Practice Makes It Perfect

The dice decide a single game, but over many games the better player wins. Talent helps, yet the players at the top of tournament backgammon got there the same way athletes do: by study, by practice and by playing a great deal. This article shows what to practise and how.

1. Learn the numbers that come up every game

Backgammon is built on 36 possible rolls of two dice. A few figures are worth knowing by heart, because you use them in almost every move:

• Direct shots (an opposing checker 1 to 6 points away): 1 point - 11 rolls, 2 - 12, 3 - 14, 4 - 15, 5 - 15, 6 - 17 out of 36.
• Indirect shots (7 to 12 points away): 7 - 6 rolls, 8 - 6, 9 - 5, 10 - 3, 11 - 2, 12 - 3 out of 36.
• Entering from the bar against a home board with 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 closed points: 35, 32, 27, 20 and 11 rolls out of 36.

Drill these until you no longer have to count. They tell you how risky a blot is and how dangerous it is to be hit.

2. Count the pips

The pip count tells you who is ahead in the race. Each side starts with 167 pips, and the average roll is worth about 8.17 pips. Practise counting quickly, for example in groups of points, during every game you play. Without a pip count many decisions, such as whether to run or hold, are just guesses.

3. Understand the cube in match play

Cube decisions win and lose more points than checker play. The core idea is the take point: the share of games you need to win for taking a double to be correct. With no gammons and far from the end of a match it is about 25%. Gammons change this. If a position will often end in a gammon for your opponent, those games cost you twice as much and you need better chances to take.

In a match the score changes everything. Near the end a gammon may cost you the whole match, or it may not matter at all. That is why tournament players study match equity tables, which give each player's chances of winning the match from any score. For example, in a 5-point match being behind 1-2 is a different situation from being behind 1-3, and the tables show by how much. From the match equity you can work out the take point at each score.

Then compare it with your estimate of the position. If your take point at this score is 35% and you judge your chances, gammons included, at about 42%, the take is correct even if the position looks unpleasant. The doubling cube article explains the mechanics in more detail.

4. Review your games

Nobody estimates positions perfectly, but strong players come very close. The fastest way to get closer is to review your own games. Programs such as GNU Backgammon and eXtreme Gammon can analyse a whole match and show the moves and cube decisions where you lost the most. Concentrate on the biggest errors, set up those positions again and try to understand why the program prefers another play.

5. Practise the opening

The first moves come up in every game, so it pays to know them well. Learn the table of recommended first moves and then the best replies to the most common openings.

6. Play, and play stronger opponents

Regular play keeps your counting and judgement sharp. Play long matches as well as short ones, take part in club tournaments, and seek out opponents who are better than you. Watching strong players and asking them about their choices after a match is one of the oldest ways to learn.

Keep at it

There is no magic formula. Practice, study and experience, combined with a little determination, are what turn a casual player into a strong one. It may take time, but the progress is in your own hands.