As players become more familiar with the rules of backgammon and start to develop their own strategies, they will start to appreciate the art of pip counting.  In a nut shell, pip counting is what is done to determine approximately how many pips (spots on the dice), the player will need to throw in order to remove all remaining counters from the board.

Professional backgammon players drive home the importance of pip counting, especially if players intend tackling live backgammon tournaments. Newcomers to the game usually rely on the pip counting features provided by backgammon software on the internet. The main reason to count pips is to understand one’s position in the game. If the opponent needs half the number of pips than you do to bear off all his counters, it would be wise to concede the game while the stakes are low.

Mastering the art of pip counting is not simple and players need to practice long and hard before they can truly say that they are expert counters.  There is, however, a couple of simple and basic backgammon pip counting techniques that could be used by players initially. 

The first technique constitutes counting the opposites. Two counters positioned opposite each other – irrespective of where they are on the backgammon board – will always equal 25 pips.  By taking the opposite totals into account first, players should be able to identify the bulk of the total of pips needed for them to bear off all their checkers.

Block counting is another technique that new backgammon players are encouraged to try although it is slightly more difficult to understand than opposite counting.  The basic premise is that the base count for blocks of four checkers is six –taking into account that the first block starts on point #1.  If the block starts on point #9, for example, the player calculates the pips by first counting the number of open points from one to eight, then multiplying the 8 by the number of checkers (4) and thereafter adding the base count of 6. This will provide the player with a pip count of 38.  Pips can thus be calculated in block form, making the process quicker and simpler.

There are several other pip counting methods available, including counting pips using center point blocks or the comparison method.  Players are encouraged to try several methods before finding one that works for them in backgammon.