Backgammon Frequently Asked Questions
After you've learned the rules and adapted some strategies to your game, you can enrich yourself with some fun facts and frequently asked questions to really put yourself in the big leagues of the backgammon pros.
Q: What is the maximum that a player may double up the stakes using the doubling cube?
A: Theoretically, a player may double up infinitely to any integer of 64 and raise the stakes accordingly. However, the stakes aren't generally raised beyond 4 times the original sum.
Q: Is the Crawford Rule a standard part of backgammon games everywhere?
A: The Crawford Rule, which was designed to block the option of doubling up the stakes when either player is one point away from winning the match, is now instilled in almost every backgammon game and tournament in the world. You should, however, double check on this (as with any other game, for that matter) before entering a game-especially if it's for cash.
Q: Does the "automatic doubles" rule have to be declared for each game?
A: The usage of automatic doubles states that the beginning of a match could automatically raise the stakes for the outcome of that match. This happens in the event of identical numbers showing up for each die that the players initially toss to determine who will go first. The doubling up can continue until one of the players rolls a higher number than the other. This exciting element of backgammon found in games which have money riding on them and must be first agreed upon by both players.
Q: What are the "race games" of which backgammon is a part of?
A: The 'family' of games which determine their winner by the first player who first reaches a specific location on the board or gets his checkers off the board are race games. Another member of this group is checkers.
Q: What are the different names for backgammon throughout the world?
A: The same game has the following names in the countries listed:
England - Backgammon
Scotland - Gammon
France - Tric-Trac
Germany - Puff
Spain - Tablas Reales
Italy - Tavole Reale
Czech - Vrhcáby
Israel and Arabic - Shesh Besh
Q: Is there a variation of backgammon where more than two players can play?
A: The game version Chouette is generally regarded as the most popular 3-4 player variation of backgammon.
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