What is the Pip Count?
What is a pip count? This is a tool any player can use to determine who's leading in a backgammon game. It can also be used to determine if you're doing great on your game. This backgammon tool is pretty simple and may appear quite obvious. We'll discuss the basics on this really relevant tool.
Other than determining which player is in the lead, a pip count also helps players when making decisions. Usually a player who is far behind in the pip count can make radical changes in his game plan. That player may even decide to play more aggressively.
Using the pip count effectively will help a player make those crucial decisions in any given situation in a backgammon game.
Let's try to make a working definition of a pip count. Backgammon basically is a race where both players struggle to be the first to get their checkers off the game board. Setting all the other variables aside, the pip count is basically the total number of moves or steps all the checkers need to make to make it to the finish line.
The pip count is pretty easy when we play backgammon online, since this will normally be displayed on your screen. But when we play backgammon on a good old-fashioned board we'll have to do the pip count manually.
So, what are benefits of knowing the pip count other than telling who's on the lead? The pip count also helps players plan their next moves. Often times when a player is about 10% ahead in the pip count he can say he is at an advantage (it isn't totally that bad to offer a double at this point but the pip count isn't the only factor involved in making this decision).
When a player is ahead in the pip count that player would want to maintain this lead. It will be wise to play it safe from that point onwards. This means that that player may want to conserve on the hitting and avoid blots altogether. There is no point in being overly aggressive when we have a pretty significant lead in the pip count.
On the other hand, when a player is behind in the pip count this becomes a clear signal to play aggressively. Taking risks becomes the name of the game when a player is really way behind in the pip count. That may include hitting and leaving blots exposed. Part of some strategies in backgammon would be to actually get hit just to turn things around.
So when a player finds himself in a predicament, it is a good move to check the pip count. This would help that player make the right decisions in any given situation in backgammon.