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But most tournaments don't have players playing each other an even number of times.

Any sport can have a thrown match. A la Rocky.

The difference here is you are not throwing a match for outside money. You are actually doing something in your interest and probably not against the rules (??) so you are just playing the game (the new game) as intended.

Might be an interesting variant of chess where 2 players just decide how much of the point they get each via negotiation, and if they disagree, they go to "court" by playing the chess game.

Why would it be in your interest to intentionally lose and get 0 points?

Because it averages out. If it's a true coin flip, half the time you'll get 1 point and half you'll get 0. So it averages to an expected value of 0.5 points. 2 draws (at 0.2 points per draw) would only yield you 0.4 points. So if there's a good chance you'd draw twice anyway, it's a higher payout.

It only makes sense if you are playing multiple games against the same opponent. Let's say you get 2 points for a win, 0.5 points for a draw, and 0 points for a loss. If you draw both games you both get 1 point. But if you win one and lose the other, you'd each earn 2 points instead.

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