Position Training in Backgammon: Practicing Individual Positions on Purpose

Published on July 8, 2026

Anyone who plays one game after another will inevitably improve eventually — but more slowly than necessary. Position training is exactly where this comes in: instead of only reacting to situations as they randomly occur, you deliberately practice individual, recurring position types until the right decision becomes a habit.

What is position training?

In position training, you set up a single position — for example a specific opening, a bear-off situation, or a typical contact position — on purpose and work out the best possible move before checking it against a reference (a book, a rule of thumb, or analysis software). Repeat this often enough with the same or similar position types, and the right decision sticks with you far more deeply than it could through random occurrence across full games.

Why is it worth practicing individual positions on purpose?

In a normal game, each individual position occurs only randomly and often just once — you rarely get the chance to learn from a mistake immediately, before the game has already moved well past it. Position training turns this around: you deliberately repeat exactly the situations you currently struggle with, or that come up especially often in play, such as the standard opening moves or the rules for bearing off.

Position training with analysis software

Anyone who wants a more precise answer also turns to an analysis engine: both the free GNU Backgammon and the commercial XG let you enter any position and compare the program’s calculated best move with your own assessment. If you keep making the same type of mistake, you can put together a targeted collection of similar positions and work through them one after another until the right decision sticks. Specialized training tools like the Minimalist Backgammon Trainer, which is built on top of GNU Backgammon, are made exactly for this kind of repetitive practice.

What should beginners start with?

At the start, the situations that pay off the most are the ones that come up most often and can be clearly evaluated: the standard opening moves for the most important rolls like 3-1 or 6-1, as well as simple bear-off situations. More complex contact positions, like those that come up in priming or a backgame, are worth tackling once the fundamentals are solid.

Sticking with it pays off

Position training isn’t a one-off project, it’s a habit: even a few minutes of deliberate practice on individual positions per week add up over time to a noticeably more confident feel for the game — especially for the situations that keep coming up again and again in real games.

About the Author

Ulf Mayer

I love backgammon in all its forms – whether it's a quick match on my smartphone to pass the time, or a glass of wine alongside a beautiful wooden board with family and friends. As the founder of backgammon-meister.de, I share my passion, tactics, and tips to help both beginners and ambitious players dominate their next match. Dice cup ready? Let's master the game!

backgammon-meister.de has been online since 2008.