Backgammon Doubling Etiquette

Backgammon rules say that a player can offer a double only on his/her turn, right before rolling the dice. Though it is clear that a player will not offer a double unless he/she have reasons to believe they have an advantage over their opponent, offering the opponent to use the doubling cube when his/her defeat are obvious, is inappropriate when taking in consideration backgammon etiquette.

Therefore, doubling at the endgame, when there is no doubt about the identity of the game's winner is not very common in backgammon tournaments and competitions. Offering a losing player to double, thus forcing him/her to choose between resigning the game and multiplying the loss is simply put an unfriendly and unsportsmanlike offer to make. The best time to offer a double, then, is while the opponent might still have a chance to win.

More Backgammon Doubling Etiquette Tips:

Messing with the doubling cube outside the procedure of offering and/or accepting the doubling (such as touching it, pretending to be moving it, etc) is not acceptable and even considered a type of bluffing. That is because moving or attempting to move the cube has an emotional impact on the opponent, thus enables the player to be impressed of his/her reaction and by that gain an advantage over them.