How to Play Darts

If your game room doesn’t have a dartboard then you should really consider revamping it. Darts is a game of strategy and technique – it’s something you can only get better at the more you play. A fair warning though: the darts are pretty sharp, so make sure that when you do play it there are no small children around who could get hurt.

According to Wikipedia, the game of darts originated in England and the first game was played in the 1860s. It is said that soldiers used to throw sharp objects to targets marked on tree stumps and the game started from there. Today it is played in bars, game rooms, and even in tournaments all over the world.

If you are still new to darts or if you haven’t played the game yet, this is a must-read. By following these simple dart rules you’ll be able to hit a bullseye in no time!

Darts Requirements

You will need another person to play against as this is a game for 2 people, some darts as well as a dartboard. Usually when you buy a dartboard you get a few darts as well. If you have bought a dart board it is usually hung so that the bullseye in the middle is 5ft 8in. off the ground. You will also have to place a marker from where you will throw – this is generally 7ft 9in from the face of the board. You will also need pen and paper for the scoring.

How to Play Darts

1. Before you start playing you’ll have to familiarize yourself with the scoring and the layout of the board. The numbers 1 – 20 will appear in a mixed-up order along the outer side of the board, dividing it up into 20 sections. There will be a red circle in the middle (called the bullseye) with a green ring around it (known as the outer bull).
2. Based on these numbers scoring will work as follow:
   • if you throw the dart inside one of the bigger portions of a section (usually black or yellow) you will gain the exact score as the number of that section.
   • if you throw the dart inside one of the thinner outer portions of this segment (usually green and red), your score will be double the number of that section.
   • if you throw the dart inside one of the thinner inner portions of the segment (also green and red), your score will be triple the number of that section.
3. if you hit the outer bull you will receive 25 points; if you hit the bullseye, you will receive 50 points.
4. no scores are allocated if you throw inside the ring with the numbers on or if you miss the board completely.
5. There are many variations of darts but the most popular is 501. Each players starts with 501 points and the goal is to bring it down to 0 in as few turns as possible.
6. Each player will have three throws per turn and you should aim to hit the highest score possible.
7. If your score reaches into the negative numbers (beyond 0) you should wait a turn before you get it back up again.

Darts Video Tutorial