CLOCK PLAY
What is Clock Play and how does it work?

You have seconds per move and a "bank" of time per match.


15 seconds per move.
This includes you picking up the dice off the board
(after your opponent has donked his/her clock)
placing them in your cup, shaking them, rolling them
(about 7 seconds required for that lot)
and then choosing and making your move.
Then you donk your clock.
So about 8 seconds per move to make your choice and play it.
This is usually ample.

However some turns require more thought than others.
Cube decisions take time and complex plays also take time.
So this is what your "time bank" * is for.
It's your "extra thinking time."
Again this is usually ample.

If you are unusually slow you will be in danger of timing out. 
Do so and, no matter what the score is,
you lose the match the second your clock runs out.

However because of the ample time allowances,
this will only happen to those that play 
r e a l l y   b o r i n g l y   s l o w l y.

Just the simple act of hitting a clock means that
players need to learn a new routine of playing the game.
Only one pair of dice is used -
it's the hitting of your clock that signals end of your go
not the picking up of your dice -
those are picked up by your opponent
who uses the same dice as you do.
Hence your hands are now reaching where before
they were banished from doing so.
This is no real problem but does take some practice in getting used to.
The sharing of dice also eliminates pre-mature rolls
(a matter that causes more controversy than any other single matter.)


* So what is my time bank in minutes please?
2 minutes per match point.
For example:
An 11 pointer - 11 x 2 minutes time bank = 22 minutes.
A 7 pointer - 7 x 2 minutes time bank = 14 minutes.
A 5 pointer - 5 x 2 minutes time bank = 10 minutes.
A 3 pointer - 3 x 2 minutes time bank = 6 minutes.
These are usually ample.

But one step at a time.
We really do not want players stressing out over clock play rules so
we're going to kick off using them with
more generous time banks than is usual:
2 and a half minutes per point.
The hope is that in this way players will realise that
clock play is not so terrible after all
and can thus see the benefits of using them.

Our general policy here at Bg in London is
to pack in as much "player's backgammon active time" as is possible.
Our record on this is one reason for our success.
We're now making it possible to build upon this even further
by slowly and gently introducing clock play where it's applicable.

The only players that have anything to fear are those to
that play so slowly that it makes it boring for others.
Without clocks just one player has the capability
(unwittingly or otherwise - usually the former)
to make an entire event into a drag.
By introduce clock play it's the boringly slow players that suffer -
others will gain once they have learnt to use them.

Clocks are provided by Bg in London.


Bg in London Clock Play Rules.