Bar

How it works in play

A checker that is hit goes to the bar and has to re-enter in the opponent’s home board before its owner may move anything else. If every entry point is made, the checker dances and the whole turn is lost, which is why a strong home board makes every hit hurt more.

Related terms

• Hit — Land on an opponent’s blot, sending it to the bar.
• Entering — Moving a checker from the bar into the opponent’s home board.
• Closeout — All six home-board points made while the opponent sits on the bar — they cannot enter until a point opens.
• Home board — A player’s inner table — points 1–6 from their perspective.
• Bar point — The 7-point. After the 5-point, the second-most-valuable offensive point.

Go deeper

• Rules: hitting and the bar
• Rules: entering from the bar
• Backgammon strategy, from first roll to bear-off

In other languages

• العربيةالحاجز (Bar)
• ΕλληνικάΜπάρα (bar)
• فارسیبار (Bar)
• עבריתבאר (Bar)
• РусскийБар (bar)
• TürkçeBar