Backgammon Glossary

A formula devised by Tom Keith for making cube decisions in pure race games. It is a modification of the basic pip count designed to take into account elements of checker distribution. Each player's Keith count is his pip count, plus 2 for each checker more than 1 on his one-point, plus 1 for each each checker more than 1 on his two-point, plus 1 for each checker more than 3 on his three-point, plus 1 for each empty space on points four, five, or six. Then the player on roll increases his count by one-seventh (rounding down). Keith advises: Double if your count exceeds your opponent's count by no more than 4; redouble if your count exceeds your opponent's count by no more than 3; take if doubler's count exceeds your count by at least 2. For a comparison with other methods, see the article, "Cube Handling In Noncontact Positions".