Cluster counting 3: outfield points

We continue our series on cluster counting by learning a few more common clusters for checkers in the outfield and our opponent’s homeboard.

6. The mid-point

One checker on each of the mid-point and the bar-point add 20 pips to the count:

It often turns out to be easier to count the checkers on the 13 point by 20 and including any checkers in the 6, 7, or 8 points, and then adjusting afterward.

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Another common reference position that appears in the starting position has 1 checker on the 24-pt and 2 on the mid-point. These checkers are worth 50 pips:

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Finally, if you hold both the mid-point and your opponent’s bar point, those checkers are worth 62 pips:

7. The golden point

The most important point in the game is also the most important for pip counting in our opponent’s home board. We must have it memorized cold that checkers on the golden point are worth 20 pips. The simplest case of this is holding the 20-pt anchor, worth 40 pips total:

8. Mirrored checkers

Another useful trick for checkers in our opponent’s homeboard is that any pair of checkers mirrored against each other add up to 25 pips. For example, below we have a checker on the 24-pt and the 1-pt, which together add up to 25 pips:

For example, a position with an advanced anchor will often have a matching blocking point in our homeboard. The 4 checkers on those 2 made points would add up to 50 pips.

In the next article, we will learn how to adjust generic clusters for more realistic, messy clusters we might expect to encounter over the board.

Further reading:

• A video by Art Benjamin that includes cluster counting and other pip counting tricks.

Next lesson: Cluster counting 4: mental shifts