If you’re a newbie at backgammon, loyal fans of this age-old game will readily tell you that there are tried-and-tested formulas that can help you win. These formulas are what experts – backgammon masters, computer programs, and sharp logicians – suggest to be the best opening moves in backgammon.
Yes, you read right. There are a slew of moves that will increase your chances of winning, ones that have been carefully studied and analyzed by brilliant minds – and you can avail of them right here, right now, all for free.
Feeling charged up yet? Hang on to that dice and get ready to amp your game with these tips on the best opening moves.
The common 3-1 opening roll is still recommended. The greatest point you can make is your twenty-point or your opponent’s five-point. This is also known as the golden point and will give you great leverage while preventing your opponent to reenter from the bar. A 6-1 and a 4-2 opening rolls will enable you to hit 7 points and 4 points. These three moves have been used by backgammon lovers since time immemorial and they almost never fail.
If you’re feeling a little more adventurous, you can take the advice of some experts who go by the following combinations and their accompanying play techniques.
Open with a 6-5 and, with a back checker, move all the way across. You can also open with a 6-4, with which you can make a two-point, a fourteen-point by moving all the way across with a back checker, or move a back checker towards your opponent’s bar-point and bring a checker down from your mid-point. You can also try a 6-1 and go for your bar-point, or a 5-3 and go for your three-point, or a 4-2 for your four-point.
There are some opening moves that have experts arguing. Examples of these are the 4-3 and the 3-2. Both are indeed tricky combinations, but the general opinion is for you to move up three from your back point and then bring your four down from the mid-point.
The opening moves have been calculated thoroughly over a long period of time. They are not mere impulses but results of a vigilant trial-and-error process. They are a sure-fire way to get you ahead in the game.
Throughout the following months or years of playing backgammon, you might be able to come up with other strategic opening moves. Consider that fateful moment as an achievement. Backgammon is a challenging game, one that requires a trained mental ability and killer instincts.
Of course, as with any other game worth loving, constant practice of the best opening moves that you know – putting them to use during every match you participate in – will greatly enhance your skill, as well as hone your intuition, as a backgammon player. Keep playing with the knowledge that these moves improve your odds at conquering your opponent and help you emerge victorious. Then all you need is to befriend Lady Luck and have her and probability on your side.