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I've been seeing a strange behavior that I don't understand. It seems to only happen with somewhat older players.

When they have paper money in a game, they slide it partway under the edge of the game board. Where is this behavior coming from? Is there a game that teaches it?

I've asked, and they've said it's just what you're supposed to do in board games. It's particularly disconcerting when the board is modular and being explored during the game, or when lifting the board to slide your money under it causes pieces to be knocked over.

I've even seen players lose money this way, money that gets slid too far under the board and isn't discovered until we're cleaning up.

Is there a clear, understandable reason for this?

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    I'm 25 and do this. I think I learned it from playing with my grandparents when I was young, but they are only 64 now.
    – Terry
    Jun 15 '15 at 17:03
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This has most likely been passed down throughout the generations as "the way to do it", without any actual backing reasons, but there are some situations where it is beneficial to put the money under the edge of the game board.

  • Small playing areas (such as a small table) where space is at a minimum, so it makes sense to conserve space by putting money under the edge of the board.
  • Playing outside (where it can be windy) or inside with a fan can cause the money to be shifted constantly, so sliding it under the board allows it to be pinned down.
  • In games where money is not the driving factor (such as Monopoly, where the Title Deeds are more important), it helps to keep your focus on what matters.
  • It makes it easier to keep the denominations in separate piles (if that applies) as you don't need to worry about sifting through a single pile to find the right denomination.

Joey has already mentioned the playful/imagination aspect of it which may also apply in some cases.

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  • I sometimes puyt the money under the board because other players did it that way (aka "the way to do it"), but always sorted by denominations. Which makes me disagree with bullet #4.
    – Hennes
    Jun 15 '15 at 5:32
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I never thought of it, but now that you do mention it, I do recall sliding Monopoly money under the board separated by denomination (as a kid in the 80s). The best reason I can think for why we did that is that it was simply fun to pretend you were pulling money out of a cash register. You could argue it made making change or putting together amounts faster, but I don't think it amounted to more than simply watching others do it (most likely for the aforementioned reason). I doubt a specific game taught it.

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  • I was born in 1987 and we sometimes used to do it with Monopoly. It certainly wasn't something you had to do but I think it was fun too. I also remember putting the mission card and the cards you win at Risk to put it that way
    – Ivo Beckers
    Jun 14 '15 at 14:39
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    Some practical use could be by the way that it saves space when you have a small table and also when you play outside the wind can't blow everything away.
    – Ivo Beckers
    Jun 14 '15 at 14:42
  • I'm Dutch and we also did this with Monopoly in the 80s. Nowadays perhaps with some railroad management games.
    – RemcoGerlich
    Jun 15 '15 at 13:06
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    Same here. French from the 90s. Was there a commercial that inclined us to do so ?
    – Kii
    Mar 10 '16 at 20:21

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