Darts guides: checkouts, setup, practice and more

Darts for beginners: what you need to start, the rules of 501 in brief, first throwing technique, aiming drills and a simple plan for your first month of steel-tip darts.

How to throw darts with a repeatable technique: stance at the oche, grip, aiming, the elbow as pivot, release and follow-through, rhythm, beginner mistakes and drills.

Official dartboard dimensions per WDF rules in mm and inches, the number order from 20 clockwise and why, colours, scoring areas, highest scores and how to check your own board.

The darts checkout chart and calculator for every double-out finish from 170 to 2, with bogey numbers, setup shots, the best doubles and a printable PDF.

The best darts games for every situation: for 2 players, groups and parties, beginners and kids, practice on your own and pub nights, with short rules and player counts.

How to choose darts: the right weight, tungsten percentage, barrel shape and grip, points, shafts and flights, how to test a set before buying and what WDF rules allow.

How to choose a dartboard: bristle vs paper boards, sisal quality, staple-free construction, round, triangular and blade wires, and what entry, club and tournament boards offer.

How to hang a dartboard to the official WDF and PDC measurements: bullseye 1.73 m high, oche 2.37 m from the board face, 2.93 m diagonal, plus mounting, noise, lighting and floor.

How to make a dartboard quieter in a flat: why darts thud through shared walls, how to build a decoupled backboard, plus surrounds, stands, floor mats and quiet hours.

Should beginners aim at treble 20 or treble 19? The board layout, a clear scoring model by accuracy, when the 20 pays off, cover shots when it is blocked and how to test it yourself.

How to hold a dart: find the centre of gravity, choose between 2, 3, 4 and 5-finger grips, get the pressure right and keep the point up, plus the grip mistakes to avoid.

How to find your dominant eye in darts with the Miles and Porta tests, line up eye, dart and target, handle cross dominance, and aim with glasses or contact lenses.

A darts practice routine that works: a 30-minute daily session and a weekly plan with drills for scoring, doubles and checkouts, plus how to track your progress.

How the darts average is calculated, with a worked 501 leg: 3-dart and 1-dart average, first nine, checkout rate, MPR in Cricket, what counts as a good average and how to raise it.

The darts mental game explained: a pre-throw routine, focus and breathing, darts nerves on doubles, resetting after a bad visit, pressure drills and what dartitis is.

Darts elbow, sore shoulders, back and legs: why darts causes aches, the technique, warm-up and practice habits that prevent them, and when to see a doctor or physio.

Darts terms from A to Z: ton, 180, bust, checkout, oche, bogey numbers, Shanghai, madhouse and more, plus what the caller says. Short, exact definitions of the words players really use.

Dartboard care for sisal boards: when and how often to rotate a dartboard, how to turn the number ring, pull darts out, keep the board dry, deburr points and know when to replace it.

Steel tip vs soft tip darts compared: bristle and electronic boards, dart weights, 2.37 m or 2.44 m throw lines, fat bull and double out, noise at home, cost and which to choose.

How automatic darts scoring works: cameras, sensors and scoring apps compared, how many webcams you need, which dartboard suits cameras, how accurate it is and what it costs.

Darts rules explained simply: scoring, 501, double out, bust, who throws first, the oche, legs and sets and cricket basics, with a printable one-page PDF.

How darts scoring works: segments, double and treble rings, bull and bullseye, a points table, worked visits, keeping score by hand, quick maths, 180 and impossible scores, Cricket marks.

Darts sets and legs explained: what a leg and a set are, best of and first to, the two-clear-legs tie-break and the PDC World Championship format round by round.

The nine-dart finish explained: the classic 180, 180, 141 route, all 3,944 ways to throw a nine-darter, the full route list, the 167 average and how to practise the finish.

How to hit more doubles in darts: aiming, doubles that halve when you miss, six drills with a score, pressure practice, a four-week plan and checkout routes as patterns.

The best darts games for two players, sorted by time and level: 501 and Cricket for a real match, quick games, training duels, fun duels and handicaps for uneven players.

The best darts games to play on your own, sorted by goal: fun, accuracy, scoring, doubles and checkouts. With rules, how to keep score and scores to beat.

Killer, Knockout, team games and a quick bracket for 4 to 20 people, plus a plan for a World Championship watch party.

Darts with children: safety rules, what age to start, board height and throwing distance for kids, and easy games from High Score to Darts Football.

Build your own auto scoring dartboard from three webcams, an LED ring and your laptop: parts, camera positions, mounts, light, USB, budget and common mistakes.

Dart flights and shafts explained: how they change the flight and the angle in the board, flight shapes to scale, shaft lengths and materials, and how to test a new setup.

Plan a darts corner at home: floor space with exact measures, wall protection compared, a DIY backboard, shadow-free light, dart mats, scoreboard, budget and checklist.

Dartitis explained: the symptoms players describe, what research knows about causes, practical steps to free up your release and when to get professional help.