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WMDA Dart Basics
From Dart Mart, Inc's Darts Handbook.
| Steel-tip vs Soft Tip |
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The two most popular versions of darts are:
- English, or "Steel Tip", Traditional darts with metal points.
Steel darts are generally classified by the metal they are constructed of.
- Brass Darts: $4.00 to $16.00
- Nickel/Silver Darts: $12.00 to $35.00
- Tungsten Darts: $15.00 to over $100.00. Vary from 50% to 98% Tungsten.
- Electronic, or "Soft Tip", Light weight darts with a soft plastic points. A recent arrival on the dart scene, these darts have soft, flexible tips. Soft tips dart games are play using plastic boards with holes molded into its surface which accept and hold the point of the thrown dart. WMDA doesn't currently have soft tip seasons so we won't dive very far into the finer points of soft tip action.
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| The Dart |
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The point of the dart is either steel or plastic. Other than this basic distinction, the other components of the dart are essentially the same for both steel-tip and soft-tip darts.
The essential part of the dart is the barrel, because the shaft, flight and even the point can be changed. Therefore, the darter should pick his/her dart on the basis of the barrel design that is best for them.
Most dart barrels are made of brass, nickel/silver, or tungsten/nickel alloys. Beginning darters will typically use brass or nickel/silver darts because they are the least expensive. However, a major objective in darts is developing the ability to put all 3 darts close together in a tight grouping. The thickness of brass and nickel/silver barrels can crowd out following darts, preventing tight groupings and high scores.
Better players use tungsten darts because tungsten is roughly twice as dense as brass, which means that, for darts of the same weight, a tungsten dart is almost twice as thin as a brass dart. Tungsten is alloyed with nickel to give it strength. The higher the percentage of tungsten in the barrel, the better the dart.
Because shafts and flights wear out regularly during play, darts are designed to allow replacement of these parts. As a result, there are thousands of different flights and shafts available, which allows the darter to customize his/her dart set.
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| The Rules |
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All dart games are played using the same fundamental rules:
Each player's turn consist of three thrown darts.
A player's feet must remain behind the throw line.
All thrown darts count. If a dart's point does not stick within the scoring area of the board for whatever reason - falling out, knocked out, missing the board: it counts as a thrown dart, but does not score. A dart that sticks in the back of another does not count.
Before each game, each player will throw a dart at the bull's eye. The player closest to the center will go first. In the event of a tie, both players throw again.
Cricket
The only numbers used in cricket are 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, and the bulls' eye. The object of the game is to close each of these numbers by hitting three if each number. This can be accomplished with 3 singles, or a double and a single, or a triple (with the exception of the bull - there is no triple bull). The numbers can be closed in any order.
The other aspect of the game is the scoring of points. If player A has closed a number, and player B has not closed that number, Player A can score points by continuing to hit that number. For instance, if player A closed the number 20, and player B is still open on 20, player A receives an additional 20 points for each additional 20 he hits until player B closes 20. A player must close all numbers and have more point to win.
501
Each player starts with 501 points. The object of the game is to reduce your score to exactly 0 by subtracting the points you hit in each round. Doubles and triples count. The tricky part is that, in order to win, you must hit the double that, when subtracted from your score, gives you exactly zero (this is called doubling out). In other words, with 36 points left, you must hit a double 18 to win.
If the points thrown in a round are more than the remaining score, or that player is left with a score of 1(which can not be doubled out), that player has busted, and the players turn is over. The whole turn is ignored, and the next player goes. For instance, Player A has 32 points remaining, and throws 35 points, a bust. Player B goes, and Player A then begins the next turn with 32 points.
301
The principles of this game are the same as 501. Each player begins with a score of 301 points. However in order to begin subtracting, each player must hit a double to start(doubling in). Each player's scoring dart is his/her first double. Like 501, the winner is the first player to double out.
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| Setting Up Your Dart Board |
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As shown above, international rules dictate that the dart board be set up with the center of the board 68" (5'8") above the floor. The throw line is measured from the face of the board, 7' 9.25".
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