How to Shoot Cricket Darts
Walk into practically any bar and there is a good chance you will see a person or two throwing darts. According to A1Darts.com, one of the most common games played in America is called "cricket." Cricket utilizes only the dartboard numbers 15 through 20 along with the bull's-eye; the other numbers do not count toward the goal. Your goal in cricket is to "close" each number and the bull's-eye by striking that number three times. Learning how to shoot cricket darts requires you to understand how to throw a dart. The rest is aiming and practice.
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Instructions
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Practice properly throwing darts. Hold your throwing shoulder steady and grip the dart between your thumb and first two fingers. Point the tip of the dart up and aim at your target. Bring your forearm toward your elbow and flick your arm, releasing the dart as your elbow straightens out. Dartbase.com shows an animation on this motion (see Resources).
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Aim for any number between 15 and 20 or the bull's-eye. Throw your darts at the number. Darts that strike the thin, outer ring count as two; the inner ring counts as three. Darts in the number panel but not in either ring count as one.
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Keep track of your score by writing down the numbers in descending order, 20 through 15, adding the bull's-eye at the bottom. When you score a point, mark it next to the number. The classic way to score points is to use a slash for the first point, a second slash to form an "X" for the second point and a circle around the "X" to indicate that the number is closed out (when the third point is scored).
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Focus on the proper throwing technique as you continue playing cricket, trying to hit each number (15 through 20) and the bull's-eye three times.
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Tips & Warnings
Cricket also has a point system that players may choose to forgo. The point system adds some strategy to the game and is not too difficult to understand. First, assume you have closed out the 20 but your opponent is still aiming for it. Since you closed the 20 first, any of your darts that land in the 20 prior to your opponent closing the number count as face value (20 points) and can be banked on your score sheet. At the end of the game, when each player is ideally aiming for one final number, the player with the most points only has to hit the last number three times while the player trailing in points must continue to hit the last number until he or she surpasses the other player's point total. Once a number is closed by both players, no more scoring can occur on that number.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit darts 150 image by Warren Millar from Fotolia.com
