26 May 2006

Backgammon for Beginners: Thinking Strategically

This article sums up the main ideas behind a winning backgammon game plan. If some of the terms are unfamiliar, start with our guide to playing backgammon or the full rules.

Two basic facts shape every decision. A single checker on a point, called a blot, can be hit and sent back to the start of its journey. Two or more checkers on a point make it safe: such a point cannot be hit, and it can be used to defend or to block the opponent.

At heart backgammon is a race to bear off all fifteen checkers, but the shortest route is not always the best one. Many beginners never leave a blot and hit at every opportunity. That sounds sensible, yet it is rarely the strongest approach. The six ideas below explain why.

1. Exposure

Do not be afraid to leave a shot early in the game if it helps you build a strong position. The risk depends on your opponent's home board: the more points it holds, the harder it is to come back in after being hit, and the more careful you should be. Against two closed points you still enter with 32 of the 36 rolls, but against four closed points only 20 rolls bring you in.

Points you hold in your opponent's home board, called anchors, give you a safe landing spot, so with an anchor you can afford to play more boldly. When you are well ahead, cut your risks and protect your lead. Even when your opponent is weak, avoid scattering many blots around the board.

Distance matters too. A blot six pips from an enemy checker can be hit by 17 rolls out of 36, while a blot eleven pips away is hit by only 2. Leaving a blot further away, where it can only be hit with a combination of both dice, is usually much safer.

2. Distribution

Distribution is how evenly your checkers are spread. Six checkers split three and three over two points are usually more useful than four on one point and two on the other. There is rarely any need to stack six checkers on a single point, and almost never more. A player with good distribution has more useful rolls each turn, which can look like luck with the dice.

3. Hitting

When you hit, aim for your opponent's most advanced checkers or for checkers sitting on a point that is important to them. Hit for a strategic reason, not just because you can. If two of your opponent's checkers are already on the bar, making another point in your home board is often worth more than hitting a third. Avoid hits that leave you more exposed than your opponent. Keep your plan in mind, but remember the old saying: "When in doubt, hit."

4. Blocking

Try to build points next to each other, without gaps, directly in front of your opponent's back checkers. Make these blocking points as early as you can. The most valuable are your 5-point, then your 4-point and your bar point (the 7-point).

5. Priming

Six points in a row form a prime. As long as it stands, the checkers trapped behind it cannot escape, because no single move can jump over six consecutive blocked points.

6. Anchoring

An anchor is a point you hold in your opponent's home board. It gives you a place to land when you are hit and stops your opponent from closing their board completely. Early in the game, the most useful anchors are on the high points: your opponent's 5-point and 4-point (your 20 and 21 points). If your opponent is far ahead in the race, deeper anchors become more valuable, because your plan changes to building your own board and waiting for a chance to hit. If you hold two anchors, try to keep them next to each other.

These six ideas will not decide every move, but thinking about exposure, distribution, hitting, blocking, priming and anchoring will already lift your game above simple running and hitting.