Question 22
Azar and Carl play a game of tic-tac-toe. Azar places an $X$ in one of the boxes in a $3$-by-$3$ array of boxes, then Carl places an $O$ in one of the remaining boxes. After that, Azar places an $X$ in one of the remaining boxes, and so on until all $9$ boxes are filled or one of the players has $3$ of their symbols in a row — horizontal, vertical, or diagonal — whichever comes first, in which case that player wins the game. Suppose the players make their moves at random, rather than trying to follow a rational strategy, and that Carl wins the game when he places his third $O.$ How many ways can the board look after the game is over?