I've been spending some working on my pip counting (to improve speed/accuracy/comfort) and am interested to hear what methods others use.

(1) My default before anyone has borne off any checkers is the half-crossover method. Often I'll stop after Step 1 which gives a good approximation (+/- a couple pips within a couple seconds of counting).
(2) After one side has borne off a checker, the half crossover method still works but gets uglier, so I will do a single cluster count then try to keep the running pip count for the rest of the game.
(3) I've been working on learning Naccel, and am already close to my speed with the half-crossover method, but I find it extremely mentally draining (though I'm sure it will improve with time/practice). Also, in most positions I don't need the exact race, just who's ahead and whether it's by a lot or a little bit, so this seems like overkill compared to just counting half-crossovers.

But since I'm spending time on this, I'm interested to hear others' thoughts -- what method do you use, does it vary for different parts of the game, and about how fast do you average?

Funny enough, I've recently become wise to the fact my pip counting speed may be in the bottom 20% of the Open. I got into time trouble in one of my recent matches and played the last game horribly as a result of not being able to count quickly enough.

I came up with the following plan:

1) Before the first hit: Just keep a running count by saying the color of the checker that's ahead and by how much. It's quite easy to just think "Blue 4, White 2" after a 31P-42P opening sequence or whatever. Very little mental energy used, and it only really gets complicated after a hit (even then it's not bad, but more energy than I want to expend).

2) After a hit: Now it's time for crossover counting. It's not too bad to use this to visually see who's ahead and who's behind. Would half-crossovers be better? Yes. Are crossovers good enough for my money when considering different checker plays? Sure.

3) When considering breaking contact, a cube action, or in a straight race: Now I take the full count and just revert to the running count. I have botched the initial count before here and thus carried cube errors over and over before, but it was a lesson learned.

A few practice tips:

-- I find that it helps to play decent local players OTB with the "Faster Master" time settings. I think Rory Pascar is the only one that still runs this tournament (Jeb Horton invented it I think), but the 1m/10s setting forces you speed up your counting. Regular time settings feel luxurious after this.

-- There's supposedly a training track on BackgammonStudio or somewhere that tests your pip count speed, then gives you penalty seconds for each pip you are off. I can't find it, but it's out there somewhere.

-- Just put a board out in your house/apartment and throw the checkers down into some plausible position. Next time you walk by the board, count it and time yourself. Shuffle the checkers. Repeat.