Race and shot calculator
A free tool · Last updated 28 October 2026
Two questions players ask every game: who’s winning the race, and how many rolls hit my checker. Enter the pip counts, or put the checkers on the points, and the answers come in winning chances and rolls out of 36.
Who wins the race?
Not sure of the counts? How to count pips shows how, and the quick way to count only the difference.
| Count | Same | +4 | +8 | +12 | +16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 61% | 71% | 79% | 85% | 90% |
| 60 | 59% | 68% | 75% | 81% | 86% |
| 80 | 58% | 66% | 73% | 78% | 83% |
| 100 | 57% | 64% | 71% | 76% | 81% |
| 120 | 57% | 63% | 69% | 74% | 79% |
| 140 | 56% | 62% | 68% | 73% | 78% |
How many rolls hit?
The calculator needs JavaScript, which seems to be off. The table under it lists the rolls for every distance.
Your checker, alone on its point. The points behind it:
Tap a point once to put one of their checkers there, twice to make it a point of yours, three times to empty it. Numbers count the points from your checker.
| Away | Of 36 | The rolls |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | 6-1, 5-1, 4-1, 3-1, 2-1, 1-1 |
| 2 | 12 | 6-2, 5-2, 4-2, 3-2, 2-2, 2-1, 1-1 |
| 3 | 14 | 6-3, 5-3, 4-3, 3-3, 3-2, 3-1, 2-1, 1-1 |
| 4 | 15 | 6-4, 5-4, 4-4, 4-3, 4-2, 4-1, 3-1, 2-2, 1-1 |
| 5 | 15 | 6-5, 5-5, 5-4, 5-3, 5-2, 5-1, 4-1, 3-2 |
| 6 | 17 | 6-6, 6-5, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1, 5-1, 4-2, 3-3, 2-2 |
| 7 | 6 | 6-1, 5-2, 4-3 |
| 8 | 6 | 6-2, 5-3, 4-4, 2-2 |
| 9 | 5 | 6-3, 5-4, 3-3 |
| 10 | 3 | 6-4, 5-5 |
| 11 | 2 | 6-5 |
| 12 | 3 | 6-6, 4-4, 3-3 |
| 15 | 1 | 5-5 |
| 16 | 1 | 4-4 |
| 18 | 1 | 6-6 |
| 20 | 1 | 5-5 |
| 24 | 1 | 6-6 |
How it’s worked out
The race counts every sequence of rolls: each roll moves its pips, a double four times, and the side that bears off first wins. A real bear-off also wastes pips, when a big number carries a checker off from a low point, so 7 pips are added to each count, about what a smooth home board wastes. That’s the idea of Walter Trice’s effective pip count. A gappy board or a pile of checkers on one point wastes more, and under 30 pips the exact position matters too much for any count, so the page asks you to count rolls there.
The shots go through all 36 rolls. A roll hits when one die reaches your checker, or both dice with one checker as long as it can stop between them, and a double as long as each of its stops is open. A point you hold blocks a stop. Rolls their other checkers must use first, like coming in from the bar, aren’t taken away.
Questions
- Why are 7 and 8 points away hit so rarely?
- A single die reaches at most 6 points. From 7 away on, it takes both dice together, and just a few rolls add up to the distance: 6-1, 5-2 and 4-3 for 7, each coming two ways.
- Does the race count the doubling cube?
- No, it gives the chances to finish first. Whether to double in a race is in How to count pips for a single game, and Should I double? covers matches.
More free tools: Should I double? and the dice checker.