P-Introduction to Probability

Chapter 11. Markov Chains

11.2 Absorbing Markov Chains

Exercise 15

Page 424

Consider the game of tennis when deuce is reached. If a player wins the next point, he has advantage. On the following point, he either wins the game or the game returns to deuce. Assume that for any point, player A has probability .6 of winning the point and player B has probability .4 of winning the point.

  1. Set this up as a Markov chain with state 1: A wins; 2: B wins; 3: advantage A; 4: deuce; 5: advantage B.
  2. Find the absorption probabilities.
  3. At deuce, find the expected duration of the game and the probability that B will win.

Solution

(a) Set this up as a Markov chain with state 1: A wins; 2: B wins; 3: advantage A; 4: deuce; 5: advantage B.
##            S1: Game A S2: Game B S3: Ad A S4: Deuce S5: Ad B
## S1: Game A        1.0        0.0      0.0       0.0      0.0
## S2: Game B        0.0        1.0      0.0       0.0      0.0
## S3: Ad A          0.6        0.0      0.0       0.4      0.0
## S4: Deuce         0.0        0.0      0.6       0.0      0.4
## S5: Ad B          0.0        0.4      0.0       0.6      0.0
(b) Find the absorption probabilities.
##            S3: Ad A S4: Deuce S5: Ad B S1: Game A S2: Game B
## S3: Ad A        0.0       0.4      0.0        0.6        0.0
## S4: Deuce       0.6       0.0      0.4        0.0        0.0
## S5: Ad B        0.0       0.6      0.0        0.0        0.4
## S1: Game A      0.0       0.0      0.0        1.0        0.0
## S2: Game B      0.0       0.0      0.0        0.0        1.0
##           S1: Game A S2: Game B
## S3: Ad A   0.8769231  0.1230769
## S4: Deuce  0.6923077  0.3076923
## S5: Ad B   0.4153846  0.5846154