Controversial Backgammon Game Rules

admin · Site Admin Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 862

For the most part, the rules of backgammon are pretty straightforward. There are, however, a couple of backgammon game rules that have some controversy surrounding them. These rules concern legal plays and premature rolls.

You might think to yourself that the backgammon game rules concerning legal plays should be obvious - an illegal move should never be acceptable. However, on occasion a player may accidentally misread the dice and make a move based on the incorrect dice read. According to one rule, if your opponent sees the mistake he has the option of ignoring the mistake and letting the play slide or of telling you and asking you to replay the move legally. If the opponent sees that the move you made was not as good as you could have done legally, he might choose not to say anything. The backgammon game rules around this issue in casinos are very different. If a player sees an illegal move he must point it out. Additionally, spectators are encouraged to say something as well if they notice an illegal move.

The other area where the rules remain a bit blurry is in premature dice rolling. Premature dice rolling is when a player rolls his dice before his opponent has even finished making a move. There are two sets of backgammon game rules here as well. Some people follow the rule that the roll stands - the opponent who hasn't made his move is at an advantage to see the premature roll. Other people will say that the roll doesn't count.