Backgammon strategy for beginners: 10 tips
Backgammon is a game of luck and of skill. You can’t control the dice, but you can play every roll better. These are the ten principles that make the biggest difference for beginners.
1. Make your 5 point and 4 point early
These are the most important points in your home. They block your opponent’s back checkers and make it hard to enter from the bar. That is why 3-1 and 4-2 are such good opening rolls.
2. Build a prime
Six closed points in a row are a prime that cannot be passed. Even four or five in a row already trap your opponent. Build points next to each other, not scattered.
3. Get your back checkers moving in time
The two checkers on the 24 point are the farthest from home. If you wait, your opponent builds a prime in front of them. Split them or move them up early in the game.
4. An anchor in your opponent’s home is gold
Two checkers together on your opponent’s 5 or 4 point are a safe base. From there you are hard to block, and you will always have something to hit.
5. Hitting is usually good, but not always
Hitting sends your opponent back and costs them a turn. But a hit that leaves your own blots in your home, facing a checker coming in from the bar, can backfire.
6. Don’t stack your checkers
Six checkers on one point are a waste. A third or fourth checker on the same point does nothing, and it would do better helping to make a new point.
7. Count pips before you run
Before you decide to race home, count how many pips each side needs. If you lead the race, run. If you are behind, keep an anchor and wait for a chance to hit.
8. Don’t break your board too early
While an opposing checker is on the bar, every closed point in your home matters. Don’t break points just to move: move checkers from the back instead.
9. Bear off carefully while your opponent is still in your home
If your opponent still holds a point in your home, one blot can turn a sure win into a loss. Clear from the highest points first and keep an even number of checkers on each point.
10. Learn from your own mistakes
After every game here you get an analysis of every move, with the best move shown on the board. Your biggest mistake is the best lesson you will get.
Want to practice these principles in real positions? The academy has short lessons, and there is a new puzzle every day.