Pip Counting in Backgammon

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

Pip counting in backgammon is the measurement of the number of pips (or points) that a player requires to bring all their checkers into their home area of the backgammon board from where they can bear them off. The player who is the first to bear off all their checkers is the winner of the game. The term is also applied to the dots on the dice indicating the number thrown.

The pip counting in backgammon calculation is based on the distance counters need to be traveled between points. For instance, the seventh point and the second point are five pips apart. At the start of the game, the opening count is calculated at 167 pips to each player. This calculation is based on eight pips for two checkers on the twenty-fourth point, 65 pips for five checkers on the thirteenth point, 24 pips for three checkers on the eighth point, plus an extra 30 pips for five checkers on the six-point.

Pip counting in backgammon is important for logical gaming decisions. By knowing the pip count at each stage of the game, you can work out how much each player needs to throw on the dice to be able to bear off all their checkers. If one player needs to throw significantly more than the other player, they are advised to decline an offer of a double and seek to retire from the game before the stakes are raised.

Because pip counting in backgammon helps players make logical gaming decisions, various methods have been developed to speed up this complex calculation. Online backgammon sites also provide a computerized pip count and this is certainly the quickest and easiest way of arriving at this total for new players.