Forum Archive : Strategy--Bearing Off

Which gaps to fill From:   Kit Woolsey Address:   kwoolsey@netcom.com Date:   26 March 1996 Subject:   Re: When you can't bear off a checker Forum:   rec.games.backgammon Google:   kwoolseyDounzD.HEv@netcom.com Carl Tait wrote: > Everyone knows that you fill in gaps when you can't bear off a > checker, with some odd exceptions based on clumpy distribution > (and some even odder exceptions where you don't bear off a man > with a single die even though you can). However, I'm wondering > if there are some general guidelines for *which* gaps to fill if > the resulting distributions are the same. For example, suppose > you have three checkers left, and they're on the 6, 4, and 2 points. > You have a 1 to play. What should you do? > > The two-checker case is easy to work out: if there's a man on the > 6-point, move it unless the two checkers would end up on the same > point. If the 6-point is already clear (or you'd stack up), move > the lower checker instead. Are there similar rules -- or at least > heuristics -- for guiding play in the general case? I worked all this out several years ago, and if I remember correctly the following rules handled almost all situations correctly: 1) Don't stack 2) Aim for the four point 3) Aim for the ace point Of course this assumes that you have two rolls to get off. If you need to get off in the next roll you will have to play for specific doubles, which may require an otherwise unnatural play. Kit   Did you find the information in this article useful?           Do you have any comments you'd like to add?

 

Strategy--Bearing Off

Greedy bearoff exception  (Stick+, Jan 2011) 

Playing for gammon  (Max Levenstein+, Aug 2011) 

Rules of thumb  (Rich Munitz+, Oct 2009) 

Wastage  (David Montgomery, Apr 1996) 

Wastage--Positions that minimize  (Stig Eide, Apr 1996) 

Which gaps to fill  (Kit Woolsey, Mar 1996) 

Winning the bearoff race  (Dave Flaks+, Jan 2001) 

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