One particular situation you will face as a backgammon player during a game is when you have most of your checkers on or near your home board and you have a few checkers on your opponent's side of the backgammon board. To make things worse, your opponent has escaped his back checkers. Given this situation in backgammon, you may apply a holding game as a particular strategy to address this. Before we get into the specifics we need to get a little background on what is a holding game in backgammon. A holding game is a backgammon strategy you can apply in this situation, especially when the odds shift to your opponent's favor. That doesn't imply that you are really left far behind in a backgammon game. Aside from being behind in the pip count, you also lost the advantage of containing your opponent's back checkers. A holding game as a backgammon strategy would constitute making anchors on your opponent's side of the backgammon board. Your anchors are positioned in your opponent's side of the board in strategic locations. With these anchors on the backgammon board you hope to hinder your opponent's progress. You also hope to hit using a checker from one of the anchors. In the process of a holding game, you hope to catch up in the pip count. You pose threats to enemy checkers entering your opponent's home board. Another element you are bringing in this backgammon game is that your checkers on your opponent's side of the board are positioned to make a quick run for it. In this particular type of holding game you have your checkers stationed at your opponent's bar-point, at your mid-point, and/or at your opponent's five point (though there is some considerable discussion about having checkers at the five-point). Basically, your holding game would require one (or a couple) of anchors on your opponent's side of the backgammon board. Most likely, your opponent has not successfully built a prime, or has built a prime but is less than four points to make it that effective (meaning your checkers can clearly cover jump over the small prime). You have a couple of strategic options for a holding game strategy in backgammon. Either you hit a blot and catch up or make a good roll and make a good run for it. If you consider hitting, remember to improve your coverage when using this backgammon strategy. And if you do, it is preferable to have no home board blots yourself. A holding game is a strategy you can consider in backgammon when odds have shifted to your opponent's favor. Threatening to hit and making a good run for it is a good piece of strategy to regain what you've lost and ultimately win a game of backgammon.
Backgammon Holding Game: A Great Come-Back