This is pretty easy, just need confirmation for my bro. My brother (thingamajigi) won't believe me, so I need you guys to confirm it.
Assume you are on a boardwalk. Your hotel is x feet from one end (point A). The total length of the boardwalk (end to end) is 4 mi. If you want to walk, from your hotel, to point B (the opposite end of A), then go ALL the way to point A, then back to your hotel. The debate is, does to location of x make a difference in the distance of your route?