Learning backgammon - like learning to drive
September 12th, 2006
There are three types of online backgammon players: those who play backgammon the foolish way, those who play it the safe way and those that play it the winning way. Ask around and you’ll see that confidence in own backgammon skills is soaring high among backgammon player and that most believe they play backgammon the winning way - pretty much like most car driver’s believe they are better than average drivers. Too bad that the majority of those people are deluding themselves.
I like comparing learning backgammon to learning to drive a car. First, both require learning the theory and putting it into practice. Second, you gain experience gradually, involving self-analysis and accepting constructive criticism from people with more experience. A young driver or backgammon player should be extra cautious, ignorance can be painful. Finally, even after a lot of years many don’t go beyound average levels or remain plain hopeless in almost all what they do. Only some will become really good - only some will become winners.
Pedal to the metal vs. easy on the brakes
A beginner backgammon player is likely to adapt one of the two game styles that won’t take him very far: playing it flat out or overly cautious.
Pedal to the metal
This type of player is probably a big fan of movies like The Fast and the Furious. High speed racing on public streets, turning a blind eye on the red lights, act cool and wind up on the nearest graveyard. Fascinating. In backgammon that equals to leaving stupid shots, going for the impossible combinations with 0% probability and not taking the extra 5 seconds to evaluate the sanity and possible consequences of their decision. That’s called the foolish way backgammon.
A pedal to the metal type of player might get away with his wreckless playing (driving) every now and then and get his 15 seconds of fame. But unless he has more than a few brain cells he’ll change his style soon enough. That’s unfortunate, becuase what’s a better way of relaxing and than earning the next tournament buy-in fee by butchering such a player? Fortunately, however, big play sites such as Play65 have a steady supply of pedal to metal player. Keep a lookout on them if you want to make an easy buck.
If you recognise yourself to be a pedal to the metal player, we suggest you do something about your backgammon.
Easy on the brakes
The opposite to “pedal to the metal” style is the “easy on the brakes” style. Don’t drive even the allowed speed limit on a straight road on a sunny day, give way to those coming from the left and miss your exit because you just “couldn’t squeeze in”. That’s called the safe way backgammon, in other words the player is suffering from blotfobia.
Backgammon requires taking calculated risks and if you don’t dare to build your play but play avoid getting hit as much as you can, you won’t be a winner. Like in soccer - you can defend all you want but in the end goals matter.
A player who plays safe backgammon will find himself cursing and getting frustrated when all the opponent seems to be getting are lucky dice rolls. But he can blame only himself because he chose to limit the options by stacking his checkers on a few points in trying to avoid getting hit. The opponent on the other hand has played his moves smart allowing more dice combinations to suit him. Clearly, he is playing backgammon the winning way.
Backgammon the winning way
Obviously playing backgammon the winning way is something in between the pedal to the metal and easy on the brakes style backgammon. The smart player will push when it is sensible, hold back when necessary. He will be able to apply to correct strategy to each situation and like an experienced driver he’ll foresee the situations and will take the right decisions to ensure the long-term success.
Like in most things, practice makes a winner. Since you don’t want to wait years to become a backgammon winner, you are probably wondering now how you can speed up the progress. We’ll, there are certain things you can do in that favor:
Online play sites are easily accessible and you can easily find a lot of player of your skill levels you can play against. Playing against too strong or too weak players doesn’t help you much - search for opponents that give a good challenge. Certainly playing against strong opponents will teach you more than playing against weak ones, but that’ll just cost you an awful lot of money.If you are a new to backgammon, read our articles about the importance of tournament play for novice backgammon players.
2. Read about backgammon tactics and strategies
Playing regularily will certainly teach you a lot but you should read about backgammon strategies try to apply it into practice. Many players forget about the theoretical part of backgamon and eventually their game will stop developing beyond a certain level and they will never experience the thrill of playing in the finals of a big money prize tournament.
3. Evaluate your games Ideally, take a few moments after each match or tournament to reflect what was good and what was bad in your gameplay. were there clear errors you made that? If yes, why did you make them? And most importanly, what would’ve been the correct play? A little self-analysis is an invaluable asset in improving the maturity of your game.
4. Watch tournament finals and semifinals
Following tournaments and especially the finals and semifinals will give you an idea of what it takes to become a champion. Also, you can compare the players’ decision with what you would’ve made and as a novice player you will often notice that those games are an excellent way of learning.
5. Don’t expect miracles to happen overnight
You will not become a backgammon winner from next day to another. Follow the first four steps and prepare to play at least a couple of months before you can expect your first sizable tournament win. Once you get that it’ll all be worth it.
Happy and smart driving!
