a 5 point prime. If I were White, that's the play Iwouldn't want to see. 10/3* is tempting, but it can go big either way- White's board is just as strong as mine, and what with my blot onhis 5 point, things could become gammonish if he enters right away andhits. Making the 5 point prime, on the other hand, looks both solidand threatening, and even if White is able to escape, the race isclose enough that I still have good chances.

Casper van der Tak: 11/7, 10/7.
I have considerable sympathy for hitting (probably 10/3* to keep the blot count down), but in the end prefer the solid asset of the bar point. This leaves Blue in a better position to launch an attack next turn - or just escape the back checker. Very difficult to provide solid arguments for 11/7 10/7 - mostly feel.

Steve Wood: 11/7, 10/7.
Hit, prime or escape ? If I had cube access, I would be tempted to hit hoping for a dance followed by a cube. Here I prefer the solid priming play whilst cleaning up 2 blots.

Kit Woolsey: 11/7, 10/7.
I don't have an advantage in inner board strength, so getting involvedin a blot-hitting contest doesn't seem like the right idea. I am behindin the race making it important to prevent White from escaping, butthe downside of a loose hit is too great. It appears best to simplymake the bar point, which cleans up my blots and forces White toperform on his next roll. If White is unable to escape, I will be inbetter position to attack next turn.

Chris Yep: 11/7, 10/7.
Grabbing a solid prime with 11/7 10/7 looks very strong. Can anything beat it? I doubt it. 20/13 is out of the question; in exchange for escaping Blue's back man (which wasn't in much danger anyway), it gives White most 7s and 8s to hit and fails to lock up the 5-prime. Attacking is decent, but not necessary since the race is close (note White's race wastage: 2 men on his ace point and an open 5 point; also White will have to play safely for awhile, sometimes causing even more wastage). Thus I like the simple 11/7 10/7.

Summary: The panel was clearly in favor of locking up the bar pointasset over a loose-hitting play. It is hard to argue with that conclusion.A bird in the hand, as they say.

Problem #2   Play          Votes   Score11/7, 10/7         7      10010/3*              2       7013/9, 6/3*         1       6020/13              0       4020/16, 6/3         0       4011/7, 6/3*         0       40