How to throw darts

Beginner's guide to throwing darts

The techniques of throwing darts are quite simple and similar to other sports games. The challenge is to be able to repeat a good throw many times consistently without any errors. Contrary to what some beginners think, darts do not require much strength. Even children can be trained to throw darts. Just follow the guidelines below and you will be scoring in no time. And of course, the most important part of the game is to relax your body and mind, enjoy yourself and don't stress yourself up!

How to score the Board

The board is sliced into 20 equal pies. The score for each slice is noted by the number on the outer most rim. There are two rings around the board, the inner ring scores double while the outer ring scores triple (3 times) the slice. For example, the slice at 12o'clock marked 20 scores 20point and the part which lies along the outer ring scores 40 and the part along the inner ring scores 60.

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In all Cricket games, the outer bull (red color) scores 25 while the inner black bull (smallest circle in the center) scores 50. In all other games, the red and black bull have the same score (50).

Each player gets to throw 3 darts in a round, players alternate between each round. If a dart is thrown but misses the board or hits outside the board can no longer be thrown again.

Using the Medalist machine

There are 5 buttons on the Medalist machine. The red right-most button is the Game Selection button (to move the selection up or down) as well as the Player Change button (the button to press at the end of your 3 darts throw). The 4 yellow buttons are the player selection buttons, i.e. one player, two players, three players or four players. The yellow buttons are also the game confirmation (i.e. enter key). Follow the screen instruction on the use of the buttons during game setup / play.

To play a game, slot in a coin and use the red button to move the selection to the desired game. Press the appropriate yellow button depending on the number of players.

For more fun and excitement, you can play in a team mode where you have a team of two or more players against another team of the same number of players. In this case, use the two/three/four player button and alternate shooting between each player of a team. You can play up to a team size of 3 players (Trios).

Parts of the dart

Tip - This is the pointed end of the dart which lands on the board. Made of plastic, this part may get damaged easily compared to the other sections of a dart but the cost of replacing is very cheap. Replacement tips are usually sold in packs of 50 for S$2.
Barrel - This is the center "metallic" portion of the dart where you hold, which is the heaviest part. It could be made of brass, chrome, tungsten, nickel, etc and is the most important part of the dart.
Shaft - This is the back portion of the dart where the "feathers" will be attached to.
Flight - Llike the feathers of an arrow, this plastic wing helps guide the flight of a dart in air. There are many patterns, shapes and color available and all are priced very low.

The Stance

Stand with one foot forward just behind the line. If you throw with your right hand, then stand with your right foot forward in parallel with the line. Do not stand with both legs facing the board.

Your weight will rest mainly on the forward foot while the other foot will balance your weight. Your stance must be rock solid. Do not move the lower half of the body at any point in time during your throw. Do not lift your balance foot at the end of a throw.

The Grip

In general, there are many ways of holding the dart. the grip that is most comfortable and familiar iis probably the best one. Changing to a new grip without lots of practice would surely hurt your game, especially if you try to change in mid-way. Some darts may require a slightly different way of holding, so you might need to adjust. The basic requirements are :

- Point the dart slightly up
- Have a good grip on the dart but not to the extent it strains your finger muscle.

The best type of grips are with three or four fingers. For beginners, the four finger grip with two above the dart and two below is highly recommended if you plan to play a lot more better darts. This is an excellent balanced grip and seems to work well enough for champions. Two-finger grip give very little directional control while five-finger grip give too much top heavy control.

Whichever way you hold, during the throw, all fingers should release the dart at the same time, so that the dart does not wobble or "kick" in its flight or drift off target.

Flight of the dart

How should a dart fly through the air to reach the board ? It travels along a parabolic curve, not a direct straight-line hit. Although some players' darts may seem to travel in a straight line from the release to the board, it would require quite some effort and energy to maintain that level line. By the end of a few games, your hand would probably feel very tired and numb!

The parabolic curve is like the outline of a small hill. It may be higher or lower depending on the release strength. The correct throw is one where the hand guides the dart along this parabolic curve and the dart will continue along this curve once released.

The Arm Throw

There are 4 stages of a throw:
1. Aim
2. Pull back the arm
3. Throw forward and release dart
4. Follow through

During a throw, the shoulder should not move at all. Moving the shoulder will ruin the balance of the other parts of your arm.

To Aim, align your eyes, the dart and the target on the board in a straight line. Focus on the target, not on the dart. Aim is important even for beginners, otherwise the game will quickly become frustrating. When aiming, keep your dart pointing slightly upward. Do not start with the dart pointing downwards or you will end up throwing the dart on to the floor. See the picture below.

The next step is to Pull back using only the elbow. Do not lift or drop your forearm. Do not move your shoulders. You don't have to do it too fast. You can also pull back, hold then release. Some new players skip this step in fear of losing the aim. However almost all good players do this. You have to practice and adjust how far back to pull back as it depends on individual throw. The idea here is to give you the leverage to accelerate the dart without using excessive physical force.

Next comes the Forward Throw . Do it naturally, in one move and without using much force. Release the dart somewhere before the dart starts pointing downward. With a good throw, this should come naturally. Do not move your legs or jump at any point during the throw.

Follow through. This is very important at the end of a throw. It helps to guide the dart to the desired target. The best and easiest way is to think of ending the throw by pointing your throwing hand at the desired target. Do not let the arm drop or stop in mid-air after a throw.

That's it. With these simple techniques, you will be throwing bulls in no time! Just keep practising. Most importantly, relax and enjoy the game!

For more dart tips, visit DartBase.