Backgammon Opening Moves: The Best Play for Every Roll
The opening roll is the one moment in backgammon where the best play is simply known. Decades of computer rollouts have settled what to do with every starting roll — so this is the cheapest skill upgrade in the game: memorize 15 plays and you start every game on perfect theory.
How to Read the Moves
Points are numbered from your own perspective: your checkers travel from your 24-point (your opponent's home corner) around to your 1-point, and you start with two checkers on the 24-point, five on the 13-point (the midpoint), three on the 8-point and five on the 6-point. A play like 8/5 6/5 means one checker moves from the 8-point to the 5-point and another from the 6-point to the 5-point. If the board layout isn't second nature yet, see the setup guide first.
Under standard rules the opening roll is never doubles: each player rolls one die, ties are re-rolled, and the higher die's owner plays both numbers. That leaves 15 possible opening rolls. The six doubles are covered at the end — they matter from the second roll onward and in casual variants that allow them.
The Five Point-Making Rolls
Five rolls make a good point outright. Play them without thinking — every one of these is a clear rollout winner.
| Roll | Best play | The plan |
|---|---|---|
| 3-1 | 8/5 6/5 | Makes the 5-point — the golden point, the most valuable single point in the game. The best opening roll, full stop. |
| 6-1 | 13/7 8/7 | Makes the bar point (7-point), starting a prime that blocks escaping sixes. |
| 4-2 | 8/4 6/4 | Makes the 4-point — a strong home-board point that already threatens a blitz. |
| 5-3 | 8/3 6/3 | Makes the 3-point. Deeper than ideal, but a made point beats any blot-heavy alternative. |
| 6-5 | 24/13 | The lover's leap: one back checker sprints to complete safety on the midpoint. |
The Splitting Rolls
Many rolls can't make a point, so they do the next best things: bring a builder down from the midpoint and split the back checkers, activating them while your opponent's home board is still harmless.
| Roll | Best play | The plan |
|---|---|---|
| 2-1 | 13/11 24/23 | Builder down, minor split. The alternative 13/11 6/5 (slotting the 5-point) is a sharper, gammon-hungry style. |
| 4-1 | 13/9 24/23 | A builder aimed at the 5- and 4-points plus the ace split. |
| 5-1 | 13/8 24/23 | The 5 stacks the 8-point safely; the ace split beats the old-fashioned slot 6/5 in modern rollouts. |
| 3-2 | 24/21 13/11 | Splits to the 21-point (a fine anchor square) with a builder down. Two down (13/11 13/10) is close behind. |
| 5-4 | 24/20 13/8 | Splits straight to the golden anchor square (20-point) while the 5 plays safe. |
The Running Rolls
With a 6 that can't make the bar point, run a back checker to the opponent's bar point (their 18-point area from your view, the 18-point square) and support it.
| Roll | Best play | The plan |
|---|---|---|
| 6-2 | 24/18 13/11 | One checker to the 18-point, one builder down. 13/5 (two down to the 5) is a respectable alternative. |
| 6-3 | 24/18 13/10 | Same idea with a wider builder. The full run 24/15 is playable but slightly worse. |
| 6-4 | 24/18 13/9 | Rollouts' first choice, with the full run 24/14 a very close second. Making the 2-point (8/2 6/2) is the classic trap — see the FAQ. |
The Building Rolls
| Roll | Best play | The plan |
|---|---|---|
| 4-3 | 13/10 13/9 | Two builders bearing on the 5-, 4- and bar points — next turn, many rolls make a strong point. The splits 24/20 13/10 and 24/21 13/9 are near-equal. |
| 5-2 | 13/8 13/11 | Two down: safe 5, flexible 2. The split 24/22 13/8 rolls out a hair behind. |
The Doubles
Standard play never opens with doubles, but you will face these on the very next roll — and casual or app variants sometimes allow them from the start. Best plays from the starting position:
| Roll | Best play | The plan |
|---|---|---|
| 1-1 | 8/7(2) 6/5(2) | The dream roll: makes the golden point AND the bar point at once. |
| 2-2 | 13/11(2) 6/4(2) | Makes the 4-point and brings two builders down. |
| 3-3 | 8/5(2) 6/3(2) | Two home-board points in one throw — the 5-point and the 3-point. |
| 4-4 | 24/20(2) 13/9(2) | Grabs the golden anchor (20-point) and lands two builders. |
| 5-5 | 13/3(2) | Forced by geometry into making the 3-point with two full runners. |
| 6-6 | 24/18(2) 13/7(2) | Both bar points made at once — the strongest non-opening throw in the game. |
The Ideas Behind the Plays
Points beat blots
Whenever a roll can make a meaningful point, it does. A made point is permanent: it blocks your opponent, lands your future rolls safely, and can never be hit. That is why 3-1, 6-1, 4-2 and 5-3 have no real rivals.
The 5-point is golden
Your 5-point is the single best piece of real estate on the board — it blocks your opponent's escaping numbers, builds your prime, and anchoring on your opponent's 5-point (your 20-point) is equally powerful in defense. Openings revolve around fighting for both. The glossary covers the vocabulary — anchor, builder, prime — if any of it is new.
Split early, not late
The opening is the safest moment your back checkers will ever have: your opponent's home board has only one made point, so even if you are hit, entering from the bar is easy. Waiting makes escaping harder every turn. That logic — risk is cheapest early — runs through all of backgammon, and the numbers behind it are in probability basics.
Builders want targets
Checkers brought down to the 9-, 10- and 11-points are not wasted moves; they are ammunition aimed at the 5-, 4- and bar points. Count how many of your next rolls make a point after 4-3 (13/10 13/9) and you'll see why rollouts like flexible builders more than fortress-safe stacks.
If you want the mirror image of this page — the plays beginners actually make and why they cost games — read 5 opening mistakes every new player makes on the blog.
After the first exchange of rolls, memorized theory runs out and judgment takes over — that's where the beginner tips pick up. And if a term here is unfamiliar, the complete rules reference and glossary have you covered.