Backgammon Rules Explained: The Details Beginners Miss
Most people learn the basics of backgammon in an evening: move your checkers home and bear them off before your opponent does. The disputes start later, over the small rules nobody mentioned. This page covers those details. For the board layout and the direction of play, start with backgammon directions; the complete reference is on our backgammon rules page.
Rolling the Dice Properly
Both dice are shaken in a cup and rolled together onto the board section to your right. The roll must be repeated if:
- a die lands outside that section or off the board;
- a die lands on a checker or on the edge of the board;
- a die does not lie flat (a "cocked" die).
You should not roll before your opponent has finished his turn. A roll made too early may be voided.
Using Both Numbers
The two dice are two separate moves. You may move one checker the total of both dice, but only if the point reached after the first number is open; each step has to be legal on its own.
You must use both numbers whenever it is legally possible. That rule has two consequences people often overlook:
- If you can play either number but not both, you must play the larger one.
- If the only way to play both numbers is a move you dislike, you still have to make it. You cannot refuse a legal play to keep a better position.
If no legal move exists for either number, your turn is lost.
Doubles
When both dice show the same number, you play that number four times. A roll of 6-6 gives you four moves of six points each, which you may split among your checkers however you like. If you can only play some of the four moves, you play as many as you can. Doubles come up on 6 of the 36 possible rolls, or one roll in six.
When a Turn Is Over
A move is finished when you pick up your dice. Until then you may change your mind and move the checkers differently. Once the dice are back in the cup, the move stands. In casual games players often allow take-backs, but in clubs and tournaments this rule is applied strictly.
Scoring a Game
- Single game (1 point): the loser has borne off at least one checker.
- Gammon (2 points): the loser has not borne off any checkers.
- Backgammon (3 points): the loser has borne off no checkers and still has a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board.
When the doubling cube is in use, the result is multiplied by the value on the cube.
Rules That Change in Matches
The movement rules are the same everywhere you play. What differs between casual games and tournament matches is scoring:
- Matches are played to a set number of points, such as 5, 7 or 11.
- The Crawford rule applies: in the first game after one player gets within one point of winning the match, the doubling cube may not be used.
- The Jacoby rule, which says gammons and backgammons count only after the cube has been turned, is used outside matches and is not part of match play.
Tournaments may also add their own procedural rules about clocks, dice and disputes. Read the event rules before you sit down, and see backgammon tournaments for how matches are organized.