Lecture Notes on Defensive Play in Mahjong

Introduction

• Topic: Misplay example from a recent stream.
• Focus on when not to rely on Tsuji as a defense strategy.
• Presentation from the opponent's perspective who was in first place.

Game Overview

• The opponent discards tiles, and important plays occur in sequence.
• Key focus on a critical misplay at the end of the hand.

Key Moves by Opponent

1. Chi 4M:

   • Opponent decides to Chi the 4M from Kamicha.
   • Cuts the 1,3M block.

2. Pawn Haku:

   • Opponent decides to pawn the Haku and discards 1M.

3. Ritchie Declaration:

   • Toyman, in second place, declares Ritchie and receives a 7M from the opponent.
   • Opponent is now in a 10x waiting for 7s.

4. Kamicha's Play:

   • Kamicha cheats 4s, showing one aka, and catches 3s.
   • Discards 5s.

Critical Moment of the Hand

• Opponent discards 8s based on perceived safety from Tsuji reasoning.
• This erroneous decision leads to a drop from first to last place.

Analysis of the Misplay

• Reasons why 8s is a bad discard:
  • Relying on Tsuji:
    • Assumed 5s was safe, but the discard choice did not consider the opponent's potential hands.
  • Better Alternatives:
    • Can discard 1P instead, as it is less dangerous and offers a better defensive position.
  • Score Distribution:
    • Opponent 4k9 away from third place, potentially needing an 8k hand to overtake.
    • Opponent likely holds strong hands (dora pair, tan yao with multiple dora).
  • Safety Considerations:
    • Discarding 1P is safer into the third place player (myself) who has shown a folding pattern.
  • Tile Status:
    • Awareness of discarded tiles (lower and upper Soso accounted for).
    • Important to recognize dead tiles and potential hands that could exploit the 8s discard.

Conclusion

• Can't rely solely on Tsuji for defense; it can be detrimental.
• Emphasis on critical thinking and evaluating better defensive tiles.
• Encourage viewers to learn from this example to avoid similar mistakes in their own play.

Closing

• Thanks for watching, hope you learned something valuable.
• Looking forward to future discussions.