Darts

Where you set up your dartboard is of utmost importance. The dartboard should be placed on a wall that doesn't have anything else around it and where you don't mind if it gets banged up a bit (a dart can fly at least eight feet in any direction if it doesn't hit the board).

The Proper Surroundings

You have to be very careful where you decide to put the board if you plan to play in your home. You don't want it to be in a place that is heavily trafficked because darts are made of metal and are extremely dangerous if they hit anything but that board. You might want to consider hanging a scoreboard on the same wall as the dartboard.

Another important factor is the floor on which you will stand while playing the game. Darts can damage wood and linoleum surfaces. If you play on carpet, be prepared for a lot of wear-and-tear. Concrete, tile, and other hard surfaces can damage the darts. So what kind of flooring should you use?

The best thing to do is to buy a dart mat. You can buy these from sporting goods stores or specialty shops that sell darts and dart supplies. These mats are rubberized and darts will bounce lightly off their surface. This is the best route to go if you plan to play the game often. Leave ample space for spectators also—there's always some that won't be playing, but will enjoy watching the match.

You'll also need proper lighting to play Darts. Not only do you want to be able to see the board to make your best shot, but you'll also want to be able to read the board once your dart hits it. The best way to light the board is to hang two lights on either side of it—one on the left and the other on the right. If you don't like this look, try hanging one of those tiny “piano lights” over it—the same kind of light that people use to light paintings. That won't be too unsightly and should provide adequate light for visibility and practicality.

Hanging the Board

Get out your tape measure because hanging the board is pretty specific business. The board must be hung five feet, eight inches from the floor to the center of the dartboard.

Dartboards are designed so that they hang from the bull's-eye, so measuring the required height is really pretty easy to do. But if you do wind up with a board that hangs from the top, you should measure the distance from the center of the bull's-eye to the hanger and add that to the height.

Marking the Throw Line

The throw line or “hockey” should be three feet wide and it may be drawn with anything you want depending on what surface you are playing on. Many people just stick a piece of tape to the ground. Specialty stores may have a throw line sticker that you can paste to the floor. The throw line should be placed seven feet and nine-and three-quarter inches from the face of the board when playing with steel-tipped darts. With soft-tipped darts, the throw line should be eight feet from the board.

Understanding the Board

When you look at the dartboard, it may seem a bit confusing at first, but it's really pretty simple. There are numbers around the board and metal rings. There's an outer ring, a middle ring, and an inside ring. The goal is to throw your darts in the number and ring corresponding with the amount of points you need to score in a given game. The outer ring is made up of single points, the middle ring doubles your points, the inner ring triples your points, and the center is the bull's-eye. Which game you are playing and how many points you require to win the game determines where you aim your darts.

Let's Play Darts: The General Rules

There are some basic, general rules for playing Darts that exist for most games. Before you start playing, though, be sure to check with the other players on the rules you're going to stick to. Darts is played differently all over the world and you'll be amazed by some of the new rules you'll learn from other players. Don't be surprised if you find yourself making up some new games from all the varying rules you encounter. Just be sure you're all on the same page before you begin playing.

Darts is usually started with the “diddle for middle,” where each player throws a dart to determine who goes first. The goal is to hit the bull's-eye, but if no one manages that on the first throw, then the player who throws closest to the bull's-eye will be the player, or team, to go first in the game. If the first player hits the bull's-eye, the second player has the option to remove that first dart in order to try and hit the same mark. But if the second player hits the bull's-eye without removing that first dart, he or she automatically wins the throw. If the dart is removed, then a tie is declared and throwing begins again in reverse order.

The winner of the throw gets to choose which Dart game will be played.

If you are playing in teams, the team that wins the initial dart throw goes first. The teams then alternate.

The teams alternate turns and players. Be careful not to throw out of turn, because you may forfeit the game—or at least your turn. It depends on how strictly you want to enforce the general rules.

Each player throws three darts per turn.

You cannot step over the throw line when it's your turn or your darts will be voided and you will lose your turn to the opposing team. You can lean as far over the line as you want, but don't let your foot cross over.

If your dart is knocked out of the board, even if it sticks at first and then falls out, the dart does not count and may not be thrown again. You can go up to the board and catch a dart before it falls out but only if all the darts in that round have been thrown.

Be careful not to pull your darts from the board (or let another player pull your darts from the board) before the score for that round has been agreed upon and marked on the scoreboard. If you pull the darts before the score is marked, you might lose your points.

Scoring is sometimes the trickiest part of any Dart match. You want to make sure you choose a reliable scorekeeper and one that is not on either team. That will help when making some tricky scoring decisions. It's good to have an impartial party involved.

There are several different Dart games you can choose to play. Here are just a few.

x01

The name of this game is pronounced “x-oh-one,” and it is one of the easiest games to play and a good one for beginners. The rules are pretty simple and allow new players to develop their throwing skills without having to worry too much about complicated rules and scoring.

The Object

The object of the game is to score a zero. It sounds a little strange to play a game where your object is to lose points, but that's the name of the game here. The game starts with a score of 301, 401, 501, 601, or 1,001 points—it's up to you what point value you decide to start with. The goal is to subtract the total of your darts thrown from any of those values, until you eventually get down to zero.

You can start the game by throwing either a double-in or a single-in (see the lingo list for the details on these terms). You can also play using double-out or straight-out. It's up to you and the preferences of the other players. Usually, people don't play this game with a straight-out; playing a straight-out is rather uneventful. It's much more challenging to play a double-out. Games 301 and 601 are usually played as double-in/double-out while 401, 501, and 1,001 are played straight-in/double out.

Scoring

The score that you agree to start with, let's say “301,” is written at the top center of the scoreboard before the game begins. A vertical line should be drawn down the center of the board and underneath the “301” the letters “DD” or “SD” should be indicated to show the agreed upon start and finish rules. DD: double-in/double-out and SD: single-in/double-out. After each round (throw of three darts per player) the total points from that round is written on the board along with the remaining score on that player's side of the board.

The score of 100 is called “Ton” and is written as a “T” on the scoreboard. Scores over 100, are a “Ton” plus the extra score. For example, a score of 120 is a “ton-twenty” and is written on the board as “₂T₀.”

The initials of each player are marked in vertical columns on the scoreboard with the winner of the initial throw written on the left.

So, as you can see, scoring does require one's un­divided attention, and it's best to have someone dedicated to that job alone. If you don't have someone, it's okay to use one of the team players, but make sure it's just one person and that that person speaks the scoreboard lingo; otherwise, you could wind up with a muddled board and you'll never know who won the game.

Getting Started

You start the game with the usual round of “diddle for middle.” Each player throws a dart in an effort to hit the bull's-eye and go first. You've already read the rules for this procedure, so your next step is to start playing the game!

If the game is called a straight-in game, the person who threw the winning opening dart goes first. The goal is to score as many possible points with your first three throws (the opening round). Each dart is scored by the number it hits on the board. If you hit in the outer ring, the score is the face value of the number. If your dart hits the middle ring, your score doubles the value of the number you hit, and if you hit within the inner circle, your score triples. The highest possible score in one round is 180 or three triple-20s.

If the game is called a double-in, then the first player to throw the darts must score a double in order to start the game. If you are the first player up and you hit any number in the double ring area, you will have officially started the game, and the scores add up from there. If you don't hit a double, then the play goes to the player number one on team two and that thrower tries to hit a double. This keeps going until someone hits a double and the game can commence.

If player number one hits a single, then a double, and then another single, the first single doesn't count toward the points. The second throw—the double—does count, as does the third dart thrown. The opening round is the only round that requires the players to hit a double. After the first double is hit, all other scores are valid.

Getting Out

Because you are scoring backward in x01, meaning subtracting points from the initial score, you will have to begin to think how to strategize your out. Expert players don't have much of a problem hitting exact numbers to get out. They probably start rounding out when they get to about 160, but if you're a novice, you may want to figure your out when you get down to about 40. You won't have to be as precise with the numbers you hit.

If you're playing straight-out, you'll be able to hit single numbers to get to zero, but if you're playing double-out, you'll have to be a little more precise with your throws. With a double-out in this game you will have to throw a double to get to exactly zero, in order to get out of, and win, the game.

Double-out example:

Let's say you are at 32, you will need to hit a double-16 in order to end the game. If you don't hit a double-16, but hit a single-8 instead, you now have 24 points. If you score 23 points with your remaining two darts, you have busted, because you will only have 1 point left and there's no way to throw half of one. If you “bust,” none of your darts counts for that round and you pass your turn to the next player. You also bust if you score less than zero, or exactly zero if you hit zero but your last dart was not a double.

The only way to bust in a straight-out game is if you wind up with less than zero as your total score.

There are many strategies for getting out of the x01 double-out games. There are actually scoring charts that show you what you need to throw to win the game. These scoring charts can be located online or through a sporting goods supply store. You may even be able to find these charts in local bookstores. Experts use these charts, so don't be too bothered if you can't understand the charts right away. The longer you play, the easier it will be to catch on to some of the scoring techniques. Even if you did understand the techniques, practice makes perfect, and if you're new to this, you'll need to do a lot of practicing before you learn the art of the double-out.

Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Family Games © 2002 by BookEnds, LLC. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

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