Classic backgammon · Scoring

Winning, gammon, backgammon

A normal win scores one point before the cube. If the loser has borne off no checkers, it is a gammon and scores two. If the loser also has a checker on the bar or inside the winner's home board, it is a backgammon and scores three.

4 min · 3 steps

This is the written edition of an interactive Boardgammon lesson — in the app, the coach narrates while you play every move on a live board.

Step 1 · Score impact

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A normal win scores one point before the cube. If the loser has borne off no checkers, it is a gammon and scores two. If the loser also has a checker on the bar or inside the winner's home board, it is a backgammon and scores three.

Coach narration

Step 2 · End the game

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On the board: Last off

First finish the game. White has one checker left, and a 1 removes it from the board.

Use the 1: tap White's last checker on the 1-point, then tap Bear off.

The roll: 1-1

The move: 1/off

White has borne off all 15 checkers. Now score it.

Common mistake: Use the 1 to bear off the last White checker from the 1-point.

Coach narration

Step 3 · Classify the ending

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On the board: Black none off

White just bore off the last checker. Black has borne off no checkers, but has none on the bar or in White's home board.

Choose the result type.

Quick check

  • Normal win
  • Gammon
  • Backgammon
Show the correct answer

Correct answer: Gammon — Correct. It is a gammon, worth two points before the cube.

  • Normal win — A normal win means the loser has borne off at least one checker.
  • Backgammon — Backgammon needs a loser checker on the bar or in the winner's home board.

Coach narration

What you learned

You can now classify a normal win for one point, a gammon for two, and a backgammon for three, before the cube multiplies the score.

Coach narration