Backgammon

Bearing Off

Before moving any checkers off the board, a player must first bring them all into his or her inner board. After that, a die roll may be used to move a checker off the board by moving it beyond the last point on the board.

A checker does not need to move off the board by exact count; e.g., a checker on the 4-point may move off the board with a 4, 5, or a 6. However, a player must always play the full amount of a die when possible. In the following position, therefore, with a roll of 4-3, a player may not bear off a checker from either the 2 point or 1 point. Instead, the checkers on the 6-point and 5-point must both be moved (one of them 4 and the other 3).