This page is not intended to be the most complete glossary of backgammon terms, but to serve as a quick reference for the terms I regularly use in my blog. For an excellent backgammon glossary see The Backgammon Galore. I’ll also assume that you are familiar with the basic terms, like “checker” or “doubling cube”.
- 8-9-12 Doubling rule - See this post
- Anchor - A point made (usually in the opponent’s home field or bar point) that serves as a future landing point for other checkers and protects against being closed out
- Backgammon - Usually ‘losing backgammon’: losing a game while having a checker on the bar or in the opponent’s home field
- Back game - A type of game where one player tries to force a late shot by maintaining at least two anchors in the opponent’s home field
- Bar - The place in the middle of the board where hit checkers reside until they can be put into play again
- Bar-point - The own or opponent’s 7-point
- Bear-in - Moving a checker from the bar into the opponent’s home field
- Bear-off - Taking a checker out of play in the end game
- Blitz - A type of game where one player tries to close the opponent out, usually in the early game
- Blot - A single checker on a point
- Blunder - An huge playing error
- Builder - A checker that might be used to make additional points
- Closed board - If a player manages to make all points (Points 1-6) in his home field, it is called a ‘closed board’
- Close out - Having a closed board while the opponent has at least one checker on the bar
- Crunched position - Usually a home board where the player was forced to dump many checkers on lower points, while the opponent trapped at least one other checker.
- Direct shot - A player has the chance to hit a blot using only one die.
- Double shot - A player has the chance to hit a blot (or 2 blots) with any of two numbers
- Equity - The value of a position
- Free drop - If (after the crawford game) one player needs only one point to win, but the other needs an even number of points, the leader can drop one double without lowering his winning chances
- Gammon - Usually ‘losing gammon’: Losing a game without having born off at least one checker.
- Holding game - A type of game where one (or both) player(s) hold on to an anchor in hope to hit a shot (or roll high doubles) while building the home field.
- Indirect shot - A player has the chance to hit a blot using both dice
- Market loser - A sequence of two dice rolls after which the opponent should not take a double anymore.
- Midpoint - The 13-point.
- Money play - Unlike match play, the players do not play to a given number of points in money play. Therefore, match score is irrelevant for checker play or cube decisions
- Pip count - The total number of points a player has to move minimally to bear all checkers off
- Prime - A number of consecutive made points
- Race - An indicator for the strength of a position for which only the pip counts are compared.
- Rollout - Playing a given position a huge number of times and comparing the results. Often done with the help of a computer and a neural net backgammon program.
- Running game - A type of play without further contact between the two players.
- Slot - Starting a point by openly putting a blot there.
- Split - Moving one of the two back checkers.
- Stripped point - A point with only 2 checkers on it, since these cannot be used to build a new point without breaking the already made point.