MathDB
player II can prevent player I from winning in a game on infinite square board

Source: Israel Grosman Memorial Mathematical Olympiad 1995 p2

February 15, 2020
combinatoricsgamegame strategywinning strategy

Problem Statement

Two players play a game on an infinite board that consists of unit squares. Player II chooses a square and marks it with OO. Then player IIII chooses another square and marks it with XX. They play until one of the players marks a whole row or a whole column of five consecutive squares, and this player wins the game. If no player can achieve this, the result of the game is a tie. Show that player IIII can prevent player II from winning.