Backgammon notation

Backgammon, like most games that are played for money, has its own notation. Backgammon notation describes complex situations in a concise way, which is much quicker to read than just describing what happened with normal language.

Learning Backgammon notation is beneficial, because many backgammon books, articles and other important information sources use it. To put it simply: by learning backgammon notation you can concentrate on what is said, not how it is said. And it really is very simple and easy to learn.

Notation Basics

Backgammon boards - both real ones and online virtual ones - have numbers from 1 to 24 on them, one number on each point. Black player moves from higher numbered points to lower numbered ones and white from lower numbered to higher numbered ones.

When a checker is moved, both its starting and finishing points are marked down divided by a slash. For example black checker moving from point 24 to point 20 would me marked “24/20″. Two checkers moving on one turn might be something like “24/20 13/8″. One checker using both dice to move is also notated by only writing up its starting and finishing points, for example: “24/14″

Bearing off checkers is marked with “off”. A checker escaping from the five point would therefore go down to history like this: “5/off”.

Returning to game from the bar is notated by only writing down the point which the checker entered the board on.
Checkers coming off the bar entering the board on two point and four point would be notated as: “2 4″

Notation needs more than just movement in backgammon - it needs to show the die rolls too. Die rolls are notated by writing down the result of the both dice with no space in between. So if one die shows six and the other one two, backgammon notation would show it like this: “62″.

If we add player color to show whose turn it was, we have a complete notation system. White player throwing three and a one and moving from six point to five point and from eight point to five point would be:
White 31: 6/5 8/5

Advanced notation

One could notate a whole game using the method described above, but couple of small additions make the notation system even clearer.

Hitting could be tracked with the system above, but it is such a crucial part of the game,that it is marked with a “*”.
Checker moving from six point to five point and hitting opponents blot there would be notated like this: “6/5*”.

Moving with doubles would take a lot of space if each move was notated separately, so a shorter version is used: the number of moving checkers is written down in parenthesis.
Three checkers moving from 13 point to 8 point and one from 11 point to six point: “13/8(3) 11/6″.

Examples

With this notation system it is easy to describe complex movements that would require a long explanation in regular writing. A whole game can easily be notated move by move for later analysis.

Couple of examples
Black 55: 13/8*(2) 9/4 18/13
Black rolls double-5 and moves four checkers. He moves two from 13 point to hit white’s blot at eight point, one from nine point to four point and one from 18 point to 13 point.

White 66: 6*/24
White throws a lucky double, enters from the bar, hits a blot and races around the board.

Black 51: 6/1*/off
Black throws five and a one. He moves his checker from six point to the five point, where he hits a blot and then bears the same checker off. Notice that normally the landing on one point wouldn’t be notated, but because the checker hit a blot there, it is written down.

Conclusion

All hobbies or fields of expertise use their own jargon and notation systems and backgammon is no different. Once you get hold of it the backgammon notation will enable you to enjoy the world of backgammon even more. It’ll be also much easier to chat online with your friends about the developments of backgammon battles you have fought not having to waste your time describing the eventes word by word.