Dart Etiquette

I was thinking about how important sportsmanship was in darts, and this was what turned up.......

Darts is a friendly game, and in the true spirit of sportsmanship, competitive matches usually begin and end with a handshake. It is important to be considerate of your fellow darters and to follow the guidelines of dart etiquette.
-Begin and end matches with a handshake and words to the effect of "Good Play".
-Do not shout out or speak to a dart thrower who is at the line.
-Do not tell your opponents their out-numbers or suggested strategy while they are at the line.
-Do not swear or raise your voice (no outbursts, yelling or screaming).
-Do not throw your darts or hit the dartboard in frustration.
-Do not complain about the opponent you are throwing against.
-Any unethical conduct, abusive language or poor sportsmanship may be grounds for forfeiture of a match, and possibly expulsion from the league or tournament play. Local league and tournament managers may rule on this at their discretion. Abide by these decisions in the spirit of sportsmanship.
-When playing in a blind-draw, bring your own darts or use house darts - do NOT assume you will use your partner's darts.
-Do not assume you will diddle (cork) or go first, instead discuss and agree on this with your partner before the match is to begin.
-Be aware of the toe line and do your best not to cross the line while throwing.
-Stand behind the line when your opponent is throwing, and if off to the side, remain behind the area of the line and out of the thrower's peripheral vision.
-When playing steel-tip darts, be sure to chalk your fair share for your fellow darters.
-When playing steel-tip darts, be sure to announce your score to the chalker before pulling your darts.
-Be on time for matches.
-Do be enthusiastic toward any dart player you are paired up with in a blind draw.
-Do be a team player and help coach others on the strategy of the game when asked.
-When there is a game in progress at your local pub, which is not part of a tournament or league play, whoever is playing on that board owns the board. The etiquette-wise darter may challenge whomever owns the board to a match. The winner(s) of that match then owns the board.
-Do act with grace during and after a match, whether you have won or lost.

Remember darts are on TV

World Series of Darts
FOXW2 Mar 27 06:00pm
Limited Series/Sports, 60 Mins.

"World Championships", Episode #11.
From Purfleet, England.

D.T.

Why Practice?

I found the series of articles a good read and very informative. I have integrated some of thees tips into my practice routine and I hope to see some results (only league & tourney play will tell). So I will keep you posted.

Why Practice?
Toincrease our ability for upcoming competitive situations and simply get better. Throwing darts can be very enjoyable in a completely non-competitive way. It can be relaxing or it can be stimulating.

Some important practice tips:
You must decide on the mechanics that suit you, and identify any bad habits you may already have.

Educate(or re-educate) yourself about good dart mechanics. If you have access to video of pro-darts then try to identify the things that all pro-dart strokes have in common

Reference sources such as books and instructional videos can also be helpful ...consult several sources and identify the constants.

Find a comfortable, well balanced stance - not leaning over too far . The orientation of the feet to the oche is not important as long as you are consistent. Your stance should be erect and the only movement should be in your forearm and hand.

The elbow should be extended fully towards the target. Really extend and stretch the elbow out. It may feel unnatural at first, but it is an excellent habit to develop.

The dart should be brought back to the dominant eye (or between the eyes). At this point your arm has effectively become a catapult and all that remains is to move your arm forward and release the dart.

At the completion of your throw, your arm should be fully extended as though you were pointing at the board.

The grip should be natural and feel comfortable.

The grip is in part determined by the equipment that is used. A good grip for a short fat dart is not going to be a good grip for a long skinny dart.

Never aim high or low to compensate for your throw. That is a bad habit. Just work hard until the darts go where you aim them.

Maybe the most important ingredient for success is your frame of mind.You want to be focused and alert, yet calm.

This is just a bit of the important and helpful information about practice that can be found in John Part's series of articles at:
http://www.planetdarts.co.uk once you are at the site look for Part's Darts.

Some suggestions for practice games:

10 Bulls: One person /team throws (3 darts per turn) at bull's-eyes until you hit 10 of them, while your opponent throws at 20's (or any number) to score points. The people scoring points could only count those points in a turn that were greater than 40, for example, three single 20's equals a combined total of 60 points, but only 20 points are recorded as the first 40 points did not count. This makes it a little more challenging for the person shooting to score points. This process continues until the person shooting the bulls hits 10 of them. Once this is achieved, you switch and you start shooting for scores and your opponent shoots to get 10 bulls. Once both sides have had their turn shooting for scores and shooting for 10 bulls the game is over. The one who scores the most total points wins!

101:Can be played straight on or double on. Counting down to “0” doubling out. Good for working on outs, and doubles.

Legs: Winner of the cork throws three darts adding up their score. Player 2 has to beat that score (ties do not count). If they beat the score, Player 3 has to beat that score. Not beating the score equals a mark and the next person has to beat whatever it was they hit. Five marks and you're out of the game.


I'm sure you will find that some pros will have some variations on some of thees tips, but I hope you find them helpful and read more of the series of articles.

Most of the games suggested here have been around for sometime, but I think they are fun and a change from the routine. Enjoy!

D.T.

No darts tonight

In honor of St. Patrick's Day our opponents for tonights match has asked that the match be rescheduled. We have agreed and look forward to our encounter with this formidable “A” league opponent.

D.T.

Match results 3-16-05

Yesterday we made up one of the games we had postponed earlier in the season. This time the other team had four players present, and were ready to play. We entered the match expecting to do well, but losing both Cricket games at the top of the match proved to be an obstacle from which we could not recover. We lost the match 8 to 5. They also beat us in total MVP points 53 – 30 their top player scoring 18 MVP points, and ours scoring 17. My best accomplishment for the night was a “Ton on” in 301 singles. During this game I came to the board with a 40 out, and the potential for a low darts game. Alas I missed the out and lost the game, but with practice I and my team will continue to improve.

Coming soon practice tips & practice games.

D.T.

Second win!!

Our team took a second consecutive victory, but it must be said that the other team was short a player, and had to play a "blind." I must say that practice has improved our team play as I see improvement in "MVP" points.

I have been reading some articles on practice, and I will review them here very soon.

Remember that there will be darts on TV this weekend:

World Series of Darts
"World Championships"
FSW, Sun Mar 13 4:00pm PST
"World Championships"
FSW, Mon Mar 14 2:00am PST
"World Championships"
FSW, Mon Mar 14 1:00pm PST
"World Championships"
FOXW2, Mon Mar 14 8:00pm PST

"World Championships", Episode #9.
From Purfleet, England

Let's Talk Darts

Let's Talk Darts
Well I just wanted to say that our team won it's first match of the season. It would have been better if the other team had been at full strength and had to play with a blind. This gave me the idea that there could be at large subs that register to join the league, but not a specific team. If there were at large subs available a team captain; given enough notice that a team member would not be able to play, could consult the sub call list to replace the absent player.

Tonight is league night, and practice has been going well. I hope that our team can preform well enough to get a win.