So that's another reason not to hit anyone in the middle side, you have to make them turn...
Although when a game has to be played differently to win by points or to get the impression of winning, I usually prefer the latter. It has nothing to do with this game, but for example Civilization. There were many exploits to get the highest score early, but they weren't the ways to enjoy the game most and specially to create what a person would call the best civilization or empire.